Something else about your reflection seems odd to you. It is only after a moment that you realize what it is. Yesterday, the reflection which you studied so carefully had silvery hair with a tinge of gray, appropriate for someone of Gorvind's age. However, the hair that now covers your head is midnight black, and much thicker than hair. You reach up to run your hand through it, and for some reason, it reminds you of fur. You shake your head in disbelief. That's impossible, right?
Then again, if someone had told you two days ago that you would die, only to be given ten random lives, the first of which would be as Gorvind the Terror, you would have thought that to be impossible as well. You still feel the heat, and decide to shed your clothes in order to see if there are any other visible changes. You pull off your boots and toss them aside. You manage to remove your shirt and pants, but when it comes to your undergarments, your fingers begin to fumble a bit. You stare at your hands, certain that they were not quite this thick earlier, and for some reason, your nails appear even more like claws. An idea begins to form at the edges of your mind, but before you can grasp it, you become aware of a strange sensation in your mouth and jaw. Opening your maw, you run your tongue over your sharp teeth, which feel even more fang-like than before. Even your tongue feels different, although you cannot quite identify how. You lean back over the pond and stick out your tongue.
What greets you is a face that only vaguely resembles the one you saw yesterday, and a tongue which has grown to inhuman proportions, hanging out of a jaw that has taken on the shape of a squarish muzzle. Your deeply tanned and scarred skin also appears to be even darker. Your suspicions confirmed, you do not bother removing your undergarments with care, but rather use your claws to rip them off your body, leaving yourself nude. However, rather than bare skin, a thin down of black fur now covers your entire body. You feel something shift inside, and squat down, wrapping your arms around yourself as though to stop the change. Instead, something moves in your hips, and you are greeted by a strange sensation from your backside. Although achy and scared of what you might find, you are determined to see the latest change for yourself. Glancing over your shoulder, you see growing from the base of your spine what you can only identify as a black, shaggy tail, twitching uncomfortably from the pain you are in. A final twinge of your lower body, and you are no longer squatting, but sitting on your haunches, the bottom half of your body undoubtedly that of a beast.
As the changes to the top half of your body accelerate, you find you can no longer keep your arms about yourself, but instead fall on your side, your body writhing madly. Twisting in unfamiliar ways, your arms reform themselves into forelegs which end in massive paws entirely covered in a thick coat of black fur. You want to reach up and touch your head, which is also undergoing a metamorphosis, but your unfamiliarity with your new muscles causes you to flail about instead. In a final burst of agony, you see your muzzle push itself forward out of you head and feel your ears change position, even as your spine rearranges itself entirely to complement your new physique. You let out a cry, but rather than hearing the voice of Gorvind, your ears inform you that what has left your throat is nothing less than a howl.
You do not know how long you lay there panting, exhausted by the remolding of your body, but it seems like an eternity. Finally, you maneuver your new limbs around enough to crawl to the edge of the pool and look down. Staring back at you are two fiery red eyes, now obviously glowing, surrounded by the face of a jet-black shaggy hound. You had thought you were changing into a wolf, but you are definitely more dog-like, and somewhat other-worldly. You remember myths you have heard of hellhounds from your prior life, but you never thought they could actually exist, much less that you could be turned into one. You also have no way of knowing how permanent this change is.
"Well, this is a fine mess," you say aloud, expecting to hear nothing but barks. However, while the voice that leaves your throat is guttural and difficult to understand, you are definitely capable of speech. Considering all that has gone wrong since you ended up in this world, you are strangely relieved by this fact, although you are not certain how well a hellhound will go over in this world, let alone a talking one. Your body still feels hot inside, although it does not feel painful. However, you are concerned when your new nose picks up the scent of something burning. You look at your body, but see only black fur. Pulling yourself unsteadly up onto your four legs, you carefully turn to look behind you.
You are met with the sight of a scorched trail of grass leading from your current position to the spot where you changed. Looking critically at the undergarments which you tore off, you even see traces of singeing around the claw marks. Uncertainly lifting a paw, you set it down on an untouched patch of grass, then pull it back. The once-green foliage is now charcoal black, as though a torch had been laid there, but the shape of the burn mark is definitely that of a paw. Although you are not in pain, you are burning everything you touch. Not certain if that is an asset or a liability, you totter over to the remains of your clothes. From the looks of things, you are still as large as you were when you were a human, and probably as tall were you to stand on your hind legs. You feel the strength of your muscles as well, and are fairly certian that you will at least be able to defend yourself against any attackers once you become more comfortable with this form.
However, you are not certain what to do next. While you know bits of folklore about hellhounds from your former world, there is no guarantee anything operates the same in this world. Not to mention, you were cursed into being a hellhound. Can you break the curse? Is it worth even trying? Sitting back on your haunches, you ponder what to do next. Finally, you decide to...