May 2023 Sketches 10 - Dan Heng (Honkai: Star Rail) (Patreon)

Here's a picture featuring Dan Heng from Honkai: Star Rail. The idea/story was suggested/written by PancakesNChill.

"It was yet another fine day aboard the Astral Express; a morning like any other. Another expedition, another world to visit. Himeko, Mr. Yang, March 7th and Caelus had all decided to go together on this trip, leaving Dan Heng behind to guard the Express alongside the Conductor, Pom Pom. The young man had a lot on his mind lately, so Himeko agreed to let him stay behind this time. Guarding the Archives is routine for him, and the peace and quiet would, perhaps, allow him to collect his thought and clear his mind of his troubles and anxieties.

Amidst the Archives stood Dan Heng, carefully examining the recorded data. The young fighter had been staying in the room for over a few days now, reading through entire entries as though his life depended on it. He's practically locked himself in, Pom Pom occasionally bringing him meals and water to drink. Completely submerged in the ocean of text, Dan Heng is looking for something in particular – a way to become the strongest warrior alive. The Express Data Bank contains information about pretty much anything and everything; and given that this special train has been through countless worlds, the young man figured he was bound to find a way to take his power to the next level for sure.

He was not seeking power for selfish reasons, however. Recently, during their adventures, the threats they've been facing have grown increasingly more difficult to overcome, and the gang often relies on Caelus' strength and resolve to come out on top. He was like a trump card: the Stellaron sealed inside his body, the way he draws the gaze of the Aeons, as well as receiving their blessings... Dan Heng would never openly admit it, but he felt weak lately; he felt he wasn’t good enough. Not that he was actually weak, mind you. He just felt a strong urge, a need, to be able to protect the group on his own. And more specifically, to protect Caelus – he'd grown quite fond of him lately, and can't help but worry his luck will run out eventually, with how many near-death experiences he and the crew had faced ever since the beginning of their journey together. The crew can’t rely solely on him to soldier on and defeat any and every threat. HE can’t. And he won’t. His resolve to protect his found family, his resolve to protect Caelus… they grow stronger with each passing day. If he were to truly become the strongest warrior alive, he’d easily achieve that goal: he could protect them from anything and everything!

Eventually though, he hit a roadblock. He’d spent ludicrous amounts of time and energy trying to find a definite way to get stronger but to no avail, nothing in the records seem to help. That is until he noticed something – a bug in the records? A glitch? It seemed like a file that was hidden or censored, maybe even forbidden. Something that perhaps was not meant to be read. Naturally, his curiosity was piqued: maybe this is what he’s been looking for, maybe this file holds something that can help him in his quest. Upon opening the file, he immediately notices that most things in it are censored: the origins of said file, some words, some images… but it’s not enough as to make the entire thing unreadable. His eyes widen as he reads the text – this entry seems to be about a ritual that originated in the distant world of █████████, which was used to commune with the Aeon of ██████ and receive their blessing, resulting in the amplification one’s natural, raw power.

This was it! What Dan Hang had been looking for all this time! If what the files said was true, then it was certainly worth trying. He could finally become strong enough to protect his fellow Trailblazers – but especially Caelus.

Without a second thought he began preparations, and shortly after he commenced the ritual. He lit some candles, drew a long forgotten symbol of ██████ on the floor of the Archives room, and started meditating. The first step in attempting to commune with this mysterious and forgotten Aeon had been taken, all he needed do now was focus. Time passed and nothing seemed to happen. After what felt like hours in the expanse of his mind, fully focused on reaching ███, he began to feel a presence manifesting. Touching him. Not physically, but his mind and spirit. Could it be...? Dan Heng began to slowly visualize the Aeon, their form indescribable, unspeakable, even if he tried. He made eye contact with the being (if they even had eyes, that is); they seemed expectant. He wasted no time in letting the higher being know his intentions: why he reached out to them, what he wanted. He needn’t speak, for they understood before he even thought of emitting a sound. ███ could sense the great ambition within the young man, far greater than that of those before him, and yet far more noble too. There was no selfishness in his request. It was burning with a passion unlike any other, brightly illuminating the void that was this mental plane. ███ was greatly impressed, and immediately understood. Wasting no time, the higher being made an unknowable sound that echoed in Dan Heng’s ears and, in a flash of blinding light, completely vanished, becoming pure energy particles flowing through the void, dancing in beautiful patterns. The young man stood there motionless, trying to comprehend what was happening before him, when suddenly what had become of the Aeon rushed at him. The energy particles hit his body with great force, throwing him off balance and causing him to fall into the void of this astral plane. However, the impact did not hurt him. Instead he felt a slight pressure, a warmth in his chest, where the energy particles were impacting him. He watched in awe and could not believe his eyes as the efflux of particles pushed deeper and deeper into his chest, and into his very core – they were going inside him! He winced as the felt the constant stream of power flowing into him. Through him. Seemingly endless, filling his entire being with raw energy and might. It was an overwhelming feeling. An average person would easily break from the physical and mental strain of this experience, but he was no ordinary man, and ███ knew this well the moment they cast their gaze upon him and listened to his heart. He was worthy of their true, fervent blessing. And so, as he continued to fall, the higher entity’s power kept on surging into his body relentlessly, testing the limits of his body and soul, until finally the very last particle had gone inside...

With a sharp gasp, Dan Heng abruptly awoke from his trance. He felt lightheaded, and frankly… weird. What had just happened? The Aeon vaporized right before his eyes and… had it…? No, he must just be tired. It was most likely a dream. He probably fell asleep as the result of extreme exhaustion – he’d barely slept these last few days, after all. He slowly got up from the floor, his lightheadedness becoming a slight headache. That weird feeling was spreading and increasing in intensity: his body felt lethargic, slow, tired. But also pulsing, tense. It was similar to the feeling known as a “pump” when working out, while simultaneously feeling the exhaustion one feels the day after a workout too. He tried to ignore the feeling, telling himself he must’ve been in a poor position while he dozed off, but the feeling was only getting stronger, and stronger, and stronger.

Trying to recompose himself, he turned around to look once more at the data bank screens, only to find that the file he’d just read was gone, erased. This was getting weird; unlike that weird dream, he knew he hadn’t imagined the file, right? He groaned. The weird feeling in his body was getting impossible to ignore, too. His clothes felt a bit tight too. “Great”, he thought, “they must’ve shrunk in the wash”. However, he couldn’t deny it was weird he hadn’t noticed until now. Actually, they were more than just “a bit”, they were downright extremely and uncomfortably so! They even seemed to be getting tighter by the second…? Were his clothes… shrinking…?

Dan Heng looked down to his body and could not believe his eyes: his clothes weren’t getting smaller, HE was getting BIGGER! “Shock” couldn’t begin to cover what he was feeling right now. He could feel himself growing larger by the second – not just in muscle mass, but also in height. And rapidly! It wasn’t painful; in fact, it was slightly pleasurable. It almost felt good. Dan Heng could merely watch in awe as body grew, seeing as his clothes were struggling to hold his biggening muscles, hugging them tightly as they held on for dear life, leaving nothing to imagination. He could even see some interesting changes happening in his crotch area too, his manhood growing in size along with his muscles. This rampant growth was so overwhelming that it was easy to get carried away.

A loud RIIIIIIIP brought Dan Heng back to reality: it was the sound of his clothes finally giving up. Tears started to appear at the seams of his clothes, and soon his attire was rapidly falling apart. He was so lost in his growth he failed to realize the severity of the situation: he was still in the Archives room, and the growth was not stopping! Struggling to hold his failing clothes, he tried to go through the door to find Pom Pom – maybe he could help him find a way to stop this! Sure, he wanted to become stronger, but this was a bit too much! Unfortunately for him, he simply could not. Fit. Through the door. He grunted, huffed and puffed, but try as me may, it was no use. He was stuck, he was getting way too big! What would the rest of the crew think if they saw him like this? What would Pom Pom say if HE saw him like this?! He wouldn’t hear the end of it. He had to find a way to stop this on his own.

With tremendous force, and equally tremendous care, he managed to get unstuck from the door, although slightly bending it in the process. Geez, was he THAT strong? This train was built for cosmic travel, dammit! To make matters worse, since he couldn’t go through, the door, he had no choice but to fall back on his (increasingly large) butt, back in the Archives room. A room that was getting cramped. Really cramped. His growth was ramping up, and the sides of his body were beginning to touch the room walls. He wanted to check the Data Bank once more, to see if he could somehow find that cursed file once again and maybe find a way to stop this madness, but it was no use. He was simply too huge. Even if he could somehow turn around and access the Express Data Bank, his fingers, his hands were too big and thick to interact with it, and still getting bigger. There was no escaping this, with no signs of stopping it really seemed as though he was destined to grow… maybe forever.

Walls creaking, floor boards groaning, room trembling… with a loud BOOM and a THUD, the Archives Room was destroyed from the inside. In its place stood (or, well, laid) an enormous Dan Heng. His growth hadn’t slowed down at all, and was exponentially increasing.

Now in the hallway, he had more room to get his bearings. Not enough room to actually stand up, but enough to get a good look at his surroundings, and his own body. Among the piles of rubble and debris was a monster, a tank… it was him, utterly huge. The pinnacle of power for many. And still getting bigger and more powerful with each passing moment. He had to admit… this felt rather good. This power – that Aeon he saw in his dream must’ve been real, and must’ve chosen to bless him with the power he had been looking for! With such strength he could undoubtedly protect Caelus and the Trailblazing crew. His muscles were bigger than many Fragmentum Monsters; he could easily take on five of them on his own! And... his manhood was getting to an absurd size as well, easily as big as his titanic upper legs (or bigger). It... it was intoxicating. It was…

-“WHAT THE-?!”

Dan Heng looked down (with some effort) and saw Pom Pom rooted to the spot, shocked beyond belief at the sight he was witnessing. He smiled awkwardly at the small Conductor, trying to quickly explained what had happened. But while doing so, Dan Heng could feel his growth ramping up again, and he was beginning to fill the entire hallway now. The familiar creaks and groans that spelt the Archives Room’s doom could be heard – that wasn’t a good sign. The feeling was too good, too. He couldn’t hold back his growth much longer…
He told Pom Pom to run and leave the Astral Express for his own safety, and to warn the others not to board it too, if there even was one by the time he got to them. Or at least he tried to, the sensation so pleasurable he struggled to speak between grunts and puffs. The small Conductor was simply too stunned to speak, and left in a hurry.

As soon as the little Conductor left the Express, Dan Heng ceased to resist the power, and instead embraced it. His growth rate skyrocketed instantly, muscles ballooning, bulging, growing, while his obscene and humongous bulge did the same. The Express was doing its best to contain such a beast, stretching and bending, its shape deformed by the sheer mass that was once a slim, fit young warrior. He was in a daze: that mysterious Aeon had granted him power beyond his imagination. It felt good. It felt right, to be this big, this powerful.

If there was sound in space, a “boom” would be the sound the Express would have made as a colossal Dan Heng violently outgrew it. With the Express torn to pieces, the gargantuan young man was now floating in the void of space, at its mercy. He gasped, fearing the worst, worrying that his small head among the mountains of muscle would explode due to the pressure change. But it didn’t. He was perfectly fine. More than fine, actually. He needn’t breathe anymore, and was glowing brightly, teeming with power. Moreover, he was huge. No, not huge, he was colossal, astronomical. And growing bigger still, his growth seemingly as infinite as the sea of stars. This knowledge aroused him somewhat, he was definitely the most powerful Trailblazer now. Hell, not just Trailblazer, he’d definitely become the most powerful warrior and mortal ever (or immmortal, when it comes to the Xianzhou Luofu). Thanks to that ritual, he had truly ascended and became a GOD! No, even better, AN AEON! A feat that was unfathomable for most beings; a fate only a few ever achieved.

After reaching and surpassing planetary-size, he commanded his growth to slow down. And it did. He was truly in control now, very slowly (but surely) growing bigger. He no longer felt weak. He felt immense, powerful, like he could do anything. And he probably could. Simply thinking about this aroused him greatly: he had become Dan Heng: the new Aeon of Growth.

Like any Aeon, he is now bound to his Path, the Path of Growth, which means he truly is destined to grow forever, as straying away from the Path means the end for Aeons. This, however, does not mean he’ll back down on his promise, goal and ideal: this newly obtained power is one he’ll use to protect those he loves. He vowed to protect and assist the Trailblazers; but in his mind, it’s all mainly about Caelus, whom his feelings towards have grown too. Looming over the planet where is friends are currently having their expedition, and straight-faced as always, he poses and flexes carefully, as the sheer force of a flex could cause devastation. Now boundless and free to grow in the immensity of space, he was determined to putting on a show for the silver-haired young man in the planet below. For the time being, at least.

Who knows? Maybe he’ll share his blessing with Caelus in the future, too...~"

REALLY good job with the story. I decided to draw the scene where he bursts out of the train. Sorry if it wasnt a full sequence. Tho, I'm not against if you suggest this again in future months in case you want me to draw other parts of the story/complete it as a whole sequence eventually.

Hope you like it!