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Description
Scuttle Town, a beautiful seaside town of Sequin Land, is the scene of much hustle and bustle. Trade is the big game in this town. Its skyline is dotted with elaborate domes structures. Most buildings are constructed from a fine, rich yellow brick. Red onion shaped domes rest atop them. The warm winds force clouds away, allowing azure sky and bright sun to show clearly. Shorebirds can be found at just about every corner, resting on the roofs of any building close to food. Merchant men and women sell their wares. Old Carpet weavers, sultry pot makers, spice and food salesmen, you name it, Scuttle Town has it.

Scuttle Town also has a notable problem; piracy. For years now, the self-proclaimed ‘Queen of the Seven Seas’ Risky Boots has blundered Scuttle Town of its riches from time to time. The flow of wealth and riches that comes through Scuttle Town is her primary target. With a sizeable flotilla, Risky has managed to lay siege to the town. Her band of pirates, made up exclusively of the silent and shadowy Tinkerbats, carries out her will to the letter. Their black-purplish bodies are covered by red trousers and a red bandana. Yellow eyes and an aggressive demeanor, they are generally feared throughout town.

Feared except by one, that is. Scuttle Town has long had a protector. While the local authorities do their best to minimize any raids on the town, one pursues Risky in an attempt to bring her to justice. This individual is known as Shantae. Reputed to be half-genie, the young maiden has long stood against the devious Risky Boots. Her ultimate goal to run Risky ashore and sink her ships for good. However, as of late, Shantae has had little to do. From the edge of town, in her small and quaint home, Shantae sits along the shore. Her home serves as a small lighthouse for travelers far and wide. There, sitting with both hands on her knees, her head in her palms, she sighs aloud.

“There is nothing to do around here! No sign of Risky these days. No sign of Ammo Baron…not even a random dingy full of Tinkerbats.” Shantae exclaims as she throws herself backwards. Her back lands with a gentle thud on the grass. Closing her dark blue eyes, Shantae throws her hands behind her head. Her exceptionally long violet hair rests beneath her. Rolling to her tummy, she throws herself up with a single spring like motion. Shantae pats down her long red harem pants. They are tight around her waist but flail outwards toward the bottom of her legs. The crouch area of her pants is black, in stark contrast to the brilliant red, while two golden bars run along the sides, by her hips.

Shantae begins to walk towards her lighthouse. Wearing red shoes that curl into points at the toes, Shantae runs her hands across her forehead. She wears a golden tiara around the base of her hairline. It comes to a v-like point on her forehead and travels back, resting on her long, and pointy genie ears. A gold hair tie binds her hair at the back of her skull, pointing upwards. With each step the young half-genie hero takes, her long violet hair sways side to side. Her hair zigzags all the way down to behind her knees. Thick tufts of purple hair hand in front of her face. A single, dark purple choker collar wraps around her neck. A small brassiere hugs her bosom. A thin gold ring holds them together at the center of her bosom. Large, golden armlets adorn each forearm while two thick gold hoop earrings hang from her ears.

As Shantae makes it to her doorknob, the sun is setting, and a large shadow casts over Shantae. This prompts her to twist around and take a defensive stance. She immediately relents and smiles. Flying above her is a massive blue and purple falcon. Atop him, a saddled rider calls out to Shantae.

“Hey girl!” She girl cries out. A petite blonde with a blue and purple cloak, she commands the bird to land on the approach to Shantae’s home.

“Sky! What brings you here?” Shantae shouts as she dashes towards her friend. Petting the giant falcon, Shantae patiently waits for Sky to answer.

“Actually, this isn’t a social call. Bolo has been missing for two days. He left to track down some sunken treasure out at sea. He found a small chain of islands with some old ruins. Usually he’s back by now. I was wondering if we could go look for him.” Sky says, mentioning the disappearance of their mutual friend.

“Bolo, what has he gotten himself into this time? Yeah, ok. We can go. I take it that’s why Wrench is hauling travel packs.” Shantae answers as she continues to stroke the giant falcon’s peak.

“Yeah, Wrench is ready to go. It will only take us maybe two hours to fly out that way. Let’s just go make sure he’s ok and then come back. Who knows, maybe he did find some treasure and there’s too much and we’ll have to help him lug it all back!” Sky gleefully bellows as she leaps atop Wrench. Unfolding his wings, the falcon jumps into the air and begins to hover. Each flap of his mighty wings sends gusts of wind all around. Shantae’s hair whips behind her as she covers her face.

“Fine, let’s go!” Shantae says as she performs a single high jump, landing right behind Sky.

“Ha! Off we go!” Sky says as she takes Wrench’s reins. The three gain altitude and soar off the coast and out to see. The sun’s fading rays glisten off the clear ocean’s waves. Seagulls pass from time to time, as does the occasional fisherman’s boat below. The sun turns the cerulean sky into a blazing sea of reds and oranges and finally to a brilliant dark blue. Stars peak through the dark blanket of sky. Within the predicted two hours, they reach the small cluster of islands.

“Wow, look at that!” Shantae shouts as she reaches over the side of Wrench’s saddle and points downwards. The small islands ring a massive, domed structure. It’s brilliant, stunning shade of turquoise. A faded floral pattern swirls around the dome. The once vibrant dome is now worn by the constant sunlight but is still an awesome sight to behold. It is fat and wide at the base but then tapers upwards, gradually coming to a small conical shape. At the top is a single, round part that protrudes upwards from the whole of the dome. The whole structure reflects the bright light of the moon and stars above.

“That must be some ancient structure.” Sky muses as she has Wrench begin his descent. They take several flybys as they lower their altitude.

“It looks similar to our little Scuttle Town but I don’t recognize the colors or that style of dome. It looks a little off.” Shantae says to Sky. Sky nods at this. They pass by several large towers as they close in on the islands below. All but one has the same style dome as the others. This loan one is missing its top altogether. A building with a large entrance way, adorned with even more towers, slides into the ocean. The weight of the dome is clearly pulling it further into depths below. The same turquoise stone is used for every piece of the temple like structure. Finally, the women touch down. Sky reaches into her satchels and grabs two canteens of water, one for herself and Shantae, another for Wrench.

“Look at the archway to that building. I don’t recognize the script on it at all.” Sky says pointing up to the dominating structure. Shantae grabs the canteen off her friend and takes a deep jug.

“Well, whatever. We’ve found where Bolo is there. Look, there’s his little ship.” Shantae states as she walks towards the beach of the island they’ve landed on. For sure, there lies Bolo’s small fisherman’s vessel. An old campfire, unlit for some time rests there, along with Bolo’s tent.

“Oh no, Bolo hasn’t been here for quite some time. He has to be in that building! Sky, let’s go!” Shantae eagerly shouts before running to the massive archway.

“Wait a second Shantae, let me give Wrench some feed then we can go. I’m sure Bolo is fine, probably got stuck lugging something too heavy around in there. At worst, he’s probably strung up in some trap. He’s pretty tough so I’m sure he’s fine, just…lost.” Sky shouts back to Shantae as she grabs a large sack of seed for Wrench, lowering it onto the ground. The tired bird wastes no time in enjoying his meal while Sky rushes to pursue the impulsive Shantae. Shantae dashes for the entry way, leaving Sky to follow several feet behind.

“I’m going on in! Just try to catch up!” Shantae shouts back over her shoulder as she enters the archway entrance of the crippled structure. Shantae pauses and looks up. The vaulted ceiling is a magnificent sight to behold. Finely polished mosaics, forming a wave of color, make up the underbelly of the archway. Large, stone slaps form the floor. Unlike the outside, the inside of the archway is brilliant, hardly worn at all by the elements. This pause allows Sky to catch up.

“Woah, look at this place.” Shantae murmurs as she walks further in. Her curled shoes shuffle across the slick tiled floor.

“I can see why Bolo came here. There’s sure to be something worth the while in here.” Sky says to Shantae as she comes up behind her.

“Yeah, there’s probably plenty of jewels and treasure around this place. It looks so undisturbed.” Shantae replies as they walk closer through the archways and into a large corridor. Sinking slightly into the sea, water trickles in on the sides of the corridor. The building appears split in two, with a larger portion having snapped right off and sinking more steadily. Shantae and Sky continue to walk in the dimly lit temple. Cracks in the ceiling let tiny rays of moonlight in, but most of the interior is obscured by darkness. Rows after rows of columns hold up the massive domed structure.

“Hey…look.” Sky chimes, grabbing Shantae’s shoulder and turning her. Pointing at the walls, Sky draws attention to a mural mosaic. The two young women make their way to the wall.

“It’s pretty beat up. Look, it’s damaged from the big fissure in the temple.” Shantae notes, pointing out there are plenty of missing tiles. But the two investigate none the less. The mural is that of a scene, a scene with many people. In one panel, mostly broken, several women stand in brightly colored robes. Each one appears to be cradling to their abdomen. In the next panel, each woman holds an infant. Next to it is a more bizarre scene. A manly figure, atop a temple-like throne, women around him, dominates this final mosaic. Many, many tiles are missing from it.

“What do you make of all this?” Shantae asks Sky as she runs her fingers across the mosaic.

“I don’t know. Look at this last scene, hard to tell what’s going on.” Sky answers.

“Yeah, totally. Looks like some sort of king-like fella, with women around him and…something else. Hard to tell with so many pieces missing.” Shantae replies.

“Looks like water…” She continues. Unlike the other mosaics which have temple, market like scenery, this one appears to have a swirling deluge of water around the entire scene, as if the male figure is riding a throne atop water, with women submerged.

“Odd to say the least.” Sky says as she too, leans in to see the final panel. It is cracked in half. The other half of the building is several feet below them, shrouded in shadow. As the two girls lean, they do not notice how shaking the ground is beneath them until it’s too late.

“H-hey…f-feel that?” Shantae meekly says to Sky. Their eyes go wide as the tile they’re standing on shifts and falls.

“Ahhh!” Both women scream in unison as they ride the large, falling tile.

“Come on, Sky! Jump!” Shantae shouts before doing just that. Jumping with all her might, she makes it to another floor of the structure, on the broken half below them. Sky doesn’t hesitate to follow. As Shantae lands, however, she loses her footing and slides down the slick tile corridor. Sky suffers a similar fate. Unlike the entranceway that was only on a slight slant, the second half is far from straight. Falling onto their rears, both women slide down further into the depths, rolling from side to side to avoid debris.

“We have to stop ourselves!” Shantae bellows as she tries to grab onto the walls but continues to slip.

“Shantae! L-look out!” Sky screams as she sits up, rolls forward and points ahead. Shantae turns and sees the pit before them. Another break in the temple has created another gaping hole. Shantae and Sky make a final attempt to latch onto something. Sky manages to throws herself towards a hole in the wall. Shantae attempts to grab another downed piece of debris. This fails and she slides all the way to the edge of the floor.

“Help, help, help!” Shantae squeals as she slides down on her belly.

“Your hair! Hurry!” Sky shouts back as she holds onto the ledge with one arm and holds out her other. Shantae quickly whips her purple locks upwards and towards Sky’s hand.

“Oh no!” Both women shout again in unison as Sky fails to grab Shantae’s hair in time. The young half-genie hero slides off the edge and tumbles below. After only a second or two of falling, she rolls head first into the sea. A loud, thunderous splash of water is all Sky hears.

“Shantae!” Sky screams out, careful not to lose her only secure hold.

Shantae plummets deeper into the dark, dark waters. She feels heavy as the water soaks her clothes and her ample hair. Quickly, she springs into action and begins to swim. She can see the bubbles rising around her, giving her a clear direction to swim in. Her swimming is at first strong and fast. She confidently strives to reach the surface. From below the water, she can see the ledge Sky now hangs over. However, Shantae finds herself tiring, her youthful vigor spending far faster than usual.

“Come on, Shantae! You can do this!” She thinks to herself as she kicks her legs and flails upwards, propelling herself to the surface. Finally, her head blasts through to the unsubmerged world. Gasping for breath, Shantae takes in several huge gulps of air as she remains afloat on the surface.

“Sky! Sky! Are you up there?!” Shantae calls up.

“I’m here! Are you ok?!” Sky shouts back down to. She manages to slowly crawl over the edge and peers down at Shantae. She can see her soaked but largely ok friend below.

“H-how am I supposed to get up there?!” Shantae screams as she smacks the water with her fists. She feels her body shift in a weird way, causing her to pause.

“Shantae, relax! Find something you can grab a hold of!” Sky’s words jolt Shantae out of her daze. She whips around, looking all around until a hole in the ceiling provides a single beam of moonlight. It rests on a broken floor that is mostly stable and inclining upwards, unlike the long sliding one that landed her in her current place.

“I found another floor to this place! I’m going to go get on it, hold that thought!” Shantae cries up to Sky as she begins to paddle over.

“Holy cow…what’s wrong with me? W-why do I feel so slow?” Shantae whispers to herself as she manages to reach the other side. Her feet eventually touch bottom. Crawling along the inclined floor, Shantae manages to pull herself free from the water. In the dim, pale moonlight, Shantae looks down and screams. Her scream is so loud that it jeers Sky severely, causing her to almost lose her grip over the edge. She manages to catch herself just in time. She looks down and sees Shantae’s back to her.

“Yo! You ok? What h-happened…oh.” Sky starts to inquire what’s wrong only to see Shantae turn around, revealing the obvious problem. Where Shantae’s thin, toned abdomen once was is a very large, very round, and very noticeably pregnant belly. Shantae has her hands on her face, a single eye peering through her fingers as she stares down at her belly. There is a massive push, a deep pressure sensation along her belly button. A small protrusion distorts Shantae’s skin. She turns pale and stops breathing for just a moment.

“What happened?!?!?!” Shantae wails as she lowers her hands and falls back on her rear, pouting. She slams her fists to the sides, tears running down her cheeks. She eventually falls backwards. Pouting further, she lifts her head and looks past her breasts at the large, pink protrusion.

“Um…are you pregnant?” Sky asks, perhaps rather tactlessly. Shantae sits up with a violent motion.

“Apparently!” Shantae screams up. She struggles to stand, less from the uneven floor and more due to the increased weight and new center of gravity she now possesses. She reaches down with her right hand and touches the side of her belly and quickly pulls back.

“It’s hard as a rock…” Shantae says as she brings her left hand down and pokes on the opposing side. Unlike her right side, her flesh is soft and gives in noticeably till it hits a definitive stopping point. She reels back in disgust.

“Except on that side!” Shantae squeals as she stomps her feet, grossed out by her situation.

“Are you sure you’re pregnant? Like…you feel anything?” Sky calls down to Shantae.

“No, I just swallowed a sea turtle while I was down there!” Shantae screams back up at her friend. She continues to pout and growl, falling back down on the ground. She reaches out and grabs a handful of rocks and tosses them into the water angrily. She reaches out and grabs another fist sized rock and goes to toss it but freezes.

“Oh.” Shantae chirps as she looks down at her belly. There is a deep dark line down the center, one going down from her chest and one coming up from her underbelly. As she examines her belly, she feels pressure, a shifting motion, and then sees a little ripple of movement beneath her skin.

“Ew, ew, ew!” Shantae squeals as she reaches down and rubs on her belly, trying to stop the movement inside her.

“Are you ok!?” Sky shouts out again.

“I am definitely pregnant!” The violet haired Shantae shouts back.

“How can you tell!?” Sky replies.

“It’s moving!” Shantae yells as she falls onto her left side. Demoralized by this sudden transformation, Shantae continues to weep as Sky struggles to find a way to help her friend. It is at that moment she looks up and notices a small, but continuous stream of water flowing into the water below Shantae. Unlike the characteristic green hues of the ocean, this water is crystal clear and oddly reflective. Sky follows its path down into the pool that Shantae fell in.

“Um, I think this is the source of your problem.” Sky calls out as she points upwards to the unique water. Shantae opens her eyes and wipes her tears away long enough to look upwards. She slowly climbs to her feet, pausing as she bends over. Using her hands to brace herself, using her knees as column, Shantae struggles to lift herself but finally manages to. Wiping a layer of sweat from her brow, she looks up and sees what Sky is talking about.

“Looks magical for sure.” Shantae muses. Both look at it for some time before both shout in unison, once again.

“Oh no!” Both shout as they look at each other from across the way.

“This is a fertility deity’s shrine!” Shantae screams.

“That’s that the murals were showing us! It’s the water! I gotta get outta here before I end up like you!” Sky screams as she struggles to climb up along the edge of the corridor.

“Hey, don’t leave me down here, you putz!” Shantae shouts as she jumps in anger. Her feet land with a massive thud and her belly throws her forward. Throwing out her arms and waving them in a frantic effort to regain her balance, Shantae cries even more.

“Look, just turn into a bat or something and fly up here! There’s an exit here.” Sky suggests. Shantae smacks her forehead and moans a deep moan.

“Ok…hold on.” Shantae meekly says as she strikes a pose. Holding out her arms to the side, Shantae shifts her widened, burdened hips to the right, and then to the left, her heavy belly slowing her movement.

“This is so awkward!” Shantae snarls as she tries one last time to shimmy perfectly.

“T-trans…transform.” Shantae whispers, the usual excitement in her voice, the usual exclaim for her powers is gone entirely. A sudden poof of purple smoke and a sudden flash of light, and Shantae’ assumes the form of a bat. Complete with purple fur, black bat wings, her little golden headdress, and a big heavy belly. Shantae shrieks as she falls to the ground, landing on her back, rolling side to side as her belly teeters her over.

“T-that’s not good.” Sky murmurs as she witnesses Shantae’s predicament. Rolling around, Shantae manages to get onto her feet and begins to flap her wings. She is only able to pull her heavy bat body off the floor for a few inches before falling back to the ground. This time, a massive explosion of pink and purple smoke, a bright flash, and normal, albeit severely pregnant Shantae falls to the floor.

“I’m too heavy! I can’t fly!!!” Shantae screams, yet again.

“It’s ok, it’s ok! Look, I will climb out of here and try to make it to the landing site. You stay put, I will get Wrench.” Sky calls down to Shantae, trying to calm her.

“No…y-you go. W-we…I still have to find Bolo. I’m already k-knocked up, you avoid this place. Wait for me to return with him!” Shantae replies with a building confidence. Sky looks down and just stares, blankly.

“No, really. It’s ok, I will continue on! If I can’t fly, I can still climb! Watch me go! Trraannnssssfooorrm!” Shantae bellows as she sways her hips again and throws her hands high. With this new puff of smoke, Shantae assumes the form of a small, pregnant, purple furred monkey. Reaching down, grasping her belly with one hand, Shantae launches her small, new body upwards, her tail steadying her as she goes. She manages to climb up to an adjacent floor with some difficulty. Another puff of smoke and light, Shantae returns to her humanoid form.

“O-ok…ok, that was a little easier. I’m going to progress through this place, gotta find Bolo! I won’t be too long!” Shantae calls out to Sky, who is now quite far away but still within sight.

“Be careful!” Sky calls out before crawling through the broken hole in the wall.

“Be careful of what? It’s not like I can get double pregnant…wait, can I? T-twins? I suppose I should avoid the water j-just to be safe.” Shantae ponders as she waves goodbye to sky and marches forward into the temple.

Description
Scuttle Town, a beautiful seaside town of Sequin Land, is the scene of much hustle and bustle. Trade is the big game in this town. Its skyline is dotted with elaborate domes structures. Most buildings are constructed from a fine, rich yellow brick. Red onion shaped domes rest atop them. The warm winds force clouds away, allowing azure sky and bright sun to show clearly. Shorebirds can be found at just about every corner, resting on the roofs of any building close to food. Merchant men and women sell their wares. Old Carpet weavers, sultry pot makers, spice and food salesmen, you name it, Scuttle Town has it.

Scuttle Town also has a notable problem; piracy. For years now, the self-proclaimed ‘Queen of the Seven Seas’ Risky Boots has blundered Scuttle Town of its riches from time to time. The flow of wealth and riches that comes through Scuttle Town is her primary target. With a sizeable flotilla, Risky has managed to lay siege to the town. Her band of pirates, made up exclusively of the silent and shadowy Tinkerbats, carries out her will to the letter. Their black-purplish bodies are covered by red trousers and a red bandana. Yellow eyes and an aggressive demeanor, they are generally feared throughout town.

Feared except by one, that is. Scuttle Town has long had a protector. While the local authorities do their best to minimize any raids on the town, one pursues Risky in an attempt to bring her to justice. This individual is known as Shantae. Reputed to be half-genie, the young maiden has long stood against the devious Risky Boots. Her ultimate goal to run Risky ashore and sink her ships for good. However, as of late, Shantae has had little to do. From the edge of town, in her small and quaint home, Shantae sits along the shore. Her home serves as a small lighthouse for travelers far and wide. There, sitting with both hands on her knees, her head in her palms, she sighs aloud.

“There is nothing to do around here! No sign of Risky these days. No sign of Ammo Baron…not even a random dingy full of Tinkerbats.” Shantae exclaims as she throws herself backwards. Her back lands with a gentle thud on the grass. Closing her dark blue eyes, Shantae throws her hands behind her head. Her exceptionally long violet hair rests beneath her. Rolling to her tummy, she throws herself up with a single spring like motion. Shantae pats down her long red harem pants. They are tight around her waist but flail outwards toward the bottom of her legs. The crouch area of her pants is black, in stark contrast to the brilliant red, while two golden bars run along the sides, by her hips.

Shantae begins to walk towards her lighthouse. Wearing red shoes that curl into points at the toes, Shantae runs her hands across her forehead. She wears a golden tiara around the base of her hairline. It comes to a v-like point on her forehead and travels back, resting on her long, and pointy genie ears. A gold hair tie binds her hair at the back of her skull, pointing upwards. With each step the young half-genie hero takes, her long violet hair sways side to side. Her hair zigzags all the way down to behind her knees. Thick tufts of purple hair hand in front of her face. A single, dark purple choker collar wraps around her neck. A small brassiere hugs her bosom. A thin gold ring holds them together at the center of her bosom. Large, golden armlets adorn each forearm while two thick gold hoop earrings hang from her ears.

As Shantae makes it to her doorknob, the sun is setting, and a large shadow casts over Shantae. This prompts her to twist around and take a defensive stance. She immediately relents and smiles. Flying above her is a massive blue and purple falcon. Atop him, a saddled rider calls out to Shantae.

“Hey girl!” She girl cries out. A petite blonde with a blue and purple cloak, she commands the bird to land on the approach to Shantae’s home.

“Sky! What brings you here?” Shantae shouts as she dashes towards her friend. Petting the giant falcon, Shantae patiently waits for Sky to answer.

“Actually, this isn’t a social call. Bolo has been missing for two days. He left to track down some sunken treasure out at sea. He found a small chain of islands with some old ruins. Usually he’s back by now. I was wondering if we could go look for him.” Sky says, mentioning the disappearance of their mutual friend.

“Bolo, what has he gotten himself into this time? Yeah, ok. We can go. I take it that’s why Wrench is hauling travel packs.” Shantae answers as she continues to stroke the giant falcon’s peak.

“Yeah, Wrench is ready to go. It will only take us maybe two hours to fly out that way. Let’s just go make sure he’s ok and then come back. Who knows, maybe he did find some treasure and there’s too much and we’ll have to help him lug it all back!” Sky gleefully bellows as she leaps atop Wrench. Unfolding his wings, the falcon jumps into the air and begins to hover. Each flap of his mighty wings sends gusts of wind all around. Shantae’s hair whips behind her as she covers her face.

“Fine, let’s go!” Shantae says as she performs a single high jump, landing right behind Sky.

“Ha! Off we go!” Sky says as she takes Wrench’s reins. The three gain altitude and soar off the coast and out to see. The sun’s fading rays glisten off the clear ocean’s waves. Seagulls pass from time to time, as does the occasional fisherman’s boat below. The sun turns the cerulean sky into a blazing sea of reds and oranges and finally to a brilliant dark blue. Stars peak through the dark blanket of sky. Within the predicted two hours, they reach the small cluster of islands.

“Wow, look at that!” Shantae shouts as she reaches over the side of Wrench’s saddle and points downwards. The small islands ring a massive, domed structure. It’s brilliant, stunning shade of turquoise. A faded floral pattern swirls around the dome. The once vibrant dome is now worn by the constant sunlight but is still an awesome sight to behold. It is fat and wide at the base but then tapers upwards, gradually coming to a small conical shape. At the top is a single, round part that protrudes upwards from the whole of the dome. The whole structure reflects the bright light of the moon and stars above.

“That must be some ancient structure.” Sky muses as she has Wrench begin his descent. They take several flybys as they lower their altitude.

“It looks similar to our little Scuttle Town but I don’t recognize the colors or that style of dome. It looks a little off.” Shantae says to Sky. Sky nods at this. They pass by several large towers as they close in on the islands below. All but one has the same style dome as the others. This loan one is missing its top altogether. A building with a large entrance way, adorned with even more towers, slides into the ocean. The weight of the dome is clearly pulling it further into depths below. The same turquoise stone is used for every piece of the temple like structure. Finally, the women touch down. Sky reaches into her satchels and grabs two canteens of water, one for herself and Shantae, another for Wrench.

“Look at the archway to that building. I don’t recognize the script on it at all.” Sky says pointing up to the dominating structure. Shantae grabs the canteen off her friend and takes a deep jug.

“Well, whatever. We’ve found where Bolo is there. Look, there’s his little ship.” Shantae states as she walks towards the beach of the island they’ve landed on. For sure, there lies Bolo’s small fisherman’s vessel. An old campfire, unlit for some time rests there, along with Bolo’s tent.

“Oh no, Bolo hasn’t been here for quite some time. He has to be in that building! Sky, let’s go!” Shantae eagerly shouts before running to the massive archway.

“Wait a second Shantae, let me give Wrench some feed then we can go. I’m sure Bolo is fine, probably got stuck lugging something too heavy around in there. At worst, he’s probably strung up in some trap. He’s pretty tough so I’m sure he’s fine, just…lost.” Sky shouts back to Shantae as she grabs a large sack of seed for Wrench, lowering it onto the ground. The tired bird wastes no time in enjoying his meal while Sky rushes to pursue the impulsive Shantae. Shantae dashes for the entry way, leaving Sky to follow several feet behind.

“I’m going on in! Just try to catch up!” Shantae shouts back over her shoulder as she enters the archway entrance of the crippled structure. Shantae pauses and looks up. The vaulted ceiling is a magnificent sight to behold. Finely polished mosaics, forming a wave of color, make up the underbelly of the archway. Large, stone slaps form the floor. Unlike the outside, the inside of the archway is brilliant, hardly worn at all by the elements. This pause allows Sky to catch up.

“Woah, look at this place.” Shantae murmurs as she walks further in. Her curled shoes shuffle across the slick tiled floor.

“I can see why Bolo came here. There’s sure to be something worth the while in here.” Sky says to Shantae as she comes up behind her.

“Yeah, there’s probably plenty of jewels and treasure around this place. It looks so undisturbed.” Shantae replies as they walk closer through the archways and into a large corridor. Sinking slightly into the sea, water trickles in on the sides of the corridor. The building appears split in two, with a larger portion having snapped right off and sinking more steadily. Shantae and Sky continue to walk in the dimly lit temple. Cracks in the ceiling let tiny rays of moonlight in, but most of the interior is obscured by darkness. Rows after rows of columns hold up the massive domed structure.

“Hey…look.” Sky chimes, grabbing Shantae’s shoulder and turning her. Pointing at the walls, Sky draws attention to a mural mosaic. The two young women make their way to the wall.

“It’s pretty beat up. Look, it’s damaged from the big fissure in the temple.” Shantae notes, pointing out there are plenty of missing tiles. But the two investigate none the less. The mural is that of a scene, a scene with many people. In one panel, mostly broken, several women stand in brightly colored robes. Each one appears to be cradling to their abdomen. In the next panel, each woman holds an infant. Next to it is a more bizarre scene. A manly figure, atop a temple-like throne, women around him, dominates this final mosaic. Many, many tiles are missing from it.

“What do you make of all this?” Shantae asks Sky as she runs her fingers across the mosaic.

“I don’t know. Look at this last scene, hard to tell what’s going on.” Sky answers.

“Yeah, totally. Looks like some sort of king-like fella, with women around him and…something else. Hard to tell with so many pieces missing.” Shantae replies.

“Looks like water…” She continues. Unlike the other mosaics which have temple, market like scenery, this one appears to have a swirling deluge of water around the entire scene, as if the male figure is riding a throne atop water, with women submerged.

“Odd to say the least.” Sky says as she too, leans in to see the final panel. It is cracked in half. The other half of the building is several feet below them, shrouded in shadow. As the two girls lean, they do not notice how shaking the ground is beneath them until it’s too late.

“H-hey…f-feel that?” Shantae meekly says to Sky. Their eyes go wide as the tile they’re standing on shifts and falls.

“Ahhh!” Both women scream in unison as they ride the large, falling tile.

“Come on, Sky! Jump!” Shantae shouts before doing just that. Jumping with all her might, she makes it to another floor of the structure, on the broken half below them. Sky doesn’t hesitate to follow. As Shantae lands, however, she loses her footing and slides down the slick tile corridor. Sky suffers a similar fate. Unlike the entranceway that was only on a slight slant, the second half is far from straight. Falling onto their rears, both women slide down further into the depths, rolling from side to side to avoid debris.

“We have to stop ourselves!” Shantae bellows as she tries to grab onto the walls but continues to slip.

“Shantae! L-look out!” Sky screams as she sits up, rolls forward and points ahead. Shantae turns and sees the pit before them. Another break in the temple has created another gaping hole. Shantae and Sky make a final attempt to latch onto something. Sky manages to throws herself towards a hole in the wall. Shantae attempts to grab another downed piece of debris. This fails and she slides all the way to the edge of the floor.

“Help, help, help!” Shantae squeals as she slides down on her belly.

“Your hair! Hurry!” Sky shouts back as she holds onto the ledge with one arm and holds out her other. Shantae quickly whips her purple locks upwards and towards Sky’s hand.

“Oh no!” Both women shout again in unison as Sky fails to grab Shantae’s hair in time. The young half-genie hero slides off the edge and tumbles below. After only a second or two of falling, she rolls head first into the sea. A loud, thunderous splash of water is all Sky hears.

“Shantae!” Sky screams out, careful not to lose her only secure hold.

Shantae plummets deeper into the dark, dark waters. She feels heavy as the water soaks her clothes and her ample hair. Quickly, she springs into action and begins to swim. She can see the bubbles rising around her, giving her a clear direction to swim in. Her swimming is at first strong and fast. She confidently strives to reach the surface. From below the water, she can see the ledge Sky now hangs over. However, Shantae finds herself tiring, her youthful vigor spending far faster than usual.

“Come on, Shantae! You can do this!” She thinks to herself as she kicks her legs and flails upwards, propelling herself to the surface. Finally, her head blasts through to the unsubmerged world. Gasping for breath, Shantae takes in several huge gulps of air as she remains afloat on the surface.

“Sky! Sky! Are you up there?!” Shantae calls up.

“I’m here! Are you ok?!” Sky shouts back down to. She manages to slowly crawl over the edge and peers down at Shantae. She can see her soaked but largely ok friend below.

“H-how am I supposed to get up there?!” Shantae screams as she smacks the water with her fists. She feels her body shift in a weird way, causing her to pause.

“Shantae, relax! Find something you can grab a hold of!” Sky’s words jolt Shantae out of her daze. She whips around, looking all around until a hole in the ceiling provides a single beam of moonlight. It rests on a broken floor that is mostly stable and inclining upwards, unlike the long sliding one that landed her in her current place.

“I found another floor to this place! I’m going to go get on it, hold that thought!” Shantae cries up to Sky as she begins to paddle over.

“Holy cow…what’s wrong with me? W-why do I feel so slow?” Shantae whispers to herself as she manages to reach the other side. Her feet eventually touch bottom. Crawling along the inclined floor, Shantae manages to pull herself free from the water. In the dim, pale moonlight, Shantae looks down and screams. Her scream is so loud that it jeers Sky severely, causing her to almost lose her grip over the edge. She manages to catch herself just in time. She looks down and sees Shantae’s back to her.

“Yo! You ok? What h-happened…oh.” Sky starts to inquire what’s wrong only to see Shantae turn around, revealing the obvious problem. Where Shantae’s thin, toned abdomen once was is a very large, very round, and very noticeably pregnant belly. Shantae has her hands on her face, a single eye peering through her fingers as she stares down at her belly. There is a massive push, a deep pressure sensation along her belly button. A small protrusion distorts Shantae’s skin. She turns pale and stops breathing for just a moment.

“What happened?!?!?!” Shantae wails as she lowers her hands and falls back on her rear, pouting. She slams her fists to the sides, tears running down her cheeks. She eventually falls backwards. Pouting further, she lifts her head and looks past her breasts at the large, pink protrusion.

“Um…are you pregnant?” Sky asks, perhaps rather tactlessly. Shantae sits up with a violent motion.

“Apparently!” Shantae screams up. She struggles to stand, less from the uneven floor and more due to the increased weight and new center of gravity she now possesses. She reaches down with her right hand and touches the side of her belly and quickly pulls back.

“It’s hard as a rock…” Shantae says as she brings her left hand down and pokes on the opposing side. Unlike her right side, her flesh is soft and gives in noticeably till it hits a definitive stopping point. She reels back in disgust.

“Except on that side!” Shantae squeals as she stomps her feet, grossed out by her situation.

“Are you sure you’re pregnant? Like…you feel anything?” Sky calls down to Shantae.

“No, I just swallowed a sea turtle while I was down there!” Shantae screams back up at her friend. She continues to pout and growl, falling back down on the ground. She reaches out and grabs a handful of rocks and tosses them into the water angrily. She reaches out and grabs another fist sized rock and goes to toss it but freezes.

“Oh.” Shantae chirps as she looks down at her belly. There is a deep dark line down the center, one going down from her chest and one coming up from her underbelly. As she examines her belly, she feels pressure, a shifting motion, and then sees a little ripple of movement beneath her skin.

“Ew, ew, ew!” Shantae squeals as she reaches down and rubs on her belly, trying to stop the movement inside her.

“Are you ok!?” Sky shouts out again.

“I am definitely pregnant!” The violet haired Shantae shouts back.

“How can you tell!?” Sky replies.

“It’s moving!” Shantae yells as she falls onto her left side. Demoralized by this sudden transformation, Shantae continues to weep as Sky struggles to find a way to help her friend. It is at that moment she looks up and notices a small, but continuous stream of water flowing into the water below Shantae. Unlike the characteristic green hues of the ocean, this water is crystal clear and oddly reflective. Sky follows its path down into the pool that Shantae fell in.

“Um, I think this is the source of your problem.” Sky calls out as she points upwards to the unique water. Shantae opens her eyes and wipes her tears away long enough to look upwards. She slowly climbs to her feet, pausing as she bends over. Using her hands to brace herself, using her knees as column, Shantae struggles to lift herself but finally manages to. Wiping a layer of sweat from her brow, she looks up and sees what Sky is talking about.

“Looks magical for sure.” Shantae muses. Both look at it for some time before both shout in unison, once again.

“Oh no!” Both shout as they look at each other from across the way.

“This is a fertility deity’s shrine!” Shantae screams.

“That’s that the murals were showing us! It’s the water! I gotta get outta here before I end up like you!” Sky screams as she struggles to climb up along the edge of the corridor.

“Hey, don’t leave me down here, you putz!” Shantae shouts as she jumps in anger. Her feet land with a massive thud and her belly throws her forward. Throwing out her arms and waving them in a frantic effort to regain her balance, Shantae cries even more.

“Look, just turn into a bat or something and fly up here! There’s an exit here.” Sky suggests. Shantae smacks her forehead and moans a deep moan.

“Ok…hold on.” Shantae meekly says as she strikes a pose. Holding out her arms to the side, Shantae shifts her widened, burdened hips to the right, and then to the left, her heavy belly slowing her movement.

“This is so awkward!” Shantae snarls as she tries one last time to shimmy perfectly.

“T-trans…transform.” Shantae whispers, the usual excitement in her voice, the usual exclaim for her powers is gone entirely. A sudden poof of purple smoke and a sudden flash of light, and Shantae’ assumes the form of a bat. Complete with purple fur, black bat wings, her little golden headdress, and a big heavy belly. Shantae shrieks as she falls to the ground, landing on her back, rolling side to side as her belly teeters her over.

“T-that’s not good.” Sky murmurs as she witnesses Shantae’s predicament. Rolling around, Shantae manages to get onto her feet and begins to flap her wings. She is only able to pull her heavy bat body off the floor for a few inches before falling back to the ground. This time, a massive explosion of pink and purple smoke, a bright flash, and normal, albeit severely pregnant Shantae falls to the floor.

“I’m too heavy! I can’t fly!!!” Shantae screams, yet again.

“It’s ok, it’s ok! Look, I will climb out of here and try to make it to the landing site. You stay put, I will get Wrench.” Sky calls down to Shantae, trying to calm her.

“No…y-you go. W-we…I still have to find Bolo. I’m already k-knocked up, you avoid this place. Wait for me to return with him!” Shantae replies with a building confidence. Sky looks down and just stares, blankly.

“No, really. It’s ok, I will continue on! If I can’t fly, I can still climb! Watch me go! Trraannnssssfooorrm!” Shantae bellows as she sways her hips again and throws her hands high. With this new puff of smoke, Shantae assumes the form of a small, pregnant, purple furred monkey. Reaching down, grasping her belly with one hand, Shantae launches her small, new body upwards, her tail steadying her as she goes. She manages to climb up to an adjacent floor with some difficulty. Another puff of smoke and light, Shantae returns to her humanoid form.

“O-ok…ok, that was a little easier. I’m going to progress through this place, gotta find Bolo! I won’t be too long!” Shantae calls out to Sky, who is now quite far away but still within sight.

“Be careful!” Sky calls out before crawling through the broken hole in the wall.

“Be careful of what? It’s not like I can get double pregnant…wait, can I? T-twins? I suppose I should avoid the water j-just to be safe.” Shantae ponders as she waves goodbye to sky and marches forward into the temple.