>_< 0_0

Chapter 46 We made quick work of cleaning the kitchen with Yhtrod, Tamya, and Shamik’s help, notwithstanding how large and grand the it was. Vethrax’s unassuming safehouse boasted a kitchen the size of a small horse stable, and when fully-staffed and stored, could probably feed several horses as well. A long counter spread from end to end of the room, and anyone cooking, cutting, or otherwise could admire sweeping views of the city below from several wide windows. Where there weren’t windows, there were cupboards, each filled with cups, pots, pans, and silverware only lightly dusted by time. Opposite the scenic counters and cupboards were the impressively-large terracotta oven, and – most important of all – an apothecary station complete with a stone fireplace inset into the wall, bellows, mortar and pestle, cutting board, and a great, black cauldron. Such tools in abundance gave me the first sense of calm and confidence since I’d awoken on Vethrax’s barge, and I smiled as I swiped the last coats of dust from odd edges and corners. No food? No coin? It mattered little when we had all the tools to brew with! We had everything we needed – everything, that is, except water. Water! The most essential ingredient of all, and there was no sign of a well anywhere around the house! This would be a major problem for us, for we were situated on a cliff’s edge in Crimson Heights, and I could see that the Chillbrine River in the valley below flowed at least two miles away. To lug the gallons of water we needed at such a distance would be backbreaking work, and I doubted our donkey dashers would even attempt it. Yet as luck would have it, Shanik found the well in the most unlikely place. Behind a large cupboard in the pantry, there was a dark, seemingly-bottomless pit hewn into the bedrock, and before it was a low, brick wall upon which lay a rope and bucket – a well. Who would have guessed? An indoor well! No wonder there was a mushroom growing out of the wall; the humidity was making the pantry a festering paradise of rot! Why dig a well in the pantry? It was a question that puzzled us all, but it mattered not. It was time to “cook.” The skies were overcast and I could see streaks of rain pouring on the city below as I stood before the window and ground mint on the counter. It had been a long day and my empty belly was beginning to rumble. A pity that Maxie had already fed me everything we had with all the coin left. Sighing, I stopped staring out the window and started grinding again. Everything depended on brewing this growth potion – and quickly. I was only getting hungrier. A muffled crunch made me freeze. Someone was eating just behind my right shoulder. I turned to look… and immediately regretted it. “Tamya,” I gaped in horror. “What are you eating?” Tamya just stood there, chewing on a mushroom cap the size of a melon – the very mushroom that had been growing on the pantry wall! “What?” she took another bite. “We done cleaning, right?” “Why would you eat that?” I pointed a trembling finger at the bite she’d made in the mushroom, from which a garishly orange interior was revealed. “Cause I’m hungry?” “It was growing out of the wall. What if it’s poisonous?” “Cause it’s not?” Tamya smiled with a shrug. “But you don’t know that!” Now Shanik had joined her partner’s side, and together they stared at me as if I were the one going mad. “Why would it be poisonous?” she asked. “You can’t just eat a mushroom growing in the pantry!” “It’s not a pantry,” Shanik chuckled. My confusion doubled. “Then… what is it?” “It’s a fungus garden,” Shanik giggled. “You know? A ‘shroom tomb?’ Every house ‘round here has one.” My eyes bulged. “That’s madness! Who would let rot into their own house?” The two dark elves snickered, grinning with narrowed eyes. “What? You never ate ‘shrooms as a kid?” Then I realized too late the hole I’d dug myself into. Only now did I remember that dark elves lived off of mushrooms. How stupid I was, making such a fuss with dark elves about their favorite delicacy while I, myself, was disguised as one of them! I was about to blow my cover! “Right…” I nodded slowly. “Yes. I mean, of course I did.” “Mm-hm,” Shanik nodded, clearly not convinced. Tamya merely took another bite and grinned, chewing with her mouth open. “Well,” I turned around. “Better keep grinding.” I turned my full attention to the counter before me, with its pile of mint leaves on the left, the ground leaves on the right, and my mortar in the middle. With the pestle already in hand, I began mashing leaves. Yet through the silence, tension filled the air thicker than the scent of mint. The dark elves were looming behind me. I could feel them hovering to my left and right, bemused by my ignorance, and no doubt plotting how to tease me. “So she don’t like shrooms, huh Tamya?” came a voice by my quivering right ear. “She don’t,” came a voice by my left. “But I bet she ate human food.” “I know that’s right.” They snickered ominously. “Just lookit them legs. Ever seen legs that grown on a dark elf?” My blood chilled. “I’m not that big,” I protested. “Or grown.” More snickering. “She said she’s not that big, Tamya.” “But I’ve never seen a dark elf with thighs like that,” Tamya prodded my thigh with a fingertip. “Quit it!” I flinched away from her prodding and bumped into Shanik on the other side of me. “Ooh, meaty,” Shanik staggered back. “Juicy.” “Facts,” Tamya swallowed another bite of mushroom. “Bet I know where that meat went – straight to them thighs.” “Where did you put all that meat anyway?” Shanik asked curiously. My lips pursed and my fingers began to tremble. “The meat?” “Yeah, the meat. You know, the stuff we delivered? It’s not here in the kitchen, that’s for sure. Now way you ate it all, right?” The two dark elves snickered at such a concept, but it was no joke to me. I knew they were dangerously close to learning the truth, and it seemed everything I said made it worse. Could I remain silent, or would that only delay the inevitable? I was spared further humiliation by the sound of the kitchen door slamming open. “Shanik! Tamya!” Yhtrod called angrily. “The fuck are you doing?” “Yhtrod!” Shanik gasped. “Maxie! You’re back!” “Stop messing with the alchemist,” Yhtrod set her hands on her narrow hips. “Remember what we talked about? Let her cook!” Tamya nearly dropped her mushroom cap. “It’s about ready. We were just –” “Let. Her. Cook.” Yhtrod’s lackeys obediently parted from me, giving me space to work – only for Yhtrod and Maxie to close-in. I decided to break the silence. “So what were you two doing outside?” From the corner of my eye, I saw Maxie pull a strand of hair from her mouth. “Just some planning,” she said. “Business and such.” “The cattle’s shame is ready?” “Yeah…” Maxie glanced quickly between Yhtrod and me before clapping my shoulder. “Alright, that’s enough grinding. Now it’s time for step two.” “Which is?” Yhtrod leaned in and raised an eyebrow. “You’ll see. Get the fire started under the cauldron. Tory and I will fetch the water – follow me, Tory.” I followed Maxie into the pantry – or rather the “Shroom Tomb” – and made my way to the well-cupboard. To my surprise, Maxie shut the door and shrouded us in darkness. “Alright, listen,” she was suddenly whispering in my ear. “Draw water while I talk to you so they can’t hear.” “But I can’t see…” “Your eyes will adjust. Look…” “I can’t see.” “Shut up… I have a plan to keep them from learning how to make the potion. You gotta add extra steps.” “Like what?” I asked as I felt the bucket winch. “Simple. Just –” she was briefly interrupted by the sound of the bucket clunking its way down the well. “Just do what you did to Vethrax on that barge.” I frowned to myself as I drew the bucket up and felt it heavy with water. “You mean, pretend to be a leprechaun?” “Add some mumbo jumbo – some hocus pocus – you know, fake spellcasting. I know you can rhyme. It’ll be easy.” “Easy? Last time I tried it, Vethrax nearly threw me in the lake.” “Vethrax is an ancient dragon demoness, so she’d know fake spellcasting when she hears it – unlike our friends out there.” “But are you sure we should do this? They might not be trying to steal the formula at all.” “Doesn’t hurt to be careful,” she patted my back. “Come on. Let’s get that water out there and put on a show.” The cauldron was a-boiling, the ingredients gathered, and everyone awaited the brewing to begin. I stood in their midst, staring into the boiling froth in the cauldron. It would be easy to finish the growth potion. All I had to do was dump the mint and cattle’s shame into the cauldron and stir. But I couldn’t let the dark elf donkey dashers know that. My coinpurse might depend on it! And so – after a deep breath to steady my trembling hands – I began to rhyme. “Sensual succubus! Hear me sing! Help me make this growing… thing!” I rubbed my hands and clapped them a few times as I stalled for time to think of the next verse. Was my ruse working? Yhtrod and her stooges were dead silent as they watched me, which could be good or bad. No matter! The show must go on! “Bless these hands that pinch a hint… of thine minty grounded mint!” Someone clicked their tongue just behind me. Who? I couldn’t stop now. “Round and round the boiling **… till a splendid brew I got.” “What she saying?” Yhtrod’s voice pierced my flow like a pick of ice. “She’s spellcasting,” said Maxie as somberly as she could. “Try not to interrupt her, lest she lose focus.” “Spellcasting?” Yhtrod snorted. “That’s spellcasting? I thought you had to talk in high elvish.” Fuck. Spells were in high elvish, weren’t they? I better throw some elvish-sounding words in. “Bibbity-bop,” I stirred the mint and reached for the cattle’s shame. “Bibbity-bip. Cattle’s shame should do the trick.” “That’s not high elvish,” said Yhtrod. “True,” Maxie said smoothly. “You’ve keen ears there. That’s the tongue of the leprechaun people, mixed with modern verses.” “Oh,” Yhtrod replied. “Of course. That explains a lot – also makes it easier to follow-along.” Easier, she said? I’d have to try harder. “Sensual succubus!” I raised my hand. “Hear my plea! Bless this brew of –” I froze, utterly horrified. “Tory?” Maxie patted my shoulder. “What’s wrong? Are you –” She fell silent. Surely, she saw it too: my hand had a spot of white on it, and it was growing. I quickly drew my hand in before our guests could see it. How foolish I’d been! The overcast skies had masked the sun’s descent and now my disguise was wearing-off at the worst possible time!

I have an even better twist coming in the next chapter- a new spell, even

Chapter 45 Maxie’s eyes darted quickly between the door to the foyer whence echoed Yhtrod’s knocking and the plush spread of my lap across my creaking, wooden chair. I stared back at her, yearning for her to share my worries. If my cover was blown, it could doom us both! Alas, it was not to be. “Eh…” Maxie sniffed. “It’s no big deal,” she stretched her arms with a yawn and stood-up from her seat by my side. “No big deal?” I gaped in disbelief and seized her hand before she could walk away from me. “Maxie… my disguise is ruined.” “How? You gained, what… ten pounds?” she pulled her hand away. “And so what if they notice it?” “Maxie, think,” I stood-up and gestured desperately toward my noticeably-jiggly thighs. “I’m wanted. There’s wanted posters of me all over the city! If they figure-out who I really am, they might betray us and turn me in for bounty money!” “No, you think,” Maxie held a finger before my face. “I’m wanted too, remember? Unlike you, I’m not disguised as some local dark elf, but you don’t see them betraying us, right?” “How do you know that?” I asked. Another knock at the front door carried through the house. “Delivery!” Yhtrod called firmly from outside. “Y’all in there? Got your plants.” I looked back at Maxie and desperately shook my head, but it was in vain. Maxie smiled softly and poked my nose with her fingertip. “We’re outlaws, Tory. That means rolling the dice – and having a backup plan for if the roll goes bad.” “What’s the backup plan now?” I asked. “Same as last time,” then she began walking. “I’m coming!” “No, wait,” I rushed after her towards the dining room door. “Wait—” Something was amiss. My footsteps were uneven, my balance, wobbly and erratic. My hips bumped into a chair and the table’s edge as I pursued my friend. My hips… had the extra couple inches really affected them so? I could feel them swaying wildly with every step like some waddling duck – a fat, clumsy duck that had no hope of catching up with the nimbler, narrower Maxie. “Maxie…” I hissed from the dining room doorframe as she approached the front door. “Don’t – oof,” my hips hit the doorframe. “Don’t let them see me…” But Maxie was already swinging the door wide open, revealing Yhtrod flanked by her two partners, each holding a full satchel of mint and cattle’s shame. “Yhtrod!” Maxie gushed. “So nice to see you – and so soon!” “Sun’s halfway ‘cross the sky already,” Yhtrod replied flatly. “It is? Must have lost track of time getting things ready for making growth potion.” “So you ready to cook?” “Cook? Ah, no. No, we haven’t set-up the kitchen yet.” Yhtrod frowned past Maxie’s shoulder and stared at me with narrowed eyes. “What’s up with you?” I’d tried to hide my hips behind the edge of the doorframe, but alas, it seemed this made them even more conspicuous. I was debating with myself whether to slink deeper into the house when Maxie regained Yhtrod’s attention. “So how much did you get?” she nodded to the full satchels. “As much as would fit,” Yhtrod turned to her partners. “Tamya? Shanik? Bring it inside.” “Inside?” Maxie blinked dumbly as the three dark elves pushed past her into the house. “I didn’t say you could…” “You said you didn’t clean the kitchen yet,” said Yhtrod. “Sounds like you need help setting-up.” “We can manage it ourselves,” said Maxie towards their backs as they stood before the staircase and gawked at the draped chandelier. “We’re already here, so we might as well help. Were’s your kitchen? Nevermind. Found it.” “The kitchen’s not ready – it’s not even dusted yet!” “We can see that,” the sound of a pan clanking to the floor carried through the house like a town bell. “Shanik! Watch your head – sorry ‘bout that, boss. We’ll help you clean this shit. The sooner you start cooking, the better.” “I… alright, hold on. I’ll be there with the alchemist in a moment,” Maxie closed the front door in resignation and waved to me. “Tory?” “Yes?” I emerged from behind the doorframe and approached cautiously. Maxie wrapped her arm around my shoulder as soon as I was near her. “See?” she whispered. “They didn’t notice a thing about you.” “Then why are we whispering?” Maxie glanced back towards the kitchen door on the other side of the foyer before turning back to me. “Remember what I said about rolling the dice?” “Oh no…” “They might be trying to cheat us somehow.” I groaned silently and flinched at the sound of another clattering pan. “Why?” “See…” Maxie whispered directly into my ear. “If I was them, I’d watch us brew the Growth Potion so I could learn how to brew it myself.” My heart sank, for I knew she spoke the truth. “If they do that..” I said slowly. “They’ll undercut our business.” “And we’ll go broke.” I glared at her. “We’re already broke – thanks to your impulsive meat-feast. Oh, I can’t believe this mess! What do we do?” Maxie ignored my jab. “What we can’t do is kick them out. They could quit our contract if they take offense, and then they’d blacklist us. No donkey dasher would work with us ever again.” “Can we… trick them?” “Maybe. Let’s help them set the kitchen-up. That’ll give me time to think of something.”

Chapter 44 Maxie fed me bite after bite of choice cuts and slices of meats, and with so much to spare, the time dragged-on and she developed a routine. First she would pluck meat from one of the bags and take it to the freshly-crackling fireplace. There, she would skewer the meats with the poker and roast the meats into a smoking, sizzling delicacy she would place carefully upon her plate, and when the plate was heaping with meat, she’d walk back to my side and proceed to dump it all on my plate. One by one, I stabbed the hot bites of meat into my constantly-chewing maw, and with each gulp, I became ever-more aware that my stupid horse outfit was growing… uncomfortable. Maxie was dumping more meat on my plate for the third time when I finally had enough of my outfit and tried to adjust its fit with a brief hop and a tug against its supposedly-elastic fabric. It was useless; the outfit was feeling tighter somehow. How? Wasn’t it supposed to stretch to accommodate my belly as it grew full? Then again… wasn’t my belly supposed to be getting full in the first place? I’d eaten more for breakfast than most did in two days, and yet I was no closer to feeling full. Maxie came back to dump a fourth serving sooner than expected. A quick glance past her towards the bags told me why: one of them was empty. “Wow,” she leaned back to get a good look at me. “You actually ate through a whole bag like it was nothing.” “Yeah,” I muffled a deep, throaty belch with my fist. Maxie’s lips pursed tight and she glanced down towards my stomach before reaching for another bag. “L-let’s keep going. One bag down; three to go.” “Three?” I shifted in my seat, its wooden legs creaking. “That’s a lot. Shouldn’t we save some?” “Best place to save it is your belly. It’ll rot otherwise.” “What about a cellar?” I asked, heart pounding. “Surely we have one.” Maxie paused with her hand still in the bag as she considered that possibility. I thought for a moment that I’d saved myself from what looked like a dangerous amount of gorging, but I was wrong. “Cellar’s useless without salt,” Maxie stated as she pulled a slab of meat the size of my whole stomach out of the bag and began cutting. I gawked at the hunk of meat like it were a severed head. “What in hells… Maxie! How much did you spend on all this?” “Nevermind that! We don’t have much time before it starts rotting.” “We? Who is we? You’ve barely eaten any!” “Oh,” Maxie blushed. “Yeah… forgot I was hungry. Guess I got carried away.” “So you’ll help me eat all this?” “I’ll try… but I got a feeling I’m no match for someone with a succubus on their side.” Blazian took this as her queue to give my waist a slow, sensual squeeze as Maxie turned to roast the fresh cuts of meat over the fireplace. Yes, indeed, she cooed. I have developed your body well. This feast will be no match for you. It wasn’t long before Maxie returned with the freshly-roasted meat slices. As usual, she dumped them upon my plate, but then she surprised me with something new: she dragged the plate a few inches away from me. “What are you doing?” I asked. “What’s it look like?” Maxie sat in a chair next to me and scooted close. “I’m helping you eat.” “You mean help us eat or –” Maxie stabbed a slice of meat with her fork and slipped it into her mouth. I sighed with relief. One less thing to worry about! I was eating too much by my own hands and I didn’t need any more. Speaking of hands, I suddenly realized I’d instinctively-grabbed a slice with my fingers. I let go instantly. How bestial! Was I really so blinded by hunger that I’d forget to use fork and knife? No… this wasn’t hunger. It was gluttony. Gluttony… a dull, mindless urge to fill the void my stomach had become. Oh, how I loathed this unnatural feeling! There were no hunger pangs inspiring me to stab slice after slice of meat upon my fork; my belly didn’t rumble as I shoved it all into my mouth; nor even did my mouth salivate from the savory juices therein. I simply wasn’t hungry, and yet no matter how much I ate, I felt as if I could eat a little more. One by one, the little cuts of steak vanished down my gullet, and the more I ate, the more uncomfortable my outfit became. Puzzled, I put a hand to my stomach. It was flat! How could this be? I fidgeted my lower half and scooted my haunches against the seat. I felt the fabric containing them drag across my skin – some spare, loose threads trapped by the seat stretching wider just before I sat again. What was making my outfit tighter like this, if not my belly? I knew Blazian was fattening my thighs up, but they were naked from ankle to hip, so how did that affect my clothing? Perhaps Blazian was fattening my hips? A quick brush of my hand against my side felt outline of a pelvic lobe, but no softness. What, then, was happening? You’ve finally noticed? Blazian bunched and squeezed every strap and cloth around my lower half. Veth may want thighs that can smother an orc, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have something for myself. Still chewing, I traced both hands across the sides of my hips again. They felt different somehow, though I knew not how. You’re quite… narrow for my tastes, pet, Blazian purred. This will not do – especially if your thighs keep growing. As my acolyte, you must grow wide, fertile hips. They’ll be useful for what I have planned for you. Then I felt it: a subtle snapping deep in my bones, like twigs in the wind. “Fuck,” I said with a full mouth. Maxie finished a bite and looked in my direction. “What?” “As if growing fat weren’t enough, now my bones are growing too.” “Really?” she scooted closer and leaned-in. “What bones?” Then she saw where my hands lay. “Your hip bones?” “Feels like it.” Without asking, Maxie touched my hip and rubbed it gently until she found the bone. “How does it feel, exactly? Like, I don’t feel anything.” “Well, it doesn’t hurt,” I replied bitterly. “I didn’t notice anything until just now.” “Me neither,” Maxie paused briefly and stared at her fork. Then she stabbed me of her own cuts of steak and held it out to me. “Let’s keep eating and see what happens.” Too exhausted to argue, I let her push the steak into my mouth, leaned back against my chair, and chewed. And so the binging continued. With every bite I cleared off my own plate, Maxie fed me another off her own. I was being stuffed like a pig on harvest day; I just needed an apple shoved into my mouth and the likeness would be perfect. Meanwhile, the pounds crept-on one by one, and my enchanted eyes viewed my increasing weight with alarm: a hundred fifty-five… fifty-six… fifty-seven… eight… nine… all in a single sitting! Would it ever end? The second bag was emptied, and Maxie set to work on the third – not to partake herself, of course, but rather to slice, roast, and feed me with. By now, her own stomach was visibly-full, and her belly so-recently returned to its flattened form bulged anew. But Maxie’s full belly was nothing compared to my thighs. Five new pounds weren’t much, but it went a long way. Never before had my normally-firm legs felt so soft and plush to the touch. They rubbed constantly against one another, all the more so since I fidgeted so much. Between my tightening horse outfit and Maxie’s curious, prodding hands, the new weight was disturbingly apparent to me. There was also a new sensation wholly unlike anything I’d felt before. The slow, yet steady widening of my hips was nothing like gaining fat. It was like a tree trunk widening within me, pressing almost imperceptibly-outwards, and with every dull snap and pop, I felt my thighs separate a little further from one another. It seemed to me – as I was fed from the fourth and final bag – that my thighs and hips were at war with one another. My hips sought to open my thigh gap, and my thighs, seal it. The thighs were winning so far. Only a small, triangle-shaped gap remained at the nexus of leg and crotch. A part of me wished for my hips to win, but I dreaded the thought of expanding further. I knew I could pass fat to others if I had to, but what of bone? Even the slight broadening of my frame today might prove permanent. Maxie returned from the fireplace with yet another fresh heap of meat. “Here you are,” she dumped it all on my plate. “One last helping. You got this.” I stared at my plate. Chicken thighs. It just had to be more thighs, didn’t it? I dropped my fork with a resigned sigh and grabbed the first chicken thigh by the bone. “You knew we didn’t have a way to store all this,” I eyed Maxie as she took a seat by my side. “You wanted me to eat all this in one sitting.” Maxie propped her head with an arm against the table and smiled innocently. “But I also knew another thing.” “That being…?” “That you could eat it all.” “Hmm…” I took my first bite. “Actually, no. I didn’t know you could eat so much. I’m not sure if anyone could know, but you’d been eating so much before, I just had a really good feeling you could do it,” she lay a hand against my thigh and dragged her thumb against its soft, plush surface. “Your thighs look amazing with the extra weight.” “Thanks,” I took another bite. “I’m still not used to it, though I guess I should since Blazian gains mana by making things grow.” “Honestly, same. You know I can’t put on weight since I make a living being fit – especially now that we’re outlaws. By the way, how much do you weigh now?” I stared back at her as if she’d asked if I’d shit last night. “Why do you want to know?” “Just curious,” she rubbed my thigh and felt it wobble. I nearly refused to answer. “A hundred sixty-four. Almost ten pounds.” She squeezed my thigh and patted it. “That dragon-girl you told me about is gonna love these.” “Someone is.” Maxie was about to answer when we heard a knock on the front door in the next room. “Y’all home?” another knock. “Delivery!” “Shit,” I hissed. “It’s Yhtrod!” “Huh,” Maxie leaned away to look towards the foyer. “She’s back sooner than I thought.” “Maxie,” I grabbed her arm. “She can’t see me like this!” “Why?” “Because I’m visibly fatter! My disguise doesn’t hide my weight!”

Chapter 43 Yhtrod and her two associates were checking the fit of the straps both their bodies and their donkeys when Maxie and I met them just outside the front door. “Took you long enough,” Yhtrod tightened a strap just between her breasts that set them an inch apart from one another. “We were thinking of going for some shade.” “Just discussing business,” Maxie waved her hand abstractly toward the house. “What business? This about the route you promised?” “Even better,” Maxie confidently rested her hand upon the nearest fencepost. “Multiple routes.” “You serious? We only got these three donkeys here.” “Let me explain –" Maxie tried to lean against the fencepost, but it nearly toppled. “Ahem…. so my friend here’s an alchemist,” she patted my shoulder. “Been brewing some good stuff if you know what I mean.” “I don’t?” Yhtrod folded her arms, brows furrowing. “Good stuff – the kind that got the town guard sniffing for us.” “Oh, the good, good stuff,” Yhtrod sniffed thoughtfully. “Wait, she a witch doctor? I don’t get near ‘em.” “Oh no, nothing like that,” Maxie patted my shoulder (curiously enough, I felt Blazian tug my panties up my cheeks as if reminding me of something). “Just some basic black market stuff. Can’t brew shit in Angel City without the clergy wanting their cut, right? She does growth potion. You can make a sack of money brewing that with the harvest season going on.” “For real?” Yhtrod’s eyes twinkled with greed. “Sounds good, but the harvest season’s half done already. Another month and it’s over.” “Then we brew and sell growth potion hand-over-fist until that happens. You in?” Yhtrod shared a glance with her two partners for the first time. It was clear to me that they were close, and the looks they gave each other signaled silent sentences only they understood. Whatever conversation ended with three mutual nods, and Yhtrod faced us again with her arms folded. “Not sure yet,” she told us. “A black market alchemist can’t be steady work – right? What exactly’s your plan?” “It’s simple: you recruit more donkey dashers to scour the city for growth potion ingredients, they’ll bring them to you, you bring them to us, and we pay you.” “You call that simple? We’re donkey dashers; not gardeners.” “Don’t worry; I’ll teach you where the ingredients are.” “And why not have these extra dashers just deliver here to the old house?” “Because my friend and I are wanted women, remember? The fewer who know where we are, the better. Besides, what’s there to complain about? We’ll pay you extra to be the middle-women.” “Mm-hm. But how much extra? You don’t look rich.” “Don’t worry, the growth potion will sell like hotcakes. Why don’t you bring a small batch of ingredients tonight and see for yourself? We can brew it and sell-out within a day. Deal?” Maxie held-out her hand, but Yhtrod merely stared at it. “Not so fast. We need a down payment.” Maxie blinked. “You want coin before you start?” “What?” Yhtrod casually walked to the half-fallen fencepost and leaned her boot against it. “You scared we’ll bounce and you’ll never see us again? You’re the outlaws here, so we need some… insurance. Come on. Not many dashers will work with the likes of you.” Maxie flinched as the fencepost fell flat to the bare, red ground. “How much?” “Fifteen crowns should do it.” “Fifteen…” Maxie looked into her purse as she laughed nervously. “Fifteen? Uh, Tory? Do you have any crowns on you?” “I’m copper-less,” I said. “Considering this dumb horse-outfit is so tight and has no pockets.” “So you broke,” Yhtrod said disdainfully. “No…” Maxie pulled a fistful of coin out. “I have twelve crowns.” “Mm… aight, that’s enough. Tell us about those ingredients and we’ll go looking for them.” I finally lost my nerve and slapped Maxie’s shoulder before she could speak and drew her ear to my mouth. “Maxie,” I whispered nervously. “What are you doing?” Maxie shrugged in Yhtrod’s direction. “Just a moment,” then she leaned towards me. “What? I’m making a deal.” “You’re giving all our coin away. If they don’t come back, we’ll starve.” “Tory,” Maxie smiled softly and touched her forehead to mine. “I’ve been copper-less plenty of times. I know how to make ends meet if this deal goes south. You just gotta trust me. Do you trust me?” There it was again: that primal fear of poverty I’d first felt when I learned I’d never attend the College of Mages. Ever since, that fear had gnawed at me like a nest of termites in an old house, invisible at times, but always just under the surface, undermining the foundations of my sanity until it all inevitably would come crashing down… “So we have a deal?” pressed Yhtrod. “Sure,” Maxie held her fist over Yhtrod’s waiting palm and let the coins pour. “Here you go. Sorry about that.” I was utterly stunned to silence. We’d lost all we had in the mere blink of an eye! How could Maxie spend so recklessly? My knees began to quake and I felt my thighs jiggle. Homelessness was in my future – I was sure of it! “Appreciate it,” Yhtrod said coldly as she dropped the coins into a pocket on her left hip. “It’s my pleasure,” Maxie replied. “Now I’ll tell you about the ingredients. You’re looking for Mint leaves and Cattle’s Shame…” When the donkey dashers finally left with all our coins, Maxie and I entered the dusty safehouse once more. “At last!” Maxie stretched her arms as she headed through the front door and turned towards the dining room. “Now we can finally kick back, relax, and eat!” “Shouldn’t we start dusting?” I asked as I followed her to the table she’d drawn upon earlier. “We should,” Maxie gripped the sides of the table and leaned against it. “But you know what’s more important? Eating all that food they delivered before it goes bad.” “But that’s –” I was briefly interrupted by a plume of dust that hit my face as Maxie blew the table off. “That’s… a lot of food – at least ten pounds of it!” Maxie stared hungrily at me from across the table, still gripping its sides. “What’s the matter? You’ve been trying to eat all morning and now you hesitate? You think you can’t handle all that?” she nodded at the bags of meat at the foot of the table. “I…” I stared at the bags. “I’m not sure.” “Tory, I’ve seen you gorge yourself before. This should be easy for you.” “It was different before,” I insisted as Maxie began moving the bags from the floor to the tabletop. “I was absorbing meals from you and Sammie as well as my own. I wasn’t actually eating more; I was being stuffed threefold.” “Same thing, Maxie. Your stomach isn’t being stuffed any further than before. Your stomach can handle it.” Still, I hesitated. No meal I’d ever binged had compared to what was on the table before me now: bags upon bags of food crowding the middle of the table, each filled with cuts of steak, pork, mutton, and duck. Did she really mean for me to eat it all now? It was enough to feed a family for a week! I was about to protest again when Blazian pierced my thoughts. Do not worry, my pet, her silent words stroked the inside of my skull. My powers have grown of late. Remember the feast at the Full Moon? I will ensure your stomach will digest quickly and won’t get too full. Meanwhile, Maxie retrieved a long sausage from one of the bags and held it out for me. “Here. Eat on this while I fetch silverware from the kitchen.” “Don’t you need to eat too – mmph!” “Naw, don’t worry ‘bout that,” Maxie gently shoved the sausage into my mouth. “I’ll join you soon as I get some forks and plates.” Maxie retrieved another sausage from the bag, bit into it with a playful wink, and headed through the door towards the kitchen. I watched her go and suddenly noticed I was still chewing the sausage. I pulled it out of my mouth and gave it a look. What was I complaining about? It was a good sausage and I was hungry… but then I glanced at all the bags and despaired. So what if I could eat it? It was more than I’d ever eaten in my life. To even try consuming it like this would mean I was taking another step towards corruption – a descent into hedonistic greed and gluttony. It was… demonic. My stomach gurgled like a babbling brook. I lay a hand against it and could feel the insides churning. Your belly yearns to be filled, Blazian whispered. Come now… take a seat and make yourself comfortable. You haven’t eaten all day… I knew this hunger was unnatural. Blazian was using her magic to enhance my appetite and digestion. Yet what could I do? All this food would rot soon, and we had no coin to buy more. I had no choice but to oblige the temptations of the succubus, and so I pulled a chair-out and slowly sat myself upon its dusty cushion. The chair creaked ominously, and I felt the fat of my thighs squish and spread against one another. They nearly touched the arms of the chair. Another couple inches, and they’d brush against them when I stood-up. Maxie returned with freshly-scrubbed plates and forks and paused in the doorway. “You’re back,” I took a bite of sausage. “What’s wrong?” “Uh…” her eyes glazed briefly. “Nothing! Just forgot you were disguised as a dark elf…” I raised an eyebrow as I chewed. “You weren’t gone that long…” “It’s a… a good look – disguise. A good disguise. Really matches the bottom-heavy build you’re growing into.” I had to chew thoroughly and swallow before answering: “What do you mean by that?” “Well, you know….” Maxie set a plate and knife before me before sitting next to me and doing likewise for herself. “When dark elf women gain weight, the fat tends to settle below their waistline more than elsewhere.” “Dark elves get fat?” I took another bite. “Well, no… not really. I mean, I think they could, but they’re such light eaters.” “So how do you know if they gain below the waist?” “Well uh… I guess there’s only one way to find out,” Maxie patted my back. I chewed thoughtfully for a moment, then swallowed. Suddenly, realization hit me and my eyes bugged. “You want to push weight onto Yhtrod and the other door dashers?” Maxie gagged. “What? No, that’s not what I meant!” “Maxie, I’m getting really confused here.” “Tory,” she set her food down and put her hand on my thigh. “Remember when I said I wanted to tell you something?” “Yes? It’s that you want to sleep together, right? I told you we’d done it before and I don’t see what the big deal i—” “It’s something else.” I looked between her hand on my thigh and her yearning eyes. “What?” She bit her lip and lowered her voice to a bashful whisper. “I like watching you eat.” “You like… watching me eat?” I frowned. “Why?” “I dunno,” she shook her head. “At first, I thought it was funny how you had to gorge yourself even as you absorbed extra from me and Sammy. Hilarious, right? A girl forced to fatten-up like a prize cow for the fair? I was giggling into my pillow each night. But then… as you started to… you know…” “What?” “Your body… it was getting so… I just… I dunno how to say it; I’ve never felt this way before!” “I don’t understand,” I edged away from her. “Wait,” Maxie’s fingers dug into my thigh and she leaned close. The chairs creaked as our weights shifted. “Wait…” Our chests were heaving now. I myself wanted to run, but also desperately wanted to know what my friend was trying to say. With my heart torn betwixt two desires, it began to race, getting nowhere mighty-fast. At last, Maxie broke the silence. “Please… let me show you instead.” Maxie took hold of my hand and gently plucked the fork and sausage from its grasp. Then – lovingly, caressingly, and reverently – she set it to my lips. I closed my eyes and began to feed.

Chapter 42 We managed to dust-off just enough of the space around the dining room fireplace to be able to sit comfortably in the winged chairs set around it. Night approached quickly, and we had to kindle a small flame with ancient logs just to see our hands, but this labor made us too tired to do anything but recline in the chairs and hope sleep claimed us. It seemed we had nothing to worry about; the flames more than compensated for our lack of blankets, and I fell into a blissful, dreamless slumber to the sound of crackling wood. The strong scent of ashes was the first thing that roused me from sleep. No doubt our little fire had faded to a smolder, but I refused to open my eyes just yet. Sweet sleep! A fickle lover! If I could only keep my eyes shut a little longer, she’d kiss me once more… but alas. The world wouldn’t let me. I could hear Maxie stirring in the chair across from mine, smelled the dust coursing through the air, and my friend’s thunderous sneeze. Even then, I refused to open my eyes. Even as I heard Maxie rise from her creaking chair and step ever-closer to mine… “Oh, there she is!” Maxie’s voice loomed just beyond my eyelids. “There you are, Tory!” I stirred irritably. “What?” “Tory, your disguise wore off.” Finally, I opened my eyes. “Huh?” “Just look at yourself,” Maxie stared down at my body, biting her lip. “You’re still wearing the horse outfit.” I followed her gaze and groaned. Gone were the loose trousers of the first mate disguise Vethrax had given me, replaced with the skimpy, enchanted outfit I’d donned for the Full Moon Party. How I loathed the way it revealed my still-bloated midriff and hugged my every curve like a second skin. Now the extra plushness of my thighs were in full view; their ever-widening girth revealed for all to see. “You lost weight,” Maxie stared, unblinking. “Lost weight?” I slapped the top of my thigh and its whole surface rippled like a puddle. “No, I’m gaining weight. Can’t you tell?” “When I left you at the Scarlet Mansion, you sported a small gut, but that’s gone now.” “I guess you haven’t gotten a proper look at me since I pushed all those pounds into Vethrax.” “For sure,” her eyes twinkled. “Sure wish I’d been there to see you do it.” “What do you mean?” “Uh… I can’t think straight on an empty stomach. Let’s get breakfast.” “Wait. I can’t go out like this,” I gestured at my body. “I need another disguise.” “Can you do it? Cast the Mask of a Thousand Faces spell, I mean?” “Only one way to find out,” I grunted as I finally stood-up from the perfectly-warm seat of my cushioned chair. I turned to the fireplace and its still-smoldering heap of white ash piled high against charred husks of black wood. I had to crouch to be able to reach a poker into the ash and spread it around to reveal the glowing, orange embers within, and I felt my thighs press snugly together from knee to crotch. This new shape Blazian was molding me into for Vethrax’s eccentric tastes was unlike anything I’d felt before. Every new pound was pushing my thighs outwards like overstuffed sausages, or – as Vethrax would put it – overstuffed pillows. It was somewhat alarming how quickly they’d thickened… but I couldn’t afford to worry about thighs right now. It was my face that needed urgent fixing. I took a deep breath and softly breathed life into the dying embers. “Vethrax,” I stared at the brightest fleck of orange. “Mighty dragoness, Queen of the Chillbrine River. Hear my plea: bestow upon me your Mask of a Thousand Faces that I may roam freely and…” I resisted the urge to cringe. “… engorge myself so that I may pay-off Blazian’s debt to thee and also grow my thighs into pillows for your uh… thine pleasure.” A dull-red fragment of wood snapped and I heard a faint, inaudible whisper within the crevices of my skull. <Amusing… next time, rhyme it… leprechaun…> My hand turned black. “Ah!” I clutched my wrist and scrambled-back from the fireplace. “Tory!” Maxie caught me with her legs. “Your hand!” The blackness spread down my arm and under my sleeves like the shadow of the horizon. Not one square inch of me was spared from its unstoppable advance. It was running down my other arm now… my legs… my neck… I grit my teeth as I felt it crawl across my face, and moaned as I saw my curly, red hair slacken into straight locks of deathly-white. It was taking over my whole body and all I could do was shiver helplessly against my friends’ legs. “Holy demons,” Maxie eyed me with awe. “It worked! You’re a dark elf?” I stared dumbly back at her gawking face. “A dark elf?” Ping! Ping! Out pricked my new, elven ears. I reached-out to one of them and felt its long, delicate form. It flicked like a grasshopper’s wing, startling me. The transformation was complete. “Not bad!” Maxie patted my head and looked down into my eyes. “That’s a good spell – a great spell, actually. Kinda surprised at the spell’s wording.” “Surprised by the words or the fact they weren’t in ancient high elvish?” “Yes,” Tory patted my shoulder. “Now come on. I’m getting you some breakfast.” My new dark elf disguise proved very fitting for a stroll through Crimson Heights; I blended perfectly into the local crowds and passers-by. Now it was Maxie who stuck-out like a sore thumb, but she remained unfazed. She walked the bridges, rooftops, and cragged causeways like she’d done it a hundred times. It turned-out she had. “Been a while since I ran goods through here,” said Maxie as she ascended stone steps carved into the rock. “As a donkey dasher, right?” I huffed after her, hoping a conversation would slow her pace. “Bet,” Maxie skipped to the top. “These are my streets, my people, and I know just the place for food.” “Is it close? My thighs are chafing again.” “Again? No way. Your thighs aren’t that big.” “Want to see for yourself? I could make that happen.” “Hey, the weight looks better on you – I mean it. Don’t worry; it’s just around this bend.” Maxie spoke truthfully. I’d only just recovered from the long hike up the stairs when my eyes rested upon the promised eating place: an open, circular shack made of wooden beams resting around a towering furnace. Ah, I could smell it now! The sizzling meats of every domesticated beast were being grilled from every angle of the great furnace by a half-dozen cooks, and hungry patrons circled them, in turn, resting on stumps with their arms folded around a wooden counter. It was a derelict den of dark elves, and yet I’d never been more eager to sit amongst them for a taste of such sweet, savory meats. Maxie put her hand on my shoulder, smiling faintly. “I know you wanna sit those plump thighs down, girl, but we got a house to clean and a jail to break.” “You can’t be serious!” I was nearly at a loss for words. “But… the food!” “We’ll take it home – or rather, my associates will.” “Associates?” “Tory, I left my donkey dashing days behind me, but that doesn’t mean the streets don’t claim me.” “Huh?” “Just follow me ‘round the back.” I shuffled after her to the back of the shack, doing my utmost to keep my sweaty thighs from brushing together any more than they had to. More than a few grimy patrons cast their gaze my way with narrowed eyes, and I worried that Maxie had taken me to a more dangerous part of the Dark Elf District. We were the only ones here that weren’t dark elves… and then I suddenly remembered my disguise. I’d totally misunderstood the attention I was garnishing. The patrons weren’t staring at me; they were leering lustfully. We found three dark elf women and three donkeys reclining lazily behind the shack. Both dark elf and donkey were geared for travel and transport, sporting satchels, sacks, packs, and vests lined with pockets. The dark elves in particular wore loose clothing, ideal for keeping cool whilst doing heavy labor outdoors, and wide-brimmed hats to shield them from the sun. They all glanced our way as we approached (and this time, not lustfully). “Y’all lookin’ for work?” Maxie asked, her accent a little thicker than usual. The dark elf closest to us – a tall woman with triple braids of white hair -- made a face halfway between a frown and a pout. “Who’s asking?” “Was gonna ask the same thing,” Maxie held her hand out. “Name’s Maxie. Did some runs through here ‘bout a year ago.” “No shit? I’m Yhtrod,” she shook Maxie’s hand. “So you mentioned work? What kinda run you want us to do?” “This isn’t just a run,” Maxie grinned. “I wanna hire you for a permanent route.” I butted-in, full of confusion. “Does ‘route’ mean what I think it means? Maxie, do you have enough money to –” Maxie pressed her hand against my mouth and smiled at Yhtrod. “I pay till to the last copper… but with what I’m planning, that’ll never happen – and there could be more routes for more donkey dashers. You in?” Yhtrod didn’t even look at her associates. “We’re in. What’s the shipment.” “Food.” Yhtrod raised both eyebrows. “You serious?” “Me and my friend here want food from this place,” she waved at the shack. “Taken to our current residence ‘bout two hundred yards down the stairs and across a bridge. Easy route. Should be worth about two crowns a run.” “Two crowns and three coppers, more like.” “Sure… I’m too hungry to barter anyway. Let’s get the first shipment loaded and I’ll show you where the residence is.” “Wait, we didn’t talk about what kind of food you want or how much.” “Just stuff whatever fits in a sack and let’s go.” Just like that, Maxie turned and marched back towards the counter under the shack’s wooden awning. The three donkey dashers shrugged and stretched their arms before following her lead. Finally, I tagged closely behind, if only in the vague hope for a snack to quench my rising hunger for breakfast. A brief walk later and we were walking back into the safehouse with sacks of meat under each arm. “I’ve no idea what you’re planning, Maxie,” I said as we wearily shuffled our feet to the dining room table. “Why did you tell those donkey dashers to wait in front of the house? Shouldn’t we be keeping this place secret?” “We can get away with a lot more since you can disguise your – don’t wipe the table!” I paused, mid-swipe. “But we can’t eat on a dusty table.” “Eating can wait! Planning is now… oh, and you can put that sack of food on the floor.” “Maxie, what are you talking about?” I set my sack down with a slight grunt. “I have no idea what you’re doing anymore.” “I’m gonna explain things now – don’t lean too much on the table. I need the dust.” “Dust?” “Got no ink and parchment, so dust it is. Now then,” Maxie began dragging her fingertip across the table to draw lines. “I was thinking about things last night – thinking about your story, the dragon-girl Vethrax, her ‘thousand faces’ spell, the fact that Kora and Lady Djizz are part of some werewolf cult, and everything else. It’s all so confusing, isn’t it?” “Yeah,” I stood stiffly, not touching anything. “Well, I think I’ve figured most of it out,” Maxie kept drawing, making large squares and rectangles in the dust. “Now… we need a plan to free our friends. Also, we gotta fatten you and a bunch of animals, plants, and people up so that Blazian can pay Vethrax’s debt. Tracking so far?” “I’m guessing you have a plan?” “Almost,” Maxie spread her arms and gestured at what she’d drawn on the dusty table: a map. “This is the Fleur Avenue Precinct, the very place our friends have been imprisoned inside of for nearly a week. I’ve been scouting the outside of it for days, but you… you’ve seen the inside, right?” “I have.” “So you saw our friends and know where they are?” “Yes.” “Walk me through it. You went in this door here,” she touched her finger to the map. “What was it like inside?” “Well… the door led us into a room…” “Like this?” she began tracing. “A little bigger… and then we stopped here…” I pointed without touching the dust. “Uh huh…” “And there we entered a door that led down into the dungeon level.” “Yeah…” “Then we turned right, then hit a left bend and were in a hallway with two large cells on either side with open, iron bars.” “So that part of the hallway is just iron bars? Nice. Which one has our friends?” “Vethrax is in the left one, and our friends are in the right.” “Both cells makes this complicated,” Maxie added some letters to symbolize each person. “You didn’t happen to see where the key to the cell doors was?” “In a box on the wall – right before the iron bars.” “Beautiful… and were there any guards posted down there?” “Just the one at the door to the dungeon. The rest were outside.” “They’re always outside,” Maxie chuckled. “Lazy bitches… so that’s twelve lazy guards lounging around outside the precinct, one unlucky guard at the door, and then Kora. This’ll be easier than I thought.” “How so?” Maxie rubbed her hands. “Let me tell you the basics of the plan: we’re gonna draw Kora and those guards away from the precinct by making a ruckus so big that they’ll have no choice but to investigate it – and we’ll do that by making that purple haze that made you eat everything in sight.” “The Maiden’s Agony,” I swallowed. “I don’t actually know how to make that.” But I do, Blazian said out of nowhere. “You do?” I frowned. Maxie nodded knowingly. “She can teach you, can’t she? I knew it. Now here’s the good part…” she walked to the other side of the table to point at other “buildings” she’d drawn. “This is the next block over from the precinct. There’s a small shrine here with some priestess’s hosting a constant vigil over a little walled-garden – a sacred ground, I think? Doesn’t matter. We’re gonna smoke ‘em with a shit-ton of Maiden’s Agony.” “Uh…” “What’s the worst that could happen? They’ll eat all their sacred cabbages or whatever? The point is that it’ll sound like chaos. That’ll get the guards to rush over there, which allows you to sneak into the precinct.” “How will I get past the dungeon guard?” “How do you think? You’ll use the Mask of a Thousand Faces spell to disguise yourself as Kora and walk right past her!” “I mean… that sounds like it will work…” “It’ll be easy. You’ll unlock the cell doors, let all the inmates out, and escape. One guard’s no match for all of them! You got this!” “But we’ll need a lot of Maiden’s Agony to do this, won’t we? Even assuming I can learn how to brew it and collect all the ingredients, that’s going to take forever – and we’re running out of money.” “I have another plan for that. Come with me outside. We’re going to teach my donkey dasher friends how to find growth potion ingredients for us.”

Chapter 41 I told Maxie everything as we entered the Dark Elf District, but it wasn’t long before my mewling stomach grew too loud to ignore. Fortunately, Maxie had crowns, and she was all too willing to buy me food at the first bakery we passed. Even as we walked onwards, I could hardly contain my excitement as I unwrapped the first six inches of my footlong baguette. Sweet nourishment at last – and there were two more to look forward to! I knew Blazian would send them straight to my thighs, but I cared not. Hunger trumped all other worries. “So I was wondering…” I said as I took my first bite. “Uh huh?” Maxie seemed bemused by my ravenous appetie. I paused to move food away from my teeth and tongue. “How did you recognize me? Kora didn’t even as she looked straight at me.” Maxie smirked. “I didn’t.” I’d have expressed my disbelief if I wasn’t busy biting more bread. “Mm?” “I was following you because you came out of the precinct without being stopped. I figured I’d corner you in the first narrow alleyway you entered and uh… persuade you to tell me everything you knew about the inside of the building, but as soon as you did do that, you fell to your knees and started talking to our succubus friend,” she pinched my cheek. “And I recognized that voice instantly. Broke cover immediately.” “Mm…” I pulled free of her to fill my cheeks with yet more bread. It was sour, yet sweet, and had several black grains I didn’t recognize. It was the best bread I’d ever eaten, but I had to balance eating with talking. Hence, I swallowed and cleared my throat. “Guess it all worked-out then. I was afraid I’d never see you again.” “That’s still a good disguise you got,” Maxie curiously stroked my currently-blonde hair and held a lock as if it were silk. “’Mask of a Thousand Faces,’ huh? That what you call it? I could use a spell like that… but one worry at a time. I wanna get to this ‘safe house’ your new dragon friend left us before the sun sets. Nothing cozier than a dragon’s den, right?” “Can’t argue with that – Blazian? Which way now?” Keep walking up the street, she answered to me. At ever fork, turn to whichever goes higher until we get to a foothill with red soil. The house is perched atop one of its summits. “What she say?” asked Maxie. “Red soil…” I took a bite and chewed thoughtfully. “That’s where we’re going…” Maxie stopped walking. “Hold up… are we going to Crimson Heights?” “Uh…” I looked upwards past the rooftops. The foggy, white mountaintops loomed high like a massive bowl, but below them were the foothills – steep tendrils of land sloping their way from the craggy, stone mountains toward the city. There were dwellings on them, thick as grass, and piled so high in some foothills that they looked like they were made of dwellings. One such place was just naked enough to show its true color: crimson red. “I think were going there,” I pointed. “Is that Crimson Heights?” “Yep,” Maxie said fatefully. “What?” “Nothing. Let’s keep walking.” Dark elves were everywhere – as a matter of fact, I couldn’t see any other races here. This must be the Dark Elf District. I didn’t know what to expect, but it was jarring nonetheless. Gone were the bakeries, dwarven banks, goblin venders, and even temples, replaced with mushroom stands, pawn shops, hookah dens, and coffee lounges. There was a faded, run-down look to everything built here, as if they’d never been fixed once. All in all, a rougher place than I expected. I started eating my second baguette to take my mind off it. “So Maxie?” I asked before my mouth got too full. “How did you escape anyway?” “That’s a story,” Maxie chuckled. “Sammie and I waited for you to leave the Scarlet Mansion half the night before we gave up and went back to Natasha’s place.” “Mm?” I swallowed before speaking again. “”You didn’t suspect anything was wrong?” “We figured you were spending the night,” she shrugged. “But even if we did, we couldn’t get in there even if we tried. So anyway, we got back without waking Natasha up, and then went to sleep. Next thing I know, Town Guard’s busting every door and window on the ground floor and everyone’s running around like chickens.” Maxie paused for a moment to gather her thoughts and breath as I pointed us toward the steeper street at a fork intersection. The ground was getting steeper, and we started breathing heavily. “I was lucky…” huffed Maxie. “Reached the attic before anybody saw… kicked through the only window up there and started hopping over the rooftops.” “And you left the others?” I gasped, clutching my half-eaten baguette. “Tory… I never left them… been stalking their precinct half a week before you showed up.” “Sorry.” “We’ll get ‘em out,” Maxie slapped my lower back. “Don’t worry… but first… hff… let’s get to this safe house.” It’s not much farther, Blazian promised. A little farther and we’ll be in soft beds by a roaring fireplace. Crimson Heights was somehow worse than the rest of the Dark Elf District. Trash lay scattered everywhere and rats scurried fearlessly across our path. The rats were the only sign of wildlife here, for every patch of ground was barren and red. Worse, the ground was so steep that no streets reached this high, only narrow, stone stairs, and dubiously-suspended wooden bridges. We were crossing one such creaking bridge as I lingered behind Maxie. “This better be…” I groaned. “… the last bridge Blazian…” Be strong, little pup, Blazian massaged my whole body to encourage me. The safe house is perched upon that white stone just ahead. It is the best view in all Crimson Heights. A good view of the city was the last thing I currently wanted. I could see the red dirt through the wooden planks – a two story drop that would surely break every bone in my body. The city to my left was still-further down. I couldn’t bear to look! “Chafing…” I laughed from the sheer dread of it all. “My thighs are chafing. Blazian! This is your fault! You put all that bread into my thighs and now they’re rubbing together like sweaty sausages!” “Tory!” Maxie called from the end of the bridge. “What’s the hold-up?” I groaned at the sky (so I didn’t have to look down). “I’m coming…” I started walking again; one foot in front of the other. “Crimson Heights… yeah, the dirt’s crimson, alright. Why’s the dirt bleeding?” “It’s not bleeding,” Maxie remarked. “It’s rusting.” “Rusting?” “This used to be an iron quarry. That’s why the dirt’s red – it’s rusting.” “Rusting dirt…” I took another tormented step. “We’ve stepped into a realm of hell!” The fiery plain is a pleasant paradise, Blazian argued. It’s “fiery” because the women are hot, not the land. “Lovely,” I said bitterly. Maxie cocked her head from beyond the bridge as I approached. “Are you talking to Blazian again?” “Yes. Why?” “It’s confusing. Half the time I can’t tell if you’re talking to me and the other half of the time, I can only hear half of the conversation. Couldn’t Blazian just speak to both of us?” “Won’t hurt to ask. Blazian? Could you…?” Not yet, she replied. Patience, pup. I already devote all my mana to you. “To my thighs, you mean…” Maxie threw her hands. “See, this is what I’m talking about! One breath, you ask half a question, and in the next, you’re talking about thighs? What’s so important about those?” “Fatter,” I huffed a sigh of relief as I finally crossed the bridge. “They’re getting fatter…” “Whatever. So this is the safehouse?” I craned my neck and took a look at the place. As Blazian said, it was built on a large, white boulder half-exposed on the edge of a cliff-face. With two stories, a small tower, and a barren courtyard, it was quite an impressive mansion – and impressively derelict. “Home sweet home,” I sighed. “It’s bigger than I expected.” “And older,” Maxie grumbled. “Seriously, when’s the last time that Vethrax chick stayed here? It looks like the wood’s rotting.” It’s been a thousand years since I saw this place, Blazian told me. I nearly tripped onto the courtyard dirt. “A thousand?” “A thousand?” chimed Maxie. I’m sure Vethrax has visited more recently. Maxie half-smiled at me. “I take it back. This place looks fucking fantastic for a thousand-year wreck. It’s a miracle it’s still standing.” We approached the double door entrance and took a good look at its giant knockers – heavy-looking brass rings held by carved gargoyle faces. With one mind, we each took hold of one and pulled – but the door didn’t budge. Not even a rattle rewarded our efforts. It was as if the doors were part of the wall. The enchantments persist, Blazian mused. Good. We won’t meet unexpected guests. Put your hand in that gargoyle’s mouth to let it know you’re friendly. “In it’s mouth?” I glanced from the gargoyle to Maxie and back again. “Here goes nothing…” The “mouth” was deeper than it looked. My whole hand fit within the dark space between the wooden teeth. I was about to pull it out when the teeth snapped shut. “Tory!” Maxie cried as she lunged at my hand to pull it out. All I could do was scream. A cursed door! Why hadn’t Blazian warned me? But it ended as soon as it began. The mouth released me, something clicked, and the doors creaked open. Good girl, Blazian consoled me. Any thief or squatter would be running in fear. Such a simple trick, yet effective. “We don’t have to do that every time, right?” asked Maxie. “Whatever. Let’s get inside.” The inside was better than the outside, but not by much. We had entered a modest foyer complete with a winding staircase, a large chandelier, and assorted furniture. But any sense of luxury was buried under a thick layer of dust that coated every surface like dirty snow. Every piece of furniture was covered in sheets, and most foreboding of all, the chandelier was draped in a sheet of its own like a hovering phantom. “This might not be a house,” said Maxie. “Looks like a tomb.” “What’s that smell?” I sneezed. “Likely dust,” Maxie scuffed her foot across the floor and made a plumb of the stuff for emphasis. “But it’s nothing a quick sweep can’t fix,” she glanced about and began pacing a slow circle. “Let’s see… windows are draped. I think we can open the ones looking over the cliff. Definitely need to pull these sheets off the furniture too. And this…” she scuffed her foot in the dust again. “We can’t sleep until it’s swept, right?” “Since when did you become a maid?” I asked. “Come on, Tory. Didn’t you notice me wiping the counters when we were bartending together? There’s a reason I did that – and it’s the same reason why we need to find a broom. Let’s split-up and find one.” “Wait, split-up? Are you sure that’s a good idea?” “Why not? Scared of the dark?” “What about ghosts?” Maxie just shook her head and waved me off. “I bet it’s either in the kitchen to the left or that other room on the right. I’ll check the kitchen…” What else could I do? Stand still in the dusty foyer? I headed to the next room and stifled another sneeze. Inside I found a large, sheeted object surrounded by small ones – a dining table. No sign of ghosts so far. “Blazian?” I moved to a window on the far wall and drew back its drapes. “There wouldn’t be ghosts here… would there?” No, she said smugly. Just me. Red light temporarily-blinded me from the revealed window. The sun was setting between two peaks. It was getting late. “How can you be sure?” What’s the matter? Is my little kitten scared of the dark after all? “I’m not,” I replied. “I’m scared of old, haunted houses.” A scream pierced the murky halls like an ice pick – straight from the kitchen. “Maxie?” I started running. “Maxie!” I was there in an instant. I found her in a pantry, shaking and pointing a trembling finger at the only thing in the damp, narrow space: a yellow, cabbage-sized thing growing out of the wall. “Look at this!” she cried. “Look at it!” Confused, I leaned closer. “Is that a mushroom?” “Get away from it! We need to get out!” “But we –” “Out!” We ate our troubles away at a rooftop bar we found nearby. Here, the full breadth of the city nightscape glittered below us through the smoky haze of a thousand chimneys. A shame we couldn’t fully enjoy the view with a brisk breeze blowing on our backs. We ordered hot soup to compensate. The dark elf owner of the bar himself appeared with the steaming bowls as we hungrily licked our lips. “Aight,” he said casually as he set them before us. “Two bowls of soup. Holler if you need anything.” “Thanks,” Maxie smiled politely and waited for him to vanish down the stairs before talking to me. “I think I might have overreacted back there.” “Maybe,” I dipped my spoon into the fatty broth. “I mean, so what if it was growing out of the wall? It was just a…” I paused mid-bite, spotting familiar, white mass in my spoonful of soup. “A mushroom.” Maxie sneered and winced at her own spoon. “Not again! Ugh! I should’ve known a dark elf chef would use shrooms.” My stomach rumbled. “Guess we have to conquer our fears sooner or later.” “Fuck…” Maxie groaned. “I don’t want to do this.” “You mean eat this or go back to the house?” “None of it! I don’t wanna mess with the town guard, don’t wanna plan a dungeon-break, don’t wanna dust, clean, or sweep the house, and…” she eyed the mushroom soup again and groaned. “That mushroom in the wall was the final straw. Of course I snapped.” I thought she’d keep talking, but heard only silence. If she wouldn’t speak, then I would – anything to delay the inevitable first sip of soup. “So you don’t want to do all this anymore?” “I never did. Do you? I’d rather be back at the Huntress’s Lair serving tankards for tips. I’d rather be a donkey dasher again,” she snickered to herself. “But it doesn’t matter. I have to do it. Can’t just leave Sammie and Natasha rotting away in some dungeon. I’ve lost friends to the dungeons before – never again. We will get them out; I just need to think of a plan.” “Well…” I shrugged. “Guess I’ll eat to that.” Maxie raised her spoon in salute. “To doing things we hate.” “Cheers,” I replied. The soup was surprisingly good. The mushrooms had no flavor, but their malleable texture added a new layer to the eating experience. “’S good,” Maxie nodded, dipping her spoon for another bite. “Needed this,” I smiled. “Didn’t realize how hungry I was.” “It’s a sign. Also, you’re always hungry, Tory.” I smiled again as I sipped the broth from the bowl. “I guess so.” “Oh, and about that…” I froze. “What?” “There was one other reason I’m doing this.” “I have a bad feeling about this.” “Tory?” Maxie angled herself towards me, and I noticed her middle was looking more plush than usual. “Can you do me a solid? My hunger’s too strong to resist since we’d been eating to stuff you. Are you… can you…?” I sighed weakly. “Sure. I have to repay you somehow,” I held-out my hand. “Here: hold me.” Absorbing weight had become second nature to me. I hardly blinked as I watched Maxie’s belly deflate and harden, nor even stiffen as I felt my thighs rub slightly across the stool as they softened and spread. I’d just gained seven pounds as easily as putting a rock in my pocket, and all I felt was surprise that I didn’t care more. “So how does it look?” I asked. “You look great,” she pursed her lips as she looked me over. “Just like old times, huh?” “We’ve barely been apart for a week,” I replied, rubbing the new plushness of my lap. “Feels like a year,” Maxie hesitantly reached her hand out. Wait. Why was she putting her hand on mine? Maxie stared awkwardly at our hands, and I felt her fingers twitch across mine. Yet just as it seemed as if she was going to squeeze tight, she flinched and let go. “Um,” she fidgeted. “We have a lot to plan for.” “Sure do,” I said casually. “I’m not sure where to start. I guess we should clean one of the rooms in the safehouse so we can sleep.” “Yeah,” Maxie squeaked. “We’ll need to… share a bed…” “I don’t think I trust blankets that old,” I replied. “I saw a fireplace in the dining room. Why don’t we clean that and sleep on the winged chairs next to it?” “Have you ever slept with a woman?” “Yes? Maxie, we shared a bed with Sammie in the Huntress’s Lair, remember?” “No, I mean…” she blushed. “Really slept with a woman?” “What do you mean?” I asked, but already knew the answer. “Tory? There’s something I wanted to ask you. Um… do you… uh…” “Like girls?” I blurted. “I guess I never thought about it. Maybe?” “Oh…” she laughed nervously. “Good – that’s good, but uh… that’s not what I was going to ask…” “Huh? What was it, then?” “Nothing,” Maxie was red as a beet. “Let’s eat. Got to keep my head clear while I plan a way to get us out of this mess…”

Chapter 40 “You’re not a talkative one, are you ‘first mate?’” Kora asked as we followed her to a guarded door. I had to remain silent. My face may be disguised thanks to Vethrax’s magic, but my voice remained my own, and Kora might recognize it. Thankfully, Vethrax spoke in my stead. “You settled into your new position quickly,” she said. “It can’t have been longer than a month and you’ve replaced all the old staff.” This tickled Kora’s ego just enough to get her off my back. “Hasn’t even been a week, actually. Hand-picked each and every guard on my shift. This is my domain now.” “I also noticed they’re all women,” Vethrax nodded towards the guard by the door – a scowling, busty beauty that nodded to Kora as she unlocked the door and opened it for us. Stairs leading down into the dungeon beckoned. “And what’s your point?” Kora gestured us to enter first. “I find it curious,” Vethrax nudged me forward so that she was the one between us. “This is the first all-girl guard shift I’ve seen. It can’t be a coincidence.” “And you’re correct. All these girls are close friends of mine,” Kora’s footsteps thudded heavily behind us from the stairs above. “What’s wrong with that? Let me guess: you think I should hire the best for the job?” “I wouldn’t dare tell you how to staff your shift.” “I know it’s what you think. Everyone in this city does…” she paused briefly as we reached the dungeon floor. Someone was ranting and raving just out of sight. I thought the sound disturbing, but it seemed a source of mirth for our host. “Ha! Meritocracy… it only lasts till someone decides to hire their cronies, and then you’re shit out of luck, right? That’s why you be the first to hire your cronies. Merit’s nothing compared to loyalty. Move…” We barely had time to step aside for Kora as she shoved past us and turned right without waiting for us to follow her. I myself was petrified by the sound of the ranting echoing against the stone walls. It was a man’s voice, and somehow familiar… “First Mate,” Vethrax called after me. I snapped out of my funk and caught up with them. The narrow corridor forced me to walk just behind them like the lackey I was. “Not the brightest lieutenant, is she?” said Kora, turning left. “She has much to learn,” Vethrax replied cryptically. “Sure she does… and you have much to pay. Did you bring the coin?” “Let me see my crewmate first.” “You don’t trust me?” “It’s just protocol.” “Alright. You wanna see him? Easy enough. The holding cells are just ahead. I’m sure he’ll be running-up to the bars as we speak.” True to her word, the narrow corridor’s stone walls gave way to iron bars. The view beyond those bars appalled me: two large cells packed with people with hardly a bench, stool, or slopbucket between them. At least a dozen people were on either side of us. I finally found the source of the ranting: a haggard man muttering to himself. “Demons are coming,” he spoke to the arched, stone ceiling. “They’re coming for you – coming for me. Demons everywhere…” My eyes flared with recognition. This was the homeless madman who’d tried to enter the Huntress’s Lair and got arrested by Kora the day I’d met her! He was still here! But where was Shrat? Where were my friends? “Left cell!” Kora barked. “Backs to me! Hands on the wall!” Like roaches, all souls in the left cell scrambled to the far wall with their hands splayed across it. Kora took a key from a box on the stone corridor’s wall and unlocked the cell door, its iron hinges creaking like a dying horse as it swung open. “After you,” Kora stepped gracefully aside, grinning. Vethrax entered… and Kora slammed the gate shut. I was horrified – I’d almost been trapped too! “A bit unexpected,” Vethrax remarked facetiously. “Why?” Kora locked the cell door. “It’s just protocol.” “Must be a new one.” Kora leaned close to the bars. “Now here’s how it’s gonna go: you empty your pockets and give me the coin you owe me. Then I let you out – deal?” “Best I can do is a bank note,” Vethrax folded her arms. “I avoid carrying a heavy purse; thieves always try to take it.” “Banknote?” Kora laughed wretchedly. “Ahaha… no. No papers. No one needs to read what we’re up to. This is personal business between you and me, you understand?” “I’m afraid I have no coin for you.” “Maybe so. Maybe so,” Kora nodded thoughtfully. “But I expected as much – and that’s why I left good ol’ First Mutt here free to go fetch it,” she looked straight at me. “You’ll do that for us, right?” I was spared from answering once again. This time, it was a rattling against the bars of the opposite cell that saved me. “Captain!” a shrill voice called from knee-level. “Captain, you came! I knew you would!” I turned and gaped at what I saw. It was Shrat. The two-legged lizard was as desperate as ever, clinging by his fingers and toes to iron bars just barely narrow enough to contain him. Yet it wasn’t the lost kobold that stole my attention; it was my friends standing just behind him! Sammie and Natasha… ragged and greasy, yet healthy and whole. I’d found them! We were reunited at last, yet they merely stared blankly at me like strangers. Vethrax’s magical disguise shielded my identity even from those closest to me. Oh, how I wished I could signal them somehow without revealing myself to Kora! I would free them soon – but how? And where was Maxie? Kora turned away from me and stormed after Shrat. “Oh, what’s this? Trying to squeeze out again?” Undaunted, Shrat reached his hand through the bars towards his captian. “You’ll get us out, right? You always have!” “Shut up!” Kora slapped his hand away. It was this moment that Vethrax chose to speak to me with a silent whisper. <A minor setback, no?> she stared serenely at me as if we were back in her bed. <Don’t flinch. Only you and Pinkie can hear me. Pat your thigh if you understand.> I obeyed while trying not to wince at the sound of Shrat’s screams. <Good. Listen closely. We have time. I can outlast this pretentious woman here – outlive her if I have to. But as for you… you’re going to break us out.> How? I couldn’t just pull everyone through a gutter window like Maxie had for us all those weeks ago. There were no windows here! <Understand?> What could I do? I patted my thigh again. <Don’t worry. I’ve prepared for such things. I own a safe house in the Dark Elf District. Pinkie knows it well. She will guide you there – won’t you, Pinkie?> Of course, Blazian replied. <Now play along with whatever this new watch commander says. Promise her a fortune if you have to; she won’t see a copper coin of it.> I was about to pat my thigh when Kora slapped her hand onto my shoulder. “So,” she cocked a half smile. “How much you paying me for bail?” She was asking me? This wasn’t a bail anymore! It was a shakedown! “Don’t make me throw out a number,” Kora’s eyes narrowed. “How much?” I cleared my throat and did my best to lower my voice into an unrecognizeable husk. “A hundred.” “Mm,” she licked her lips. “No wonder you don’t talk. That’s not enough.” “Two hundred?” “Higher.” “… three hundred?” “Look, if you don’t pay-up, I’ll just confiscate all the cargo on your barge when I find it. Whatever. Go fetch the coin when you think you have enough and I’ll decide if it’s enough. Now get out of here.” Without even a chance to say goodbye, I took one last glimpse of my friends: Vethrax, Sammie, Natasha, and even Shrat. All depended on me for their freedom, and if I didn’t think of something soon, I’d never see them again. I made it halfway to the Dark Elf District before despair finally brought me to my knees. “How are we supposed to save them now?” I cried in a narrow, empty alleyway. The same way we always do, pet, Blazian readily replied. Use my magic to make girls juicy and plump. I leaned against a dirty, brick wall and let myself rest against it. “But how? How does that magic help us?” Fear not, dear kitten. My power grow and multiply by the pound. There’s nothing my magic can’t do for us if you’ve the wits to use them. I rolled my back across the dirty bricks. “Angel City is a realm of hell,” I groaned. “Ever since I came here, things only get worse. Oh, we’re done for – I’m done for!” My empty stomach mocked me with a hungry growl, reminding me that I hadn’t a crown to my name. My darkest fear returned from the deepest pits of my subconscious: homeless… friendless… helpless… my fate was rapidly approaching and I had no way of stopping it. Homeless… friendless… helpless… Blazian must have sensed my body tensing with anxiety, for she began to knead and rub my back with the lingerie straps. All is not lost, my dear pet. You’ve come so far in your struggle. Once, you were magicless and meek. Now you have a succubus at your side, and enough knowledge and power to build wealth from weeds. Come, Tory, the safe house beckons – and a new beginning. “New beginning?” I hugged my knees. “I want my old friends.” I felt a shadow spread over me. “Old friends?” said a sly voice. “That’s a funny thing to call us after what you put us through.” I peeked past my knees to find a familiar face looking down at me. “Maxie?” I gasped. “About time you noticed me,” she offered her hand. Gratefully, I seized it. “How did you find me?” “Been stalking you…” she grunted as she pulled me to my feet. “… since you entered the precinct. Been scouting that place, looking for a way to get the others out.” “But I thought you were done with us,” I said. She cracked a smile. “Hey. Let’s just say I got a few extra pounds I wanna lose. You know anything about how to do that?” I smiled back, hope surging within me. Suddenly, my quest no longer felt impossible. “I do, actually, but first lets go to the Dark Elf District. Long story, but we have a safe house…”

Chapter 39 There was nothing I wanted more than to lay myself on the floor and wait for my round, overstuffed belly to empty, but my ambitious half-dragon taskmaster had other plans. Now I was waddling after her through the city streets and holding my heavy stomach for dear life. “Ooh…” I groaned as Vethrax cut across a busy street without warning. “Can we slow down? I feel like I’m going to burst.” “You’re not going to burst,” Vethrax replied aloud. Mercifully, she stopped walking to lean close to my ear. “Right Pinkie?” I’ve already digested a fifth of her binge, replied the succubus. A full pound’s-worth. “So it begins,” Vethrax wrapped her arm around my tormented waist. “My first mate is turning into my first pillow.” “I’ll puke if anything uses this as a pillow,” I rubbed the full crest of my tormented belly. “I can barely move as it is.” “Certainly not,” Vethrax whispered into my ear. I felt her hand trace down my hip. “There are more comfortable parts of you I have in mind. Pinkie?” It’s Blazian. “You can direct the fattening to parts of the body, no? Put it all in her thighs.” “My thighs?” I felt my face grow hot. “Straight to your thighs, yes,” Vethrax’s eyes glanced down for a moment. “There’s a reason I gave you a disguise with loose pants.” I glanced down in turn and swallowed. She spoke truth. The loose, draping fit of my pants were doing excellent work hiding my legs with plenty of room to spare. I had to tug the cloth a full foot just to outline the shape of them. It had me thinking second thoughts about Vethrax’s choice: thighs were an excellent place to hide my growth from the public eye. In fact, I could hardly wait for my distended stomach to empty fully. “Now then,” Vethrax patted my shoulder. “If you’re done rubbing and searching yourself, we can be on our way. The dungeon we seek is under the precinct on Fleur Avenue. It’ll take us half the afternoon to get there at this rate.” I chased after her with my legs – and a question. “How do you know that’s the right dungeon?” Vethrax squinted sideways at me, but walked onwards. “I thought I told you? This isn’t the first time guards have arrested one of my own. They always get taken to the same dungeon and I always end-up paying bail to get them out again.” “That explains your crew, but what about my friends?” “They’ll be there. It’s the jail and interrogation center for this whole area. Enough questions. Move your mouth anymore and I’ll stop it with food. Come!” Fleur Avenue was a long stretch of storefronts and dwellings half-overgrown with vines and bushes that cut through the middle of the city. My eyes swept across the scene in awe of it all. It wasn’t a run-down place, but it paled in comparison to Embassy Row. Several mounds and hills buried beneath buildings stacked four stories high prevented the avenue from being as straight as it should be, and several trees and bushes further reinforced its mystical, almost forest-like aura. Trees in the middle of the city! I shook my head. Who could have imagined such a thing? A single harsh winter would have them chopped to stumps by spring, yet here they stood, tall and thick. It defied all reason… and then we came around a bend and I saw exactly why the trees still stood. A full dozen town guards lay lounging near a small, squat structure of stone. They looked bored, laying against the wall, sitting on crates, and throwing dice on the ground, but that’s what made them so dangerous. No would dare trim a bush around them. “That’s the precinct, isn’t it?” I mumbled. Vethrax chose to ignore my question as she crossed the avenue towards the miniature fort. “We’re about to head inside. Stay with me. Don’t talk unless you have to.” “Understood,” I couldn’t help but feel excited. At last, I’d see my friends. This was thrilling! “How’s your stomach?” Vethrax muttered as the guards took notice of us. “Flat,” I whispered back. “And your thighs?” They were softer. I’d gained five pounds in so short a time and my weight had crept back upwards to a hundred forty-seven… but she didn’t have to know that. Besides, a guard had leapt off a crate to speak with us, so I didn’t have to answer at all. The guard was a woman like Kora, but that’s where the similarities ended. She had long, black hair that was braided and wrapped around her neck several times like a scarf. It looked greasy. “We’re closed,” she said. “I’m here to pay bail,” Vethrax stated, unfazed. The greasy-haired guard paused, a dark, brooding expression clouding her features. “Name?” “His name is Shrat. A kobold male that came in this morning.” “Oh yes,” the guard’s face brightened. “We remember him – right girls?” All the guards chuckled amongst one-another, and I suddenly realized they were all women. All of them! What were the odds of that? A gut feeling told me something was wrong. Vethrax, however, seemed unfazed. “I’ll need to go inside to retrieve him.” “No need for that,” the guard bared half a row of teeth. “You can pay me the bail.” “That isn’t protocol. The watch commander handles bail.” “Why waste time doing paperwork? Just pay me what you got and I’ll –” “Freya!” All heads turned to the iron-reinforced front door, where Kora stood glaring at us with a bottle in her hand. “Get away from those two,” she barked. “That captain and her first mate are mine.” Like a pack of feral dogs, the guards dispersed slowly in all directions. Vethrax smiled faintly at Kora. “Nice to see a familiar face.” “Likewise,” Kora pointed with the hand she was holding the bottle with. “So I hear you brought me some coin?” “Bail. For the watch commander.” “Well, what do ya know? That’s me!” Vethrax’s faint smile had vanished. “You? What happened to Petyr?” “Gone. Lady Djizz took a disliking to how he handled the investigation at her Red Mansion. Good thing I’m a close friend of hers, huh? She takes care of her own,” she idly looked at her bottle as if debating taking a swig, but chose against it. “You coming-in or not?” Vethrax followed after her into the dark maw of the precinct, and I began to follow her in turn, but stopped in the doorway. I sensed something was amiss, though I knew not how or why. I glanced back and found every single one of the guards staring at me. They hadn’t scattered; they’d surrounded us – and those eyes… were they yellow? “First mate!” Vethrax called. “Stay with me!” I entered the precinct and sealed my fate.

Chapter 38 The kitchen was as ravaged as the rest of the Serpent’s Milk, with pots and pans strewn across the floor and cupboards ripped open. It was hard for me not to step on spoiled herbs as I made my way to the table, and as I righted a stool to sit and ponder how impossible my situation was, I couldn’t help but feel hopeless. Vethrax, however, beelined straight to the counter and began rummaging everything piled upon it. <The guards searched every corner of this place for incriminating evidence,> she said silently. “That’s one way to describe it,” I idly pulled a cleaver out of the wall and noted its shine. <But they did not know what to search for,> she continued. <There remains powerful ingredients in plain scent.> “In plain sight?” <Scent. I can smell them.> “Ah…” I looked back at the shiny cleaver in my hand. Could I see my reflection with it? “But how powerful could these ingredients be? You and Blazian were just saying modern alchemists are glorified cooks.” <And that is exactly why the guards botched the search,> Vethrax hunched low to check the lower cupboards, her soft hips spreading wide as she did. <How would they recognize powerful ingredients if the alchemists themselves don’t?> I finally caught sight of my reflection. “What is…? Vethrax! What have you done to my face?” <Is it not to your liking?> “You gave me a huge nose bridge!” I winced, turning side to side. “I look like a strange bird… this better not be permanent.” <You exaggerate – and no it isn’t permanent. The mask of a thousand faces will lift at sunrise or sunset – whichever is sooner – or it can be lifted by praying to me.> “Can you lift it now?” She lifted a loaded breadbasket out of the cupboard and cast a disdainful eye on me. <Remember what I taught you? I don’t see a light in your hand.> “But didn’t you say it didn’t matter if you were right next to m –” <Aha! Moldy bread.> “Uh… that is… you’re already here, so I don’t have to make a light, do I” Vethrax wasn’t even looking at me anymore. <Tory, was it?> “Yes?” <Where are those skewered meats I gave you?> “Oh, those? I think I dropped them in the pillow room.” <Be a good girl and fetch them.> I wanted to argue, but something came out of Vethrax’s mouth that I didn’t expect: fire. Fire! I covered my face and dropped my cleaver. Only later did I realize she was cooking. “Right,” I squinted against the heat filling the kitchen. “I’ll go get those.” Anything to escape the sickly aroma of burning mold! It was with great relief that I re-entered the ransacked pillow room and swelled my lungs with crisp, fresh air. The meat sticks were indeed where I’d left them on the carpeted floor, their juices leaking but otherwise untouched. I hadn’t dared a single bite of the mystery meat, but that was Vethrax’s ploy, wasn’t it? She’d have me gnawing them to the last morsel even if they were defiled by the carpet. I groaned as I bent low to retrieve the meat sticks. My full belly was bunching at the waist in the most uncomfortable fashion, and even as I stood erect with the meat sticks in hand, its pressure remained an ominous reminder of how little room I had for more. Vethrax wanted me to eat more; I was certain of it. But could I do it? Fattening myself up didn’t vex me anymore. I knew now that pounds gained could be lost at whim. It was my stomach I feared, that elastic organ had shrunk since I’d given Vethrax my spare pounds, and was now near its limit. I simply couldn’t force myself to eat another bite – even if it weren’t goblin food! <Tory,> Vethrax’s voice was clear and unmuffled by the wall between us. <Return to me.> I passed back through the strings of beads in the doorframe to find Vethrax’s breasts jutting just before my face. I craned my neck just to catch sight of her face. “What are…?” <Smell.> Too late, I noticed the repurposed flour bag as it was shoved straight into my face. Darkness enveloped me, accompanied by a potent musk of rotting vapors unseen. Sight returned as quickly as it had left. Stray, purple wisps dispersed in the air as Vethrax quickly cinched shut the flour bag. Meanwhile, I was gasping and wheezing for dear life. <There,> Vethrax put the flour bag on the counter and stood over me with her hands on her hips. <How do you feel?> She feels breathless, Blazian replied in my stead. Look at her! She can barely breathe over the stink you made you smelly, sulfurous dragon. <Dragons do not stink,> Vethrax sniffed dismissively. <And this was not sulfur. I ask again: how do you feel, mortal?> My belly rumbled ominously as I regained fresh air. “I feel…” what did I feel? “I feel…” <Hungry? Ravenous, even?> I lurched forwards. “I feel sick!” <What?> Vethrax slipped her boot aside to make way for my retching. Botched the formula again, did you? Blazian asked smugly. <It was cooked to perfection!> Obviously, the dose is too high. Meanwhile, I was on all-fours, retching and getting familiar with every crumb and speck on the floor. My stomach felt like a simmering cauldron that threatened to rise into a boil. All day, I’d yearned to stop shoving food into myself; now I could only hope it didn’t come back out! And just when I feared the worst, my stomach’s simmering began to calm, revealing to me a new sensation… There, there, little pup, Blazian rubbed my back with the lingerie’s back straps. I calmed your bowels just in time. Vethrax lifted me to my feet with a firm yet gentle arm. <Now then… how do you feel?> I frowned, surprised at the answer. “Hungry?” There it is! said Blazian. Success! You’d have never done it without my quick thinking, Veth. <Shut up. I’m speaking to the mortal,> Vethrax smiled in spite of her words and quickly glanced down before matching my gaze. <You dropped them again.> I looked down and cringed. The meat sticks! “Oh no…” I shook my head. “I can’t. Anything but that! They’re all cold and covered in grime now!” <It’s your own fault,> Vethrax was still smiling, but not with her eyes. <Your master owes me a debt and I intend to collect.> “How will eating dirty food help us save our friends in the dungeon?” <No questions! You swore to trust me, no? Then trust me! I will take care of you like that succubus never could!> But I couldn’t trust her, could I? Her purple fumes nearly spilled my bowels and if purple smoke didn’t do it, spoiled meat definitely would! I couldn’t bear to even try and yet… …and yet my hunger was rapidly growing. It was as if I’d never eaten at all today – no! Not even this week! The spoiled meat sticks lay at my feet, mocking me with their presence. I needed to eat. I knew better, but I desperately needed to eat! I couldn’t sate my hunger with them, could I? I needed something else – anything else. Then I had it. <Where are you going?> asked Vethrax as I slipped past her. She’s headed to the pantry, Blazian realized just as I opened the pantry door. Ah! Clever girl. A kitchen always has a pantry, doesn’t it, Veth? I personally couldn’t care less what they said to each other. My hunger had pushed me beyond sanity and words. “Starving…” I groaned as I retrieved the nearest food-basket: onions. “Eat…” Gone was my sense of fullness or even my aversion to raw onions, replaced by a ravenous urge to fill the perceived void within me. Tears welled in my eyes as they felt the sting of tainted onion air, and my tongue even more-so as I took bite after bite. I barely noticed Vethrax looming over me like a farm-maid over her prized, newborn calf. Some of her words came to me like sunlight through a storm. <What you are feeling is the irresistible cravings of the Musk of Morsels.> Nice name, red. Did you make that up? <Shut up.> Down went the first onion, and the second. I had an onion in each hand now, and my cheeks bulged with the vile stuff. <…triggers irresistible hunger… who breathes it… very useful to us…> Useful? I nodded my head to whatever she’d said as I redirected my grasping hands away from the treacherously-bitter onions and onto a stack of carrots on the shelf. <… made with common bread mold… purple… Maiden’s Agony.> Agony. I could believe that name. I wasn’t getting any less stuffed. It was a blessing I couldn’t eat carrots too quickly. <… lightly-roasted and ground into… shake the bag to… spores…> Light roasting. Sounded delicious. I tried to find something of the sort and settled with dried apples. <Are you listening, girl? Hey you! Stop filling yourself up with roots! You need something more fattening.> I heard her words, but couldn’t simply stop eating. She had to physically pull me away from the apples to do so. <Here, girl,> Vethrax faced me to the other end of the pantry towards a row of jars. <Drink up,> she nudged me closer to them. And so I uncorked the lid of the first jar and was blessed with the sight of liquid gold: honey. Sweet, delectably honey! At last, something more dignified! I tipped the honey into my mouth, sighing as it slowly traced over my tongue and into my throat. I felt Vethrax stroking my back. A part of me felt ashamed, another painfully-full, but there was still another part of me that had been so far buried in my psyche that I hadn’t even noticed it: pleasure. Pleasure? I grunted slightly as my stomach stretched beyond what I’d thought was possible. Was there anything pleasurable about what I was doing? No. It was too painful. Too humiliating. But what if it wasn’t? Well then… perhaps… This “Musk of Morsels” better wear-off soon, Red, Blazian warned. I’m hastening her digestion as fast as I can, but I can’t keep up. There better be a good reason to torment my poor pet like this. <Of course there is,> Vethrax rubbed my head. <You notice there aren’t any pillows left that haven’t been gutted? I’ll need a new one for tonight.> “Mmph?” I sputtered angrily against the last of the honey. This is revenge for her fattening you up, isn’t it? <Perhaps. But it all worked-out in the end, didn’t it? Now, eat up, pillow. You’re fluffing-up nicely. Don’t worry; the Musk of Morsels should wear-off before you finish the next honey jar.>

Me too. I wish I had more time to write these. I'm focusing on Fertility Mage for a bit.

Chapter 37 I was in utter shock of Shrat’s betrayal. That damn, overgrown gecko! I knew he was no good stealing my coin to win his bet, but this… betraying his own captain? Even I hadn’t expected him to stoop so low! And for what? He wouldn’t get his winnings this way. What was he even thinking? It was a question that was answered by the shrill, panicked tone of Shrat’s voice. “It’s her!” he pointed desperately at me. “It’s her, it’s her, it’s her! You gots to believe me! D-don’t hurt me again!” “Hey, take it easy,” Kora nudged the diminutive kobold’s back with her boot. “Only Tory’s getting locked-up – and liars too,” she looked at Captain Vethrax, frowning. “Your pet lizard here was holding something very valuable to me,” she held-up the challenge coin. “Does this look familiar to you?” To my shock, Vethrax spoke with her mouth! “Sorry,” her voice was feminine yet gravelly and low. “It’s hard to see what that is. It’s still dark out here.” Kora snapped her fingers and one of her troll lackeys bent down to grab a barrel strapped to the deck. The ropes securing it snapped like twigs as it raised it over its head and – with a final grunt – threw it into the waters below. “Do not lie to me barge-boss,” Kora shook her finger at Vethrax. “Tory was last seen falling into the river, and I couldn’t help but notice the port records show that your ‘ship’ hasn’t docked since she did. That means she’s still aboard this ship – and this coin,” she brandished the challenge coin. “Proves it! So… your kobold here says that woman standing next to you is my quarry?” “Obviously, she’s my first mate,” said Vethrax with a slap of my back. “I’ll be the judge of that. Come here, ‘first mate.’ Let me get a good look at that ugly mug of yours.” Vethrax nudged me forward and I staggered so violently, I nearly fell on my face before Kora caught me. “Whoa, easy there!” she grabbed my shoulders. “Where’s your sea legs, officer? Hold still, damnit…” I withered under the fierce, predatory gaze of Kora’s eyes. They raked my whole face like plows, sifting it for signs of her prey – me. I was her prey, and as I looked at her in turn, I couldn’t help but see vivid visions of the dungeons I would surely return to. Her eyes narrowed, her brows flexed, and I knew I’d be arrested on the spot – I knew it would be so! But then she looked away in disgust. “This isn’t her,” she glared at Shrat. “It is – she is! She’s disguised is all!” “You think I’m stupid? Look at her, look, damn it –” she pushed my face closer to his. “You see that nose? That ugly bend in her beak? No makeup can do that. Look at her lips, her eyes… no. Just no,” she turned to Vethrax again. “So where is she? Why the fuck would your crew point to your first mate like that, huh?” “Clearly, he’s a hateful, stupid little creature,” the captain’s eyes twinkled and the corner of her mouth tugged ever-so-slightly upwards. “And unfunny. That little joke he pulled on me could take him straight to jail – but not before I tear this barge apart until I find who I’m looking for. You’ve got one chance to tell me where Tory is.” Vethrax closed her eyes and bent her head as if deep in thought. All I could see was her mouth pursing and puckering beneath the brim of her pointed hat. Slowly, her mouth broke into a grin and she began to chuckle. “Tory Thee Stallion, you say? I see. I understand now,” she raised her head to look Kora in the eye. “Understand what?” “It turns-out we did fish a thief out of the river a few days ago. She never told us her name, else this misunderstanding never would have happened.” “Keep talking.” “When we learned she was a thief, we threw her overboard, never to be seen again – isn’t that right, boys?” The kobold crew quickly nodded in agreement – all except the cowardly Shrat. “Now this little fucker right here,” Vethrax kicked at Shrat’s sides. “Was assigned to watch over the thief while she lay unconscious. No doubt he pilfered her pockets and took your missing coin. Now he thinks to frame my first mate! How stupid.” Kora cocked her head, the brim of her bassinet covering one narrow, squinting eye. “So she got tossed in the river like a cat in a bag, huh?” “Correct.” “And I’m supposed to take your word for it?” “You have my crew’s testimony. You could strip-search my cargo, but it would take all day with only six other guards,” Vethrax eyed both trolls in turn. “Even if you did deputize the cargo trolls. They’re not much help.” Kora’s bassinet hid her face as she nodded dangerously to herself. “Alright… yeah. Have it your way captain – but I can’t leave empty-handed. I’m arresting your lizard here for lying to me.” Shrat immediately began screaming. “No! Captain, save me! She made me do it! She made me!” “Shut up!” Kora grabbed him by the tail and held him before her sneering face. “You’re under arrest, liar. Don’t add ‘resisting arrest’ to your crimes.” “Wait,” Vethrax’s voice was surprisingly loud – almost inhumanly so. It was enough to make every soul on the boat freeze. With all attention on her, Vethrax smiled and spread her arms. “Shrat belongs to me; he’s mine to punish under maritime law.” “Maritime law?” Kora lifted Shrat to laugh in his face again. “No. My port, my law. If you want him back, pay the bail,” she waved her arm to her comrades. “Come on. We’re heading back.” “You owe me for the cargo you smashed,” Vethrax called after her. “Consider it subtracted from the bail you owe me,” replied Kora over her shoulder. Without another word, Kora stormed off the ship, followed by her entourage. The barge rocked and groaned as the trolls stepped off, leaving us all staggering – all except Vethrax, who stood and stared at the guards that had trespassed her ship and kidnapped one of her own. <So,> the disguised dragon demon returned to speaking siliently. <That must be the one you spoke of – Kora, was it?> “That’s her,” I spotted the corrupt guard in question turn a corner on the dock, out of sight. Vethrax’s fingers flexed against the ship’s wooden railing and I heard it creak. <She never should’ve boarded my ship, and no one takes my crew. Last night, we spoke business. Now? It’s personal,> she turned to her dumbstruck crew. <Porto! Quarterdeck! Now!> “Yes, captain!” the lizard scrambled through his friends to her side and saluted. <You know the routine: unload the cargo and send the crew on shoreleave – three days.> “Aye aye, ma’am!” <And Porto: if I don’t return by then, raise anchor and sail to Wizard Island. Our resident thief and I are getting Shrat back.> It was surreal to be walking the streets of Angel City with a half-dragon demoness disguised as a mortal captain – not to mention one who had nearly drowned me and then taken me to bed in a single night – and yet here I was, keeping pace with her long stride past hundreds of passers-by clueless to the fact that I was being aided by not one but two demonic beings. Two! Was any farmgirl so lucky as I? Then again, was “luck” the right word? They were demonesses, and their aid came with a price. That price, it seemed for now, was Vethrax stopping at every intersection to buy me street food even as we hurried to Natasha’s shop, the Serpent’s Milk. “Here, girl,” Vethrax handed me a stick of skewered bites of mystery meat she’d only just bought from a food stand. “Eat up. You and your little friend owe me too much mana to slack-off,” she tapped the partially-exposed shoulder strap of my lingerie. Nervously, I eyed the still-sizzling mystery meat, then glanced at the food stand to find the smirking goblin chef standing on its cutting board. Oh, how I croaked at the mere sight of it! Bare goblin feet! Crumbs and skin-flakes conjoined in unholy matrimony! The horror! And what even was this meat on a stick? Words long-forgotten returned to haunt me: every goblin’s a mouser. “Please,” I moaned. “Have mercy Vethr – uh, captain. I already ate three breadsticks and a bagel . My stomach’s already feeling tight…” “Only three breadsticks and a bagel? Blazian taunted me with a light squeeze of my distending abdomen. Those are petty numbers! You must pump them up! “Pump…” the mere word made me blow my cheeks-out to resist the building nausea. ‘I don’t think I can eat this…” “You don’t think so?” Vethrax side-eyed me from yet another goblin-owned stall and handed me another meat-stick. “Here. Hold this.” “Another one?” I moaned. “Look, why are we stopping at every stall? My friends are in danger. We can’t just –” “We can,” she replied confidently, striding across the busy crossroads. A cart separated us briefly, but she continued speaking as soon as I was by her side again. “It’s been three days since your dip in the river. Your werewolf love-interest has had all that time to rescind her protection and arrest them.” “But there’s a chance she doesn’t know where we were sleeping. We were careful not to let her see us go in there.” “Did you? I doubt she wasn’t stalking your every move, but the only way to be sure is to get to this “Serpent’s Milk” shop and see for ourselves. If they’re already taken, we’ll discuss plans with the owner… Natasha, was it?” “Yes.” “In the meantime…” she pointed at my mouth with a confident smirk. “Eat.” “But I’m full,” I protested. Not for long, Blazian purred. My mana reserves are enough now to speed my pet’s digestion. Isn’t that right, pet? It’s how you gained so much weight at the party. Why don’t you show our guide how good of a little piglet you can be. I moaned again, staring down at my flat stomach beginning to bulge and press against the shirt containing it. I wanted nothing more than to stop walking and rub its tormented surface, but Vethrax’s pace never slowed and both my hands were holding meat sticks. “Blazian…” I groaned. “Just how much do you owe? Surely it isn’t so much that I have to constantly stuff myself!” Vethrax grinned over her shoulder. “Good question. Pinkie, how much would your debt be if it was measured in pounds?” Blazian hesitated to answer, rubbing my breasts thoughtfully against the brazier cups. Roughly two tons, she finally admitted. “Two –” I nearly rammed headfirst into a woman riding a donkey. “Two tons? But that’s…” my mouth trembled as I imagined how huge my body would have to be to contain it all. “It’s entirely possible,” Vethrax replied. “With enough cleverness and plannning. That’s one of the reasons I’m here.” “Is losing my bowels part of the plan?” Vethrax sighed. “Pinkie, your poor pet has a tummy ache. Can you do something about it? Her whimpering is getting annoying.” I’m doing all I can, Red, Blazian sounded annoyed. Vethrax patted my back. “Look at you two, struggling together against a city you barely understand. You’re lucky I was the one who found you. Very lucky,” she stopped at the next crossroads, scanning the bustling traffic for a way through. “We’re close. Meridian Park is where we’re headed, no? Stick close to me as we cross this road – and at least try to eat those before they get cold.” “Here we are,” Vethrax proclaimed later. “Meridian Park,” she sucked a long breath through her nostrils. “Been too long since I smelled the fresh grass and leaves here. Can you believe this used to be a motte and bailey? It was the only structure you could see a thousand years ago…” I couldn’t answer, of course, for want of any room in my mouth to speak with. My stomach’s bloat hadn’t shrunk, yet somehow felt less full. I could only imagine why! Blazian’s magic was hard at work digesting my food and fattening me up like the “piggy” she described me as. Even now, I swore I could feel my torso beginning to soften and it terrified me how fast it was happening. I dared not use my enchanted vision to be sure! Thankfully, Vethrax was unbothered by my silence as she paced the park’s walled perimeter. “These stone walls with fountains in them are where the palisade used to be, and this street here? It was the moat. See how it’s lower than the streets feeding into it? It’s the only hint at what once was.” As we passed an open gap in the wall, Vethrax paused with her hands on her hips to admire the view of the park within. “Ah, to think an old tree on the hilltop is all that’s left of the old fort! Shame it burned down… now where was that alchemy shop again?” “Mmph!” I pointed one of my meat-sticks just ahead. “Naturally. Come on, then. I can’t wait to see what passes as an ‘alchemy shop’ these days.” It’s laughable, Blazian replied in my stead. Amusing, really. The owner never realized she could brew her own growth potion from the herbs just across the street from her. Vethrax chuckled – a strange, forceful chuckle that betrayed her inexperience with speaking aloud. “I’d expect no less. Alchemists are glorified cooks these days.” At least cooks try to make their food taste good. Both of them shared a laugh for the first time. I, however, was so horrified that I stopped walking. What’s the matter, pet? Blazian snapped straps against my ass cheeks. No time to dawdle! Giddyup! I did as I asked and bolted straight ahead. “Wait, where are you going?” Vethrax called after me. “Stay by my side!” I ignored her and ran across the street towards the storefronts. Carts rushed past me to the left and right, and I hit a passing donkey, but nothing could slow me down. Nothing could stop me from rushing to the nightmarish scene before me. The Serpent’s Milk was gutted. All the windows were smashed and the door hung ajar. Blazian was the first to regain her wits. What in…? Vethrax, come quickly! Tory, get in there! I didn’t even notice she’d used my name for the first time. I was already storming inside, greeted with the sight of smashed shelves, broken merchandise, and shattered glass. Even the doorframe beads were half-ripped from their hooks. “Natasha!” I yelled as I rushed up the stairs. “Sammie! Maxie!” But there was no answer. The Serpent’s Milk was ransacked and my friends were gone. My rushed search ended in the pillow room we’d slept so many nights in, now a pillaged shell of what it once was. I sank to my knees and stared dumbly at the meat-sticks I’d forgotten I was holding and dropped them at my sides. A strange hand touched my back – Vethrax’s. She must have caught up with me, at last. “Hey,” she patted my shoulder and handed me a crumpled poster. “You missed something.” I took it from her, but was too aggrieved to even try reading it. “W-what is this?” “Eviction notice,” Vethrax replied too calmly. “Apparently on the grounds of potion-trafficking and forbidden magic. Looks like the town guard decided to arrest Natasha as well as your friends.” “Kora…” I trembled like a leaf. “She did this. She always knew where we were hiding. Oh, why was I so careless! We should never have lived here…” Vethrax’s arm on my shoulder snaked around my waist and drew me into her. I felt her huge, head-sized breast smother the side of my head. To my shame, it was comforting. I felt her sigh, her breast pressing against me like the ripped pillows scattered around me, and I sighed in turn. “A minor setback,” Vethrax rubbed my back. “Your friends will be fine. They’re certainly being held in a dungeon to lure you out of hiding.” “But how can you be so sure?” “Please. I’ve lived in this city for a thousand years. This isn’t my first time dealing with this.” “But now what? How can we save them now?” “Relax, young mortal. We have time. Have faith in an old dragon. Do you trust me?” Did I have a choice? I turned my face towards hers, brushing my chin across her breast until I was looking into her eyes. Those eyes… they were so serene, I couldn’t help but accept confidence as my own. Who was I to doubt her abilities and experience? I closed my eyes as a show of nodding. “Good,” she stroked my hair. “We’ll have everyone out of the dungeons in time, but I want you to obey me without hesitation until you do. Do you swear it?” “Yes…” I closed my eyes again. “Good. Follow me to the kitchen. There’s a scent wafting within I find most intriguing.”

Chapter 36 I hesitated to sit by the half-dragon-demon captain who had nearly dropped me into the lake. Even if she was friendly now, there was no telling what plans she had for me. But it wasn’t like I had a choice, did I? Still… <What’s the matter?> Vethrax smiled at me, fangs hidden for now. <Come sit on the bed with me.> Something behind me tapped the small of my back and I jumped so hard I spilled half my wine glass. It was only as the thing nudged me closer to Vethrax that I realized it was her tail. <Don’t be shy,> she embraced me with open arms and stroked my hair. <There’s only one bed. Are you comfortable?> Nervously, I eyed her tail slithering around me again. “I prefer bedsheets, actually.” <All in due time. First, let’s discuss business. Your master owes me a lot of mana and I intend to find out how she’ll earn it – isn’t that right, my dear Pinkie?> Don’t worry, Red. My pet’s a quick learner and earns more mana by the day. You don’t have to fret on details. <Fretting about details is what being a captain is all about,> Vethrax replied smoothly. The coy captain suddenly took my wine glass and drained it into her own mouth. Perhaps I’d have said something, but the captain suddenly leaned back into her pillows and her tail dragged me down with her right into her deep, cavernous cleavage. <So tell me, how do you two plan to earn my mana?> I must admit the spells I can grant to my pet are limited now, Blazian squirmed against my body and under Zaiva’s in equal measure. We’ve resorted to alchemy of late – growth potions in particular. It’s cheap, easily-brewed – <Yet oh-so-painfully slow,> Vethrax’s chest rose against my face and I imagined she was feigning a yawn. <Come now, why waste time now that you’re back in the mortal realm? You need to think bigger,> she squeezed her breasts together and rubbed my ears with them. <Much bigger.> “Mmm!” I protested (the breasts were surprisingly cold!). The ear-torture paused. <Your pet’s barking, Pinkie. You let her behave like this in public?> I suppose I’ll let this slide. Speak, pet, speak freely if you dare. Vethrax let my head emerge from her cleavage, but only barely. I rested my chin against the top of her breasts, staring-up into her eyes and swallowed before speaking. “Ahem… all these plans are quite grand, but it will mean nothing if I’m arrested by the first guard that sees me.” Vethrax plucked idly at my shoulder straps – rather, Blazian’s shoulder straps. <Your pet is right. It will be almost impossible for her to do anything for us with the whole city looking for her. No doubt there’s fresh wanted posters of her on every street corner by now, as well as fresh crimes if a werewolf guardswoman is after her. It’ll take far too long to wait for the next rainstorm to turn all those posters into pulp. Oh, whatever shall we do?> Blazian’s lingerie tightened against my body. You can’t seriously be considering…? But you can’t! She’s my pet – not yours! <Now now,> Vethrax stroked the back of my neck, forcing me face-first into the cleavage again. <I may be a cold reptile, but I’m not unreasonable. Don’t worry, my friend. I won’t take her from you as collateral. I’ll just teach her a new spell – and for free.> Spell? One of your spells? But – <It means she’ll be calling upon my help, yes. We discussed this earlier, didn’t we, pet?> “Mm!” I mumbled into the darkness. <Fear not, I’m not taking her away. Think of it as an investment into her potential skills – and my profits. Now then! Mortal? Heed my voice! I am Vethrax, a half-dragon demon from the Fiery Plain. For over a thousand years, I’ve wandered unseen through your realm like the whisping shadow of smoke, and I’ve done it with the Spell of a Thousand Faces. It’s a spell I will teach you now, understand?> To my surprise, she let me rise from her cleavage to face her directly. Her richly-glittering eyes, so human yet somehow greater, pierced my own, expecting obedience. “I understand,” I nodded stupidly. <Good. Now listen: your master gains strength through growth. I gain it through warmth. When you call upon me, light a flame, stare into its light, and ask of me to bestow upon you the Spell of a Thousand Faces.> For a moment, I expected her to elaborate, but when she didn’t, I could only blink and shake my head. “I don’t understand. Is that all? No High Elven verses? No rhyming?” <Oh, so you enjoy your poems, leprechaun? You can try, but don’t blame me if I give you an ugly disguise – and I’m sure your High Elvish is even uglier.> “I didn’t mean to offend you, captain. It’s just that spells are always chanted in High Elven poetry.” <I’d noticed. Don’t know why your mages make spellcasting so complicated. It’s true the High Elves made poetry of their spells before the Dark Ages began, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only way. Maybe censorship is so strong, none dares rewrite spells their own way.> More likely, they do it because they think it makes them sound intelligent, Blazian allowed herself to chuckle. You should’ve heard what this mortal recited to summon me, Red! She had no idea what the words meant! “Wasn’t it a spell to summon food?” I asked. Only if you read it literally, Blazian pinched my nipples with the brazier cups. Oh, my sweet, innocent kitten. You read some naughty puns that night… <Back to business, then,> Vethrax tickled the brazier’s fastener between my shoulder blades with the tip of her tail. <So I understand you’re limited to alchemy?> For now, Blazian flexed my panties against my front. <And you say you’re limited to common ingredients?> For now. <Impossible! This city’s a treasure trove of alchemical ingredients!> Only if you can pay for expensive imports. We’ve been limited to whatever plants grow in Meridian Park. Vethrax grinned. <And what of mushrooms?> Mushrooms? What are you on about, Red? It’s not the right season for them and they don’t last long. It’ll be months before it’s moist and damp enough for them. <There’s always a place for mushrooms. You forget that this is a city of wood, Pinkie. Homes upon homes, storefronts upon storefronts, all stacked and crammed upon one another like leaves on a forest floor – and what grows below them? My dear, kinky demoness, there’s a world of fungus all around you, and if you don’t know where to search, I know a place you can begin your mushroom harvest! Mushrooms! The strongest, most potently magical of ingredients!> “Um,” I shifted slightly within Vethrax’s coiled tail. “That step would need to wait. I’m not sure how much time my friends have before –” <Focus, little one,> Vethrax squeezed me tight. <Your needs are heard, but know your place. It is true your friends are a more urgent task, but more urgent still is to sleep. It is very late and the dockyards are silent. Sleep now, and bestow upon me your offering of warmth – any mana I can absorb will help us in the days ahead.> It wasn’t like I had a choice. Vethrax’s long, scaly tail flexed against my body from chest to waist as she used her hands to pull the bedsheets down so that she could tuck her legs into them and slip herself under the covers – along with Blazian and I. Then she wrapped us in her arms, tail and all, like a lizard cradling a single egg in its nest. <You are so… very warm,> she nestled my head just under her chin and sighed heavily. <I may be a fire-breathing dragon, but my blood runs cold. This bed won’t get any warmer without you here by my side.> My pet could be even warmer, Red, Blazian remarked quietly. And softer… <Oh?> Vethrax stroked my hair. <You to have her take back the precious pounds she gifted me tonight? You’re so predictable, Pinkie.> Don’t pretend you want them! <And what if I do?> You can’t! Don’t you remember what you told your crew? You told them losing the pounds was part of the deal you made. If you don’t do that, you’ll lose all credibility… so you have to let my pet take them back. <I did say that, didn’t I? Well… it wouldn’t be the first time I altered a deal. Yes… I think I’ll be keeping these curves for now. Your precious pet can have them back when you make your first mana payment. Think of it as collateral to secure our deal. Now then! Sleep tight, everyone. We’re smuggling you through the Naval Yard first thing in the morning.> Morning’s light hadn’t even crested the snowy peaks as we sailed up the Chillbrine River into the heart of the city. Only a few lanterns on the coast lit the way, their dull, orange glow shimmering over the fog-coated waves. I stared at the black outlines of the city skyline and avoided looking down at the lapping waves below by Captain Vethrax’s side on the Scuttlebutt’s poop deck, shivering against the cold and avoiding glances from the kobold crew. Vethrax stroked the side of my arm. <You’re shivering.> “I’m not sure how you’re not,” I glanced down past her naked thighs and toward her clawed toes. <Dragons don’t shiver, although it is certainly cold this morning.> I’m sure your extra padding helps, Blazian said bitterly. <Another boon from our resident leprechaun,> Vethrax cupped her heavy breasts and gave them a squeeze. <She should’ve thought ahead before giving it all to me to enjoy.> “Maybe your Spell of a Thousand Faces will fix that,” I remarked, careful not to actually ask for more weight I didn’t want. <Sadly, no. It will not change your actual shape – only disguise it.> And why haven’t we cast it yet? asked Blazian. <I have my reasons. Navy Yard is two bends of the river ahead. Be patient and silent until I say so – both of you.> So there I stood, shaking with my hands folded tight under my armpits and wishing Blazian had transformed into a fur coat instead of skimpy lingerie. The Scuttlebutt continued its way upstream like a meandering millipede, its crew rowing paddles to navigate past pier after pier. Each time we passed one, I thought we’d dock, and each time we’d row onwards. The sky was already beginning to burn red with dawn’s light when I finally heard a sign that we were about to go to port: an order from one of the kobold’s that I didn’t hear, and a distant bellow from the dock just ahead. The rowing slowed, the kobolds began to scramble across the deck, and the ship pushed inevitably closer to land at last. <Come, mortal,> Vethrax spanked my ass. <Follow me to the cabin.> Her swat against my cheek smarted. The dragon-demon was strong, and my recent weight loss had robbed my backside of any protective padding, but who was I to refuse? I obeyed her, hoping she would be more benevolent later – or at least give some answers. Once we were in the privacy of the cabin, Vethrax reached over my shoulder and shut the door behind us. She didn’t remove her arm, however, and opted to lean intimidatingly over me with a mischievous grin. <Remember, no speaking,> she tapped my nose. <The next few minutes will decide whether the guards notice you or not. You must trust me… do you accept?> I nodded nervously. <One more thing about spells. I told you that you must light a flame to request anything of me, no? It’s a way to signal me for my attention. That means we can skip that step because I’m already here. Deep breath…> My deep breath became a gasp as Vethrax grabbed my head and gripped it like an apple. A powerful, irresistible tingling spread from her fingers into and throughout my body like a wave on the beach, and like a wave, it left the sands slightly changed. I felt my nose stretching and narrowing, my lips plumpening, my teeth grinding, and my hair straightening. A stray lock of hair fell before my eyes: blonde. I was blonde? And my clothes… Even my clothes weren’t spared from the transformation. The stupid horse outfit I’d been stuck wearing since the Full Moon Party had stretched and morphed completely beyond recognition. Thankfully, it was covering more of me, but whatever was this outfit? Grimy jacket just barely concealing my breasts and bare midriff? A scarlet sash? Striped pants loose enough to hide half a dozen cats inside of? And the cap on my head… I reached for it and found my fingertips touching something coarse and rough. I was dirty from head to toe! Nice durag, Blazian remarked. Really completes the look. <Thank you,> Vethrax set her hands on her hips. <I think I have a good sense of style. Speaking of which…> Vethrax began to change before my very eyes. Her horns, tail, claws, and scales vanished, replaced by a dark vest and trousers trimmed with red and embroidered in brass. She spread her arms and her hands were covered by white gloves, and – with a snap of her fingers – a tri-pointed hat appeared in her right hand, which she donned upon her head and tipped to me with a bow. <A demon doesn’t survive in Angel City without a good disguise,> she smirked at me. <I hope you like your new uniform… First Mate.> “By the gods,” I stammered, noticing the black grime in my nails for the first time. “How did –” Vethrax silenced me with a finger to my lips. <What did I tell you? Your only way out of this is letting me do the talking. Now listen closely: we need to get you past the customs inspector. He’ll be inspecting the cargo before its taken to shore – very routine. He’ll come aboard with a town guard escort, look for contraband, and declare tariffs owed. I’ll pay what’s due, release the crew for shore-leave, and then you and I will go rescue your fr –> Loud thumps from outside made the deck below us creak and rocked the ship. A great commotion amongst the crew could be heard. <What?> Vethrax turned to face the door. <That’s new…> A familiar voice boomed over the crew’s protests, silencing them: Kora’s. “I know you’re here, Tory Thee Stallion! You should’ve tossed the coin into the river – ha! Now there’s no escape for you!” A mighty , wooden crunch from just beyond the door had me flinching. A crate must have been smashed, but what could possibly be strong enough to do so? “This barge is quarantined!” Kora yelled. “No one gets off this barge until I’m given the stowaway!” <That bitch,> Vethrax seethed. <She must think she’s so tough destroying my cargo. Well, I’ll show her…> Before I could prepare myself, Vethrax swung the door open and stepped-out upon the quarterdeck with all the swagger a seafaring captain could muster. I gasped again – there, standing before us, was Kora, now returned to human form, and flanking either side of her were six guards and two ugly, gravel-skinned trolls. <What’s the meaning of this?> Vethrax snapped. <Who dares board my ship?> “Greetings captain,” Kora folded her arms. “Where’s Tory Thee Stallion?” <I don’t know who you’re talking about,> said Vethrax. <This is a cargo barge. We don’t take passengers.> Kora grinned and laughed at the bloodred sky. “I was hoping you’d say that. Tell me, captain… if Tory isn’t here, then why does one of your crew hold the coin I gave her?” As if summoned, Shrat stepped forwards from between the legs of one of the trolls and pointed at me. “There she is! Don’t be fooled by her blonde hair and strange nose! She’s in disguise!”

Chapter 35 I shouldn’t look down – I definitely shouldn’t. A fleeting glimpse of the cold, frothing waves below would surely break me, but try as I might, I couldn’t help but notice the murky water splashing against the Scuttlebutt’s hull, and when I twisted away towards the sky, I saw a chilling sight. Gods and goddesses protect me! The land was way farther away than I thought! I could barely even see the flickering windows or torches. I’d never make it to shore even if I did escape my bonds! Tied or not, the Scuttlebutt’s scaley captain was waiting for me when I turned to look in her direction again. Her eyes burned into mine as she grinned from within the warm comfort just beyond the porthole between us, gloating at my helplessness and utter dependence on her not releasing her grip on me. <Well?> she cocked her head. <Does the fake leprechaun have any rhymes to share?> “Where are we?” I flinched as a passing wave licked my foot. <Welcome to Chillbrine Lake – the deepest body of water in the valley. All rivers flow from every surrounding mountain into here, yet somehow it never floods. Curious, isn’t it? No one’s ever found the bottom. Care to be the first?> She began to lower me and I instantly folded. “No! Stop!” I flinched and squirmed against her grasp, desperate to escape my bonds yet terrified I’d slip from her grasp. ‘You can’t! I don’t wanna drown!” <The choice is simple, my mischievous mage,> she smirked confidently. <Reverse this bemusing little spell of yours…> she cupped one of her cabbage-sized breasts with one hand for emphasis. <Or drown. I won’t repeat myself.> I was utterly at her mercy. There was no shred of cunning or courage left in me, and yet as I squirmed helplessly, I remembered another fear: fear of the Faith Checkers and the dark dungeons below the temples. It was just enough to inspire a semblance of defiance. “But if you do that, you’ll be stuck with those pounds forever!” <Forever? A meaningless word to a being with all the time in the world. What’s an extra few pounds? I will lose it eventually.> “You’re bluffing,” I replied without believing my own words. “You’d have cast me out if it were so easy.” <Don’t tempt the dragon,> she gave me a shake to watch me tremble. But was there hesitation in her voice? I had to assume so and exploit it. What other choice did I have? “I have conditions of my own: if you take me in and promise not to turn me in to the town guard, I’ll re-absorb those pesky pounds from your body.” <And if I refuse?> “Then… I’ll add more pounds…” I didn’t even wait for her reply. The fact that she was touching me gave me the chance to fatten her just enough to hopefully add some curves and bulges where she didn’t want, and I had no idea how much time I had left. Almost immediately, I noticed her bulbous bosom begin to swell again. Her hand’s fingers – still clutching her breast – began to spread apart as the softness within their grasp grew softer still. I wasn’t the only one noticing either. “It’s happening again!” Porto cried from just inside. “Look at her thighs! They’re spreading wider!” “Where’s that cursed coin?” shouted Klitt. “Shrat! Give it up already!” <Shut up all of you!> snapped Vethrax with a flick of her somewhat chubbier tail. <That coin is not cursed. I’d have surely felt its magical aura if it was. It’s worthless. As for you…> she turned to me, eyes wide and wild as her breasts smooshed against the bulkhead. <You think this scares me? I can drop you without even blinking.> “But I don’t think you will,” I said, shaking. Vethrax’s smile slowly widened, and all at once, my will was broken again. She was going to drop me! She was mocking me with that look in her eye because she wanted me to know she was going to do it! I was going to drown! Suddenly, I was falling – and then jerked to a stop. I stared stupidly upwards as my body swung in the wind. Vethrax’s hand still hung outstretched over my head, but its wrist and fingers were wrapped in fabric that was cradling me like puppet strings – strings of lingerie. <What?> Vethrax shook her hand in vain. <Well, that’s a new one…> The dragon-woman’s soundless voice was joined by another as Blazian broke her silence. I really tried to avoid this, Blazian tsk-tsked to herself. But what’s poor succubus to do? Such a bother. Vethrax stared directly at me with renewed interest. <Who’s that?> I could almost hear Blazian rolling her non-existent eyes. Who else? It’s me, Veth. Now Vethrax’s expression softened from maliciousness to mischievousness. <Is that you, Pinkie? My my… the fiery plain has not been kind to you.> It’s Blazian, my saviour said bluntly. And hands off this mortal. She’s mine. <It’s funny, I actually just did that,> Vethrax smiled smugly and wiggled her ensnared hand. <But I imagine you wish to come inside. Is that what my poor succubus wants?> Blazian fell stubbornly silent. I’d have waited for her next move, but another wave tickled my feet. “Yes!” I cried. “Pull us in! I can’t take it anymore!” <Easy, my novice mage. My crew can’t hear that friend of yours, and I have plans for how to spin this new story. Now then… Pinkie? Are you listening?> Yes, Blazian muttered bitterly. <Don’t think that I forgot that debt you owe me, even after all these centuries. Well? Can you pay?> Blazian took her time to answer. Not yet. <But you will. We’ll discuss this more in my quarters, but for now…> Vethrax dragged me back inside, grasping at Blazian’s lingerie tendrils and hoisting us both high overhead. <Beloved crew!> she proclaimed. <We’ve made a deal! I shall take the mage into my personal quarters, where she shall undo her annoying curse – and what’s more, she will not be turned into the town guard.> Audible gasps of shock at the turn of events mixed with hesitant cheers for the captain’s perceived victory. The only one not cheering, of course, was Shrat. “Curses on all of you!” he shoved his crewmates away. “You shook me for nothing! Didn’t even find the coin, did you? I won that bet fair and square!” <Your captain has spoken,> Vethrax set her foot firmly down like a gavel. <Now gangway. I’m taking her to my quarters – and as for you…> she gently hoisted me up onto her shoulder. <I have big plans for you.> It was hard to see anything but the creaking, wooden deck while I was carried over Vethrax’s shoulder like a flour-sack. Even that was hard with her massive, red tail swinging into my head as my face slapped against her soft, extra-padded ass with every step. It was like being hit by two pendulums at once, and it was so disorienting that I lost track of where we were headed. Just when I thought it would never end, she stopped walking, swung an unseen door wide open, and entered before the door creaked shut behind us. This place was different; it’s floors were covered with patterned rugs and soft carpets instead of clutter… Then I was suddenly thrown upon a soft bed. Now I found the scale-clad captain standing before me with her hands on her hips. <Here we are,> she turned her back to me with a wild flourish of her tail past my face and sauntered back to the door. <Sweet silence at last. Now we can speak freely without playing games.> As she locked the door, I got my first good look at her quarters. There were no spare crates or dunnage here. Instead, there were trinkets and souvenirs aplenty. Paintings of fiery mountaintops adorned the bulkhead, dressers and nightstands were loaded with jewelry, and there were more than a few dragon sculptures. <Quite the collection, no?> Vethrax sauntered her way back to me, looming tall overhead and staring down at me past the twin peaks of her breasts. <Several centuries of wandering the mortal plain has its perks. There’s nothing more liberating than traveling the world.> “Untying me from this rope might feel more liberating,” I squirmed uncomfortably within my rope cocoon. She mimed laughter. <Didn’t take long for your attitude to return. But you’re lucky, mortal: I already planned to free you because there’s something I want to see just underneath – or rather, someone.> This isn’t necessary, Blazian grumbled, lingerie squirming against my skin. <This won’t take long…> To my surprise, Vethrax turned her back to me. Up arched her tail like a reeling horse, revealing her wide, round ass. Down she squatted, and the ass spread wider, and when she landed upon the bed by my side, the thighs spread wider-still. <Hmm…> she paused to rub the softened surface of one meaty thigh and idly prodded the squashable canyon where her thigh gap had once been. <Interesting choice of spell you tried on me. What exactly was your plan? Blackmail me with an enhanced, sexier figure?> “I didn’t have many options,” I replied hesitantly. <Clearly,> she patted the thigh as if settling the matter and began to pry at the knot tied in front of my chest. <And that’s very telling. I have a feeling your succubus master is… shall we say, worse for wear?> It’s none of your business, Blazian snapped. And be careful handling my pet! It’s bad enough you almost drowned her. <It’s all water under the bridge now, as they say,> Vethrax smirked as she slipped the last of the rope off my body. <There. My how you’ve slimmed-down! Where’s all that chub gone, I wonder?> I blinked stupidly without replying as Vethrax thrummed her fingertips across one of her round, pendulant breasts. She seemed to enjoy making me squirm, even if I wasn’t bound anymore. <Speechless? I’m flattered. Now that I think about it, I think I wear these extra pounds quite well.> You don’t wear anything at all, Veth, Blazian retorted. <Tough talk from a set of skimpy clothes. What inspired this transformation of yours?> she dug her fingers into my shorts and pulled them down to see the panties within. I’m undercover. <You’re underwear,> Vethrax pried at my top next, peering at the brazier cups. <It must be torture existing like that. Why don’t you return to your true form so we can talk eye to eye? I can show you my souvenirs.> I can already see you through my pet’s eyes. Her sensations are my own. <Oh my word… you can’t change back, can you?> I didn’t say that. <But it’s true, isn’t it?> she ran her finger across my panties and I felt the fabric squirm. <You’re so low on mana that you’re trapped in this form. No wonder your pet only wields one spell.> “I did cast a slightly different spell once,” I protested. Vethrax put a finger to my lips. <Hush. The demons are speaking. Listen and learn your place… well, Pinkie? Care to tell her? She’s part of both our schemes now.> Perhaps you should do it, Blazian tightened the garter belt as if folding her arms. Since you were going to interrupt me anyway. <Suit yourself,> Vethrax rose from the bed and began pacing around it. <So tell me, mortal: do you know how magic works?> I sat myself on the bed and twisted back to keep her in sight. The feel of my newly-slimmed waistline was a welcome surprise – my rolls had been replaced by abs again! But I had to stay focused. “Well, I haven’t studied magic, but I know you have to pray to a divine or demonic being to cast a spell… unless they bless you with some mana beforehand…” <True,> Vethrax was behind me now, facing a dresser with a wine bottle secured atop it. <Spellcraft and prayer are one and the same. Casting spells requires divine or demonic favor. But what about mana?> “It’s uh… blue?” She gave me a condescending look as she pulled the wine bottle out. <Where does it come from?> “You get it from divine or demonic beings.” <Naturally,> Vethrax pulled two wine glasses from the top drawer of the dresser. <We can give mortals mana for using magic at will, but mana’s true source is worship.> “Worship?” Vethrax gave me another, even firmer look as she poured the wine. <Don’t speak unless you’re told, girl; this discussion is long enough already,> she held a full glass out. <Wine?> I didn’t want to drink, but I also didn’t want to insult her, so I got up from the bed and came to her side to accept the glass. “Thank you.” She tipped my glass – with her finger, no less – and took a sip. I followed suit, but only enough to be polite. <Good. Now then…> she turned towards a large, decorated window set behind the head of her bed. Large though it was, there was nothing to see in the darkness of the night from this angle, though she seemed to be eying something in the distance. <There are two things that make one a divine or demonic being: the ability to gain mana from worship and the ability to give it to others. The more mana you have, the more powerful you become. Some of us even become gods and goddesses in our own right, but only if we’re here in the mortal realm.> she sipped her wine and gave me a coy look. <I’m sure you see where this is going?> I sipped in turn. “Blazian doesn’t owe you money, does she? She owes you mana.” <My, you’re a bright one! She does indeed. I did a big favor for her a thousand years ago, and then she was stupid enough to be banished back to the demonic plain where she couldn’t pay me back!> she shrugged and took a swig from her glass. <Maybe she was lucky. It’s been hard hiding from the faith checkers all these centuries, and they’ve been getting far more active, of late. The universities were pushing the limits of permissible magic before the Quorum of the Angels shut them down for mis-worship. These are dark times for magic… but the night is darkest before the dawn…> she nodded at the black window. <What do you see out there?> “Nothing,” I said truthfully. I felt Vethrax’s hand gently wrap around the back of my head. <How about now?> It was as if blue lightning had flashed and silhouetted every surface. “I can see! I can see the whole lake! And… is that an island? Are we docked at an island?” <Correct. That rocky, little mountain poking out of Chillbrine Lake is my island – Wizard Island. The hub of druids in ages past, but no more. I use it for smuggling now, but in time it will be my temple. Magic will reign triumphant once more.> She withdrew her hand and the vision vanished. <There is much work to be done. Mana must be earned and worshippers found. My kobold crew are of some use, but not enough for what I have in mind. Hiding from the faith-checkers makes it difficult for me to act on my own. That’s where you come in, girl. I’m releasing you into the city. You’ll be free to run about as you please and even serve that succubus as well. But know this: as you gain mana for my dear Pinkie, you’ll be doing it to pay her debt to me. That’s my deal for you. Accept it or be turned-in to the town guard. Do you accept?> Fine. We accept, Blazian said before I could answer. <Splendid,> Vethrax toasted me. <Now then… forgive me for asking, but how does one worship you, Pinkie? How do you gain mana?> Has it really been that long that you forgot? I’m a succubus, Veth. What do you think? <Spell it out for our dear girl so she knows what must be done.> My heart sank, and my hand drifted across my abs so recently returned and so soon-to-be lost. “Fertility. Blazian’s worshiped by making things grow… well, making women fat.” <So you know already. Good. I was afraid your master hadn’t taught you yet. Well!> she drained her glass and sat back on her bed. <Come now; sit next to me. It’s time to discuss details.>

Does he have a whole basement full of popsicles?

Chapter 34 Blackmail. The very idea of it had my heart pounding harder than ever. I hastily ran my simple plan through my head again and again. I was going to stuff Vethrax with as many pounds as I could while she still held me in place. Inevitably, she’d notice her changing body and I’d reveal myself as the fertility mage I was. Then I’d tell her I could reverse the curse only if she promised not to turn me into the town guard and – yes – help me find and warn my friends! A foolproof ploy, but only if she didn’t let go of me before I was done fattening her up. I’d have to do it slowly enough so she didn’t notice right away. As I plotted, Vethrax leaned close and pressed her large breasts into my shoulders. <Your body is so warm,> she noted. <I can feel your whole body blushing. It has me thinking…> she tickled my face with her thin, forked tongue. <What’s the matter, thief? Scared? Hot with guilt? Or are you happy to see me? You wouldn’t be the first.> Shrat slipped through his captain’s thick, muscular legs and stood between us. “Here ma’am. Rope.” <Good,> Vethrax didn’t take the rope herself. Instead, she stared deep into my eyes and issued a command. <Klitt? Porto? Start tying her arms. I’m a bit tied-up myself.> As was I – and not just because a dragon girl had wrapped her tail around me. I was doing my best to focus on her body so my fattening spell could begin. As Vethrax’s minions took hold of my arms and began tying them together behind my back, I discreetly traced the dragon-girl’s body with my eyes. It was quite a marvelous body to behold, as much a sexual icon as it was a beastly abomination. The demonic captain’s bare breasts pressed against me like perfectly-round pillows, and I could feel her firm thighs flexing against mine. There was strength in her limbs – more even than the firmly-defined muscles suggested – and likewise her belly was firm. All told, she weighed one hundred eighty-two pounds. A hundred eighty-two pounds! My eyes watered at the sight of such a high number, but then again, there was her thick, long tail to consider. Tail or not, she was about to weigh more… <I think I’ll keep you,> Vethrax tapped my clavicle thoughtfully. “Wha…” My focus broke. “You’re not going to turn me in?” <I will,> she dragged her fingertip between my breasts. <But night is falling and your warmth will be useful to me. Yes… I think you’ll make for a good bedwarmer.> “Bedwarmer?” I sputtered. <Yes,> she wrapped her hand around my head and gently pulled my face into her deep, dark cleavage. <We scale-skins need all the heat we can find… and Klitt? Porto?> she snapped her fingers. <Get ready to bind her legs when I unwrap my tail. Don’t worry, I’ve got a good grip on her.> I was running out of time! Forget subtlety! I needed to push these pounds before she released me! As I felt the rope being traced down my back and wrapped around my thighs, I set to work. One hundred eighty-three… eighty-four… eighty-five… <No, Porto,> Vethrax’s breasts jostled against my face as she chided her lackey. <That’s the wrong kind of knot. Watch how Klitt does it…> It seemed she hadn’t noticed her firm body beginning to change – good. I, however, immediately felt it. The round, perky breasts around my face were the first to expand. They swelled softly against either end of my face, pressing my ears and pushing their way over my shoulders. A stray thought of melons ripening into cantaloupes crossed my mind and made me smile. This was a good start, but cantaloupe-sized breasts weren’t exactly ideal for my blackmail plan. I needed to give her more. One hundred ninety… ninety-one… ninety-two… <Wrap it around her chest next,> Vethrax instructed. <And tuck the end between her boobs.> “Ngh…” Porto struggled to climb my back. “That’s easier said than done with your big boobas in the way.” <I’m just holding her in place,> she replied, fidgeting slightly. The next part of the dragonlike captain’s body to grow were her thighs. They were already thick, but only because they were tightly-coiled in layers of muscle. I could feel them flexing and shifting against me, but soon I felt another, softer layer of fat spread smoothly over them and puff pleasantly outwards. One hundred ninety-eight… ninety-nine… two hundred… Twenty pounds came and went, yet still it wasn’t enough! I shifted uncomfortably against the ropes binding me and tried to feel for more signs of growth. Where were all these pounds going? Surely, she should be sporting a new belly by now, but all I felt were bigger breasts and thicker thighs. My plan was backfiring badly! Half my spare fat was already gone. If I didn’t make her at least a little chubby, I was doomed! Even worse, I was out of time. A final tug and cinch of the rope signaled the end of the kobald’s work. Vethrax herself leaned back from me to review their handiwork. <Finished?> she asked, barely holding me with her hands. “She’s wrapped tighter than ship-shape,” Shrat patted my shoulder. “Arm to arm, leg to leg, legs to arms, arms to body, mm-hm.” “Thief’s not slipping out of this one,” Porto added. <Excellent,> Vethrax released me and took a step back. <So… how does it feel, theif? To be bound and helpless in the web of lies you yourself have woven?> “Tight,” I replied simply. Of course, I was currently feeling far worse than that. Vethrax had released me, and thereby severed my ability to push pounds into her body. And what a body! Damn it, I’d accidentally turned her into a voluptuous vixen! Here she stood, idly yet confidently swaying her hips side to side yet stunningly oblivious to her body’s growth. It was a body that mocked me with its beauty. Her firm, flexing thighs had softened with a full inch of softness that flared wide and womanly, and likewise her round, perky breasts had inflated still rounder and perkier, defying gravity itself even as they dared challenge the size of her head. But her belly? Arms? Chin? Unchanged! I hadn’t ruined her figure; I’d enhanced it! Such a sight threatened to throw me into the depths of despair. How was I supposed to blackmail her now? I couldn’t give up, could I? My friends were in danger! I needed to try something… anything… <Well?> Vethrax lightly tapped her mouth in thought (and somehow didn’t notice the added girth of her chest squashed against her forearm). <Is your tongue bound as well? My crew’s better at knots than I thought.> Knots or not, I had no clue what to do next. Fortune, however, blessed me with a new development. Klitt suddenly stared curiously at my torso, spotting something. “Hang on,” the crafty kobald tugged and pulled at the ropes binding my arms and chest. “These be too loose. Shrat! You did it wrong!” “No I didn’t! Shrat slapped Klitt’s hand away. “It can’t be tighter! I checked it myself!” “Check again.” Someone tugged the rope from behind – Porto. “It is loose!” he said. “But how? It was so tight!” My despair became elation. Of course! I was thinner now! I’d been so focused on fattening Vethrax, I’d forgotten I’d shrink in turn. Perhaps this was my chance to escape? No – very bad idea. I’d never make it two steps before Vethrax burned me to a crisp. But there had to be something I could do with this… The idea came upon me suddenly – an idea that would not only get me untied, but would have the dragon-woman and her crew serving my every whim, but only if I could bluff. Hence, I bent my head as low as it would go to hide the angst and fear in my face and began chuckling the most sinister laugh I could muster. “Eh? What’s so funny, thief?” Shrat jabbed me. “Huh? What?” “You just don’t get it, do you?” my shoulders and voice trembled with fright, but I played it off as anger. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with.” “A thief,” Shrat answered slyly. “Really?” I lifted my gaze to him. “I’m the thief? No. You took my coin – my enchanted, highly-magically-cursed coin. You are the thief, and now my coin has cursed you.” <Cursed?> Vethrax mimed laughter. <That’s rich. Are you some sort of leprechaun?> “Yes,” I said without thinking. The whole crew laughed, but Shrat was deathly silent. I stopped shaking – my plan was working! Still, why did I say I was a leprechaun? Oh well, I had to roll with it now. “So you don’t believe me?” I matched their gazes from behind downturned brows (very intimidating). “No,” Shrat replied. “You’re no leprechaun. They’s be short folk like us. You’re tall – and pudgy.” “Not anymore, I’m not,” I snapped. “Don’t you see? My bonds are loosening because I’m shrinking to my normal size – and as I shrink, that which is dearest to you will grow. Such is the Curse of the Coin.” “My moneybag?” “Yes – no! It’s your beloved, beautiful captain who will grow – and by that, I mean really fat…” I frowned to myself. Where was I even going with this leprechaun bullshit? I needed to lock-in. “Ugh, look, Shrat: show us the coin so that everyone knows I’m telling the truth, or Captain Vethrax gets really, really fat.” “T-there is no coin,” Shrat took a step back. “You lie!” “I want me coin!” I snapped, failing to nail a leprechaun accent. “Liar!” “Oh?” I forced myself to grin. “Don’t you get it? The curse has already begun. Take a look at your dear captain – look real closely.” All eyes inevitably drifted to the visibly-impatient Vethrax as she tapped her foot and crossed her arms under her generous bust. The captain herself remained unconvinced and unaware, but amongst the crew came faint murmurs. A few of them even dared to point at her curves. Vethrax threw her hands dismissively. <Seriously? Is that the best story you can come up with? To think that you of all people could be a leprechaun… have you even seen one? I have. They always speak in rhymes. Obviously, you’re too dumb to do such a thing.> Shit. Was that true? Dare I even attempt rhyming under pressure? Damn this leprechaun horseshit! I had to try! “You bind me in a room of crates…” I smacked my lips in search of the next verse. “Now watch as your captain… inflates.” Porto scrambled away from me in a panic, pointing frantically at the captain. “Booba!” he cried. “Booba! Look! They’re bigger!” <Don’t be ridiculous,> Vethrax idly cupped her breasts and stared at them. <They are not getting bigger.> The kobald on the crates pointed his shaking finger directly at Vethrax’s enhanced chest. “It’s the Curse of the Coin!” “The Curse of the Coin!” whispered many tongues. <Seriously, they are not getting bigger,> Vethrax protested. But even as the captain denied it, I could tell she had doubts. She never once took her eyes off her bosom, nor ceased to fondle and squeeze it. She seemed to realize something was amiss, but couldn’t say so in front of her crew. It made me grin – this time, genuinely. This stupid ploy might actually work! I just needed to commit to the bit. Now then, what rhymed with thighs? “You guys – wait…” I cleared my throat. “You have good reason for alarm, you guys. The coin’s curse is going straight to her thighs!” The crew was fully alert now. Kobalds left and right were springing to their feet, hopping on their chairs and desperately pointing at their captain’s thighs. “It’s true! Our captain is growing bigger!” “Shrat has cursed our captain! A blight has befallen us!” Klitt rushed to Vethrax’s side and positioned himself just under her tail, inspecting it closely. “It’s not just her thighs! Look at her tail! It’s thicker!” <All of you: shut-up!> Vethrax stomped her foot (the resulting thigh-jiggle only making her new pounds more obvious). <And what are you doing under there, Klitt? Shoo!> Vethrax turned to face Klitt, but failed to take into account her larger tail. The meatier, girthier appendage swung ‘round like a billy club, sweeping clumsily across the table and knocking three cups and two kobalds off the edge with a dramatic clatter and clamor. <What…?> the captain spun again in a clumsy effort to see the damage her tail had wrought. She was getting more uncertain by the moment. “The Curse of the Coin!” Klitt cried as he prodded Vethrax’s softened ass from under her legs. “It’s real!” Porto took matters in his own hands – or rather, Shrat’s shoulders. “You need to show the coin!” he shook him. “You gotta!” “N-no!” Shrat’s voice wobbled as he was shaken like a leaf. “I-it’s a tri-i-ick!” Meanwhile, Vethrax was inspecting herself with increasing confusion. <Wait,> she twisted awkwardly to stare behind herself. <Did my butt get bigger?> Excellent. That gave me an idea for my next stupid rhyme. “Boobs and tail and thighs grow bigger… hm… my lass. But I think I’m forgetting something: what about your ass?” It was pandemonium. The crew were swarming around Shrat like vultures to the point that I couldn’t even see him. He re-emerged on upraised hands, his crewmates shaking him and prying at his pockets – and I couldn’t be happier. They’d find the coin soon enough, and it would confirm me as the truthteller. Then they would all be under my thumb, fearing my supposed-leprechaun powers, and then I’d give their captain a choice: take me to my friends, or be cursed to grow even bigger. It wouldn’t even matter that I couldn’t do that without touching her! They’d be too scared to tempt my wrath. It was a foolproof plan. Until it wasn’t. <Enough of this.> Vethrax stormed across the room, thighs jiggling, tits bouncing, and seized the front of my bindings. <Drop the leprechaun act. My crew might not know a ghoul from an alghoul, but I do,> she raised me high into the air as easily as if I were an empty sack. <Don’t you know I’m a dragon? I crossed through the fiery plain to this mortal realm of yours a thousand years ago. I’ve met a thousand creatures, seen a thousand spells, and you… you’re just some transfiguration mage, aren’t you? So, you thought you’d mess with my body without me noticing? You dare wake the dragon? Well…> The crew fell silent as they watched their captain carry me across the room. I couldn’t see where we were going, but oh, I could feel it. I felt wood brush past my back, shoulders, and butt, and then I felt the crisp night air biting at me. Vethrax had pushed me through a porthole and was holding me over the river with a single arm! <Now listen here, mage,> Vethrax’s fangs gleamed as she smiled at me from inside the comfort of the barge. <You’re going to undo your little party trick, or I’m going to drop you into the river where I found you.>

You’ll be surprised with how fast your body will develop. Even a few extra pounds feel way more than they actually are because of how sensitive your body is to change.

Chapter 33 For a moment, all fell silent. Vethrax and her kobold crew stared expectantly at me awaiting my story that would decide my fate. Yet how was I supposed to tell it? One wrong word and they could send me to the town guard and I’d be imprisoned. And what kind of story did they even want? Were they lawful sailors or mischievous pirates? Would they even believe what I told them? So distraught I was with indecisiveness that I didn’t realize Shrat was gesturing me to sit until he resorted to smacking my rump. “Sit, sit!” he spanked me softly, but enough to get both cheeks quivering. “You drink beer with us, mm-hm.” “Oh… thanks,” I let Shrat take my free hand and guide me to the head of the table opposite Vethrax. It was a hard, wooden seat, but surprisingly comfortable, which eased some of my anxiety (until I realized why that was). <You look nervous,> Vethrax eyed me from the rim of her wine glass as she took a sip. <Take a swig. It will help.> “Right,” I remembered the cup of beer in my hand and took a cautious sip. Brown texture – as beer should be – but very dry and… was that pinecones I tasted? I didn’t want to drink any more of the bitter drink, but I forced myself to keep it trickling down my throat and tried to ignore the feel of my stomach swelling within me. This was my only way to buy time to gather my thoughts, and I needed all my wits to choose my words carefully. What kind of story did they want? What kind of story could I get away with? I gagged quietly to myself. Nothing seemed certain except one thing: these kobolds wanted a good story, and that would be easy enough. I just needed to be sure not to mention anything that sounded illegal. “I’m not sure where to start,” I set the beer on the table and wiped my mouth. “I guess this all started when I got invited to a party in the Scarlet Mansion.” All ears (or rather, earholes) were on me now. The whole crew leaned closer, pausing their small talk and snacking to hear my every word. Even the one perched on Vethrax’s lap emerged from under the table’s edge to and propped his head against the underside of the dragon girl’s ample, scaley breasts to hear me better. Vethrax, for her part, remained dignified and unmoving. <So you were invited into the place you fell out of,> she swished the wine in her glass with a twist of her wrist. <But why fall out in the first place?> “Werewolves,” I blurted. The kobalds laughed with glee. “Werewolves!” the kobald on the crates slapped his scaley thigh. “Here in Angel City!” “Outrageous, yeah?” Shrat pounded his tankard on the table. “I knew it be good story, yep yep!” “It’s true!” I insisted. “I know it sounds crazy, but it’s what happened!” The only one not moving in the room was Vethrax. <I’ve seen werewolves before,> she stroked her kobald’s little head from betwixt her mighty breasts. <They usually dwell in the woods and rarely last long in the city. The Moon grants them strength at the cost of their wits. But perhaps I can imagine one slipped through.> “A dozen, at least,” I stammered through more laughter. “Each wearing white tunics before they changed forms. The party was a trap! Young girls like me were locked in there to be hunted and… and…” <Go on,> Vethrax sipped and licked her lips with a thin, forked tongue. <Explain how no one heard anything.> “Because a band was playing.” <Really? They played over the chaos of a pack of werewolves?> “Yes. They were in on it – all the guests were! Well, except for the young girls like me… I don’t know. It seemed to be some sort of sacrificial cult ceremony led by Lady Djiss!” “Ooh, conspiracy!” Shrat tittered. “Intrigue! Scandal!” “This is the best story ever,” said the kobald in Vethrax’s lap. “I nearly drowned,” I shook my hands desperately for emphasis. “And I need to get to my friends and warn them before the werewolves get to them first. You have to believe me!” <Perhaps,> Vethrax gulped half her wine. <But first you need to explain why the town guard is after you.> I felt the blood drain from my face. “Town guard? Why do you think they’re after me? I did nothing wrong.” <Klitt,> Vethrax patted her kobold’s head. <Get the poster.> Amid barely contained chuckling, Klitt leapt off her lap and scurried unseen. My heart sank even before he returned and triumphantly unfurled a dirty scroll – the wanted poster of me and my friends. Now the whole table erupted in uproarious laughter louder than ever before. “She really thought she had a chance!” said one. “What a riot!” said Shrat. “Our own court jester!” The kobald on the crates merely pointed his clawed finger at me and cackled. As for Vethrax, she guzzled the last of her wine with a wild swig, leaned into the table, and blew. Hot flames erupted from her mouth and streaked across the table right in front of my face. I shrieked and shielded my eyes – this was the end! I’d burn to a crisp! It was not to be. The flames died just before they could touch me, and as the smoke dissipated, so, too, did the laughter. I flinched when something cold dripped upon my thighs: beer. I’d spilled it in my fright. Vethrax’s smirking face revealed itself through the dissipating smoke. <Good story,> she noted. <But I think we both know what really happened: you burgled your way into that house and got chased into the basement where you jumped into the river to save yourself.> “That’s not what happened!” I righted my emptied cup in vain, for I was already dripping wet. “I’m not a thief!” <But how can we be sure? A werewolf cult is a serious matter, you know. I think the town guard’s the only one who can confirm it for sure. I say we pay them a visit?> “You can’t!” Her eyes narrowed. <And why not?> “Because Kora… uh… the one who invited me to the party is a town guard! The cult owns them all!” <Convenient,> Vethrax toasted me with her empty glass and snapped her fingers. <Shrat. Porto. Give us more drink. This story isn’t over yet.> Klitt re-furled the wanted poster and scurried-off again, returning with a pitcher of wine which he carefully poured into Vethrax’s upheld glass. I was not graced with such dignity. “Porto” emerged from under the table right between my legs like a gecko from its hole. He flinched away from my sticky thighs and took one look at the beer still dripping off the table before handing me a pigskin I assumed was filled with more beer. <Now then,> Vethrax stood-up from the table and paced thoughtfully to the nearest porthole. <My gut tells me you’re not telling us the truth,> she flexed her thick, muscular thighs and swished her tail side to side as she sipped her wine. <Can you prove me wrong?> “I… I’m not sure…” I held dear to the pigskin as if it could save me from my impending doom. Vethrax seemed to laugh, but made no sound. Slowly, she turned to face me and leaned sensually against the bulkhead. <Pity. Such a bold story without so much as a souvenir? You poor girl. The dungeons won’t be kind to you.> “Wait!” I sprang to my feet so quickly that my chair fell over. “The coin!” <Oh?> “The challenge coin Kora gave me!” I began patting myself down. “She used it to hunt me… I think it’s enchanted…” <Interesting,> Vethrax smirked against the rim of her glass. <You know, I’m something of an enchantress myself. Show it to me and I’ll make… head-or-tails of it…> But no matter how many times I searched, my pockets were empty. “Where is it? Where is it?” It suddenly dawned on me why my pockets were empty. “You! Shrat!” “Eh?” Shrat looked confused… but I saw the unmistakable glint in his claws. It was my challenge coin!” “There it is!” I pointed. “Shrat! You emptied my pockets and took it, didn’t you?” “Did not,” he promptly slid his hand under the table with a wink. My desperation turned to anger. “You greedy, over-sized gecko! Give it back to me or…” I suddenly noticed Vethrax sauntering closer. I had to change my tune. “Look. Shrat? I don’t care if you keep it. Just let us see it so everyone knows I’m telling the truth.” Shrat cocked his head thoughtfully, but didn’t speak. “Please?” I asked, acutely aware that Vethrax was now looming directly behind me. Shrat jumped upon the table to declare his reply. “No coin!” he bellowed. “Only lies! She is thief – just as I’d bet!” I tried to grab him. “Give it back! Give me –” Suddenly, I was falling backward. The room spun and my head hit the deck. All around me the crew was laughing as I tried to catch my breath. <Hey. You.> Vethrax came striding slowly into view, hips swaying as she planted her feet on either side of my chest. The technically-naked captain set her hands on her hips and peeked down at me from behind the twin peaks of her jutting breasts. I withered under her gaze as I regained just enough breath to speak. “Shrat…” I gasped, trying not to stare at her round, flexing cheeks. “Shrat has… my…” Slowly, she crouched low, haunches lightly brushing my chest with my every breath. To my surprise, she smiled and booped my nose with a fingertip. <You motherfucker. Now you accuse my crew of stealing? And for what? Some coin? How was that supposed to prove your story anyway?> “An enchanted coin…” I groaned. <Nonsense,> she gulped her glass dry and handed it to the nearest lackey, seized my arms, and slowly began to lift me. <You say the werewolf could track you with it? You’ve obviously never met one before. No werewolf retains its wits on the full moon, and even if it did, why hasn’t it tracked you here?> I flinched and squirmed as Vethrax pinned me high to the wall. She was clearly enjoying this! I had to think fast for a good reply or I was truly done for! “Uh… werewolves can’t swim?” <Come now,> Vethrax grinned sadistically as she began snaking her tail around my waist. <Even you don’t believe that one,> she gave my soft waist a squeeze. <You’re only ensnaring yourself further with every lie you tell.> “I see what you did there…” I cringed as I felt the end of her tail slither just under my breasts. She booped my nose again. <Pathetic… yet adorable. But I’ve decided to turn you in for the bounty money. I’m sure the town guard will have an equally amusing story for us about you.> The whole crowd cheered. “Tie her up!” said Klitt. “Don’t give her a chance to escape!” The call became a chorus. “Tie her up!” the crew thumped the table. “Tie her up!” <Fetch for a rope,> Vethrax ordered with a playful squeeze of her tail. <I’m going to get real creative with it.> I’d failed. My insane story had been rejected and I was facing years rotting in a dungeon. I couldn’t even run away, much less put up a fight. I was doomed! Or was I? I still had one chance left. All the fat I’d gained for Kora was primed and ready for a new victim. Yes! Of course! One mission’s failure lay the foundation for the next mission’s success! Now – now as I stared my new enemy in her fanged face – hope swelled within me as I realized my unwanted pounds’ new purpose: blackmail.

Well, the crew of the Scuttlebutt are actual dog-sized Kobolds, but Vethrax is a hybrid of human and dragon. Like Blazian said, she's from the fiery plain of demons just like she is. Her lore will be expanded in the near future.

Chapter 32 Bed at last. Finally, after a long day of toiling at the family estate, I was in my own bed waiting for sleep to claim me. Work in the fields had bruised my arms, and my back stung with sunburn, so it was hard to rest easy. But all was not pain and soreness. A cool, wet cloth was rubbing across my belly, pulled by a gentle hand. I found it soothing. It alleviated the soreness of my midsection, not to mention how it took my mind off of how stuffed it was. My stuffed, round, bloated midsection… Memories suddenly returned to me in the blink of an eye. This wasn’t my home! Where was I? Who’s bed was this? I stiffened in terror – the “gentle hand” had claws and scales! “Eep!” I thrashed violently against my sheets – only to cry-out again. My whole back stung like all hells. The memory of falling into the Chillbrine River gave me a clue as to why – but didn’t matter now. There was a creature somewhere in this room, and all I could see were wooden beams and a straw-covered floor! I was about to roll out of bed in spite of my pain when my lingerie squeezed hard against my back – Blazian. Whoa there, the succubus cooed as she kneaded my breasts with the cups of my brassiere. Easy… easy.. you’re safe here, my pet. Sorry for squeezing your poor back. Take a deep breath. Breathe in… and out. I groaned while resting on my elbows, refusing to rest my stinging back against anything even if it was a soft bed. Blazian’s forceful reining of my back had hurt a bit, but she was massaging my breasts now. Was it her way of apologizing? No… she was kneading me to the rhythm of what she desired of me. Breathe in… and out… that’s it. Breathe in… and out… good girl… “Where am I?” I asked in spite of the unseen creature. You’re on a trading barge. That drop from Scarlet Mansion knocked you out, but the water broke your fall. Don’t worry, the crew here fished you out and cared for you these last couple days. “Days?” I moaned and rubbed my head. A day and two nights, Blazian said flippantly. Otherwise, I don’t know much more. “We’ve got to get out of here,” I grunted as I rose to a sitting position. “I have to warn Sammy and Maxie!” Easy, my eager pup. “The werewolves! Kora’s going to arrest them – ngh… hunt them –" Down girl! Blazian squeezed my back again. Relax. You can’t save them like this. Have faith in them and focus on healing. Like many a time, easier said than done. Now that it was quiet, the creaking of the swaying barge became evident. It was clear we were afloat, no doubt sailing through the city. But perhaps that was ideal? No guards or werewolves could search for me here until the barge docked. I took a deep breath and sighed with relief… … which drew my attention to the wretched state of my body. My stinging back was apparently not my only problem. My belly bloat had turned into a gut – seemingly overnight – and was hanging in folds over the top of my stupid horse outfit. “No…” I moaned, grabbing a roll of fat on my side. “I’m fatter than ever…” An actual roll! I had a pair of rolls on my sides big enough to fill a hand! And if that weren’t enough, my thighs had become chubby enough to rub against one another even as I sat and looked upon them. And my ass… I reached behind myself and felt its bulging softness. Gods above! I could sink a finger almost two knuckles deep into my cheek! “H-how is this possible?” I said. “How much did I even eat at that party?” Enough to pack-on a fresh dozen pounds, my chubby little minx. “That’s… that’s a hundred and sixty-seven pounds! Oh, this was not my plan! Kora’s the one supposed to – ahh!” The scaly creature had returned, peeking over the edge of my bed! “You!” I cried as I grabbed my pillow (the nearest shield and weapon). “You’ll never take me! Show yourself!” A clawed hand rose in surrender. “No hurt me!” said the creature in a dry, squeaky voice. “I’m helping!” I peeked over my pillow. “What are you?” “What?” the thing spread its clawed, four-fingered hands. “You mean who? Name’s Shrat. You’ve never seen a kobold before?” I’d never even heard of a kobold, but apparently it was an intelligent, dwarf-sized humanoid that looked like a lizard that decided to walk on two legs instead of four. This one in particular was a toxic-looking mix of vibrant blacks and yellows. “Were you…” I squinted. “Touching me?” The wasp-colored kobold squinted its slitted eyes in turn. “Yeah, I fixed you up, mm-hm – at least, I thought I did… what was all the talk of pounds and werewolves?” “Ah,” I suddenly realized how insane I would sound to someone who couldn’t hear Blazian. “Right. Uh… nothing. I think out loud.” Shrat’s eyes narrowed. “So how’s you fall in the river? You thief? Mighty suspicious.” Damn my miserable luck! How was I supposed to answer that? He had a good point: it was suspicious for someone to fall like I did, but I couldn’t just tell the truth – could I?” I scooted back against the wall, propping myself against my pillow. I couldn’t afford to hesitate. My friends could be in jail this very moment! I needed Shrat’s help, and I needed to gain his trust to do it. I’d tell him the truth – at least, some of it. “Look,” I told him. “I need your help. There’s a… werewolf cult in the city and –” “Werewolf cult? Hoo-boy!” Shrat slapped his hands in delight. “The crew’s gonna love your story! Save it for them!” “The whole crew? Why…” “We’s bet!” Shrat rubbed his two fingers together. “Why fall? Thief? Fool? Both? I bet both. But no talk now. Can you walk?” I pulled my bedsheets off and found my legs to be scratched and scabbed, but whole. “I think so.” “Come, come,” Shrat tugged me by the hand. “To the mess! Captain will see you now!” “How’s you like the Scuttlebutt?” asked Shrat. “The what?” “That be the name of our fine barge.” “Uh…” I nearly hit my head on yet another chest hanging from a net in the hallway. “Cramped. Why’s all the cargo hanging from the ceiling?” “Cause kobalds be short, nimble folk,” the two-legged lizard scurried around two barrels for emphasis. “That’s why we’s hired, see. Small crew for big, big load.” “Yeah, must be nice,” I shoved my bulk into the narrow space Shrat had just slipped through and nearly wedged myself stuck in the process. I actually had to suck in to fit. Shrat looked smug as he watched me struggle. “We do have one as big as you – well, as tall as you.” “Really?” I followed him around a corner. “Another human?” “Not quite,” he leapt over a rolled elven rug. “Captain is different. You’ll see!” I was grunting my way around the rolled rug when Blazian snapped the back of my panties to gain my attention. Keep your wits in this place, she said. This captain he speaks of is not mortal. I can sense their aura even from here. Another threat just after my close call with werewolves? I could feel my heart beginning to race, but I couldn’t let panic overcome me now. I was on a barge surrounded by water and the only way off was speaking with its captain. I could only swallow my fears and keep walking. Our journey ended at a door at the end of the hallway just beyond some stacked boxes lashed to the walls. Shrat easily scurried past them and opened the door. “After you,” he bowed mockingly. “Try not to barge into anything.” I groaned as my ass and belly immediately bumped into my latest obstacles. “Why does everything remind me I’m getting too big?” Nevertheless, I entered the mess and finally had some elbow room. True, there were plenty of barrels, chests, and pallets in here, but the single, long table running down the center of the room was free of dunnage. Good thing, too! It seemed the whole crew was gathered here to eat mutton and drink beer – a full dozen lizardmen. “There’s girl!” a red-scaled kobald raised his pitcher. “There she is!” “An’ just in time for dinner!” cried another from atop a cargo stack. “Give her drink! This’ll be fun!” But in spite of the drunken revelry, I barely noticed the kobalds at all, for across the room from me at the opposite end of the long table sat the full-sized, non-mortal woman herself – and there was no doubt she wasn’t mortal! There, smiling faintly with a glass of red wine in her hand, was a woman who could have passed as human, but only if she were shrouded in several layers of clothing. This woman, however, wore no clothes at all. Vibrant, red scales were all that concealed her most delicate parts, trailing across her shoulders and arms, wrapping around her plump, melon-sized breasts, and lining the sides of her neck. Twisted, goatlike horns wrapped around a wild, red mane like a wreath. She smiled at me, revealing viper-like fangs. <Hello,> she spoke voicelessly almost as Blazian did, yet somehow different. <Welcome aboard the Scuttlebutt. I’m her captain, Vethrax.> “Thanks for rescuing me,” I replied neutrally. “Who – ah,” I suddenly noticed the pitcher of beer a kobald was trying to hand me. “Thanks… that is… captain? What are you?” The kobald on the cargo stack gave a toast that partially answered my question. “All hail our smoky captain! Glory to the arch-roaster, Vethrax!” Vethrax shot a warning glance at the insubordinate subordinate. <I am not a “roaster.” I’m a dragon.> “Do not listen to her lies,” said a kobald sitting near me as he licked the rim of his cup. “A dragon has wings – which she doesn’t got.” <But I have other features,> to demonstrate, Vethrax rose to her feet to reveal supple, shapely legs – among other things. <As you can see…> she turned to her side. <I have a very long, beautiful tail. It is as long as my back and thick as my thighs. It’s also very flexible and I can wrap it around things or use it as a whip – just like a dragon. So there. Anyone who claims I’m not a dragon can suck it.> “Aint never seen a dragon with such big boobas,” said the kobald next to Vethrax. The dragon-like woman stomped her foot and shook her fists – albeit silently – before grabbing his head and throwing him into a dunnage net. <Shut up!> she commanded. Vethrax’s crew cheered. Even the one who’d been thrown seemed thrilled to have been so abused. In fact, he scurried back to his captain’s side and groveled for forgiveness. <Let’s get to business,> Vethrax plucked the mischievous kobald from the floor, took a seat, and set him on her lap like a pet cat. <My crew rescued you from drowning. That means you owe us an awesome story. Tell us why you fell!> The kobalds chittered excitedly and thumped the table in agreement. <Take a look at the ** on the table,> she pointed at an unassuming tin ** the size of a cabbage. <My crew has bet all their savings.> “On my story, right?” I asked, glancing at Shrat. Vethrax grinned, fangs glistening. <No. They’re betting on how your story ends.> A chill ran down my spine. “Oh…” <Personally, I bet we’ll turn you in to the town guard. If I win, I share the ** with my other lucky winners – and keep any potential bounty money. That’s a double-down…> “Ahem,” a kobald raised his hand. “That’s not actually a –” <Shut up. I’m a professional gambler. Anyways… our guest does have a way out of such a fate. She only has to do one thing…> she looked at me, eyes glinting with predatory glee. <You need to convince me not to turn you in tomorrow morning.>

The empty candy wrapper is sending it 😭 it’s an omen of inches to come

Chapter 6 “No,” I shook my head. “No, I am not ready for whatever ‘inspection’ you think you’re going to –” “Good,” Whore-Chan released her hold of my monitor and walked around my desk to my side. “That means you haven’t had a chance to hide anything.” “Yeah, a lot of good that did,” I eyed the handful of jelly-beans in her hand as she slid behind me. She laughed innocently. “You’re so funny, Darren.” “Sure.” “So why won’t you look at me? Don’t you like my nice, tight suit?” I groaned. “Can’t you see I’m working here? I got ten incident reports to –” “Oh, of course. Don’t you worry; you’re getting good marks for that.” She was grading me? I swallowed nervously. Maybe she really was the new Quality Assurance Manager. I better be careful how I behaved around her. A jelly bean fell on my keyboard. “Really?” I muttered. “You threw that, didn’t you?” “Oh!” she tittered behind my back. “Silly me! Let me pick that up for you…” I tried so hard to ignore her – so, so hard! – but it was nearly impossible to read my emails with her cantaloup-sized boob resting against my shoulder and pressing my ear, and definitely impossible with her cool, silky, liac and gooseberry-scented hair spilling over my face. Still, I persevered! I couldn’t let her win! “Mmph,” Whore-Chan rocked herself against the back of my seat amidst loud creaks. “Can’t… quite… reach…” Pop. Something flat and round flew from behind me straight into one of my monitors before bouncing-off and rolling off my desk and falling to the floor between my legs. “No!” I seized the monitor, a blue streak etched vertically upon it like a sword-cut. “Oh my!” Whore-Chan withdrew behind me, unseen. “Was that my blouse button?” she gasped, no doubt at the sight of whatever gap the button had left behind. “You wrecked my monitor!” Unbothered, Whore-Chan pulled my chair away from my desk while I was still in it. “Don’t you worry; I’ll put in an order for a new monitor for you. Now for that button...” Whore-Chan proceeded to step in front of me and bend at the waist as she reached under my desk for the accursed button. Speaking of which… goddamn! That button wouldn’t be the only thing that would pop if she bent any further! With her ass waving in my face, I could see the zipper in the back was straining to contain the meat within. And did my eyes deceive me? Was there more meat than last night? I couldn’t help but stare at her ass now. There was nothing else I could see! Yes indeed, Whore-Chan’s ass had grown noticeably-bigger, wider and plumper overnight. I’d become all-too familiar with its size and texture the night before when she’d mercilessly shoved it into me as she jostled for room on the couch. Then, I’d found it bony and girlishly-slender, but now what had been bony had grown soft, and what had been girlishly-slender was now wide and motherly. She’d gained at least five inches around the hips! It seemed she could sense my attention. She turned to look at me and grinned wide as a wolf. “Are you staring at my ass?” she mocked me with fake outrage. “Are you staring at my big… fat… ass?” she gave said ass a thunderous, double-handed spank that had her cheeks quivering tightly in her skirt. “Not so loud!” I glanced nervously back toward the door, ironically thankful that she’d locked it. “I… I don’t want to get in trouble.” “Don’t change the subject,” Whore-Chan spun around and tapped my nose with a fingertip. “You didn’t think I wouldn’t notice how you look at me, would ya?” “How I… what? No. No, that’s not true. I wouldn’t stare at –” “But you’re staring at me now, aren’t ya?” she slid her thighs over mind and mounted my lap – I was trapped! “Look at this,” she cupped her breasts. “Look what happened to my suit.” What else could I do? Her tits were being held right in front of my face. I could see clearly now how much bigger they’d grown. The leopard-print bra cups containing them were definitely G-cup, but the blouse tightly-wrapped around them had definitely been outgrown about two cup-sizes ago – as evidenced by the gaping hole left wide open by the missing button. “I mean,” she kneaded her round, squishy melons. “I can’t keep eating like this. All I do is eat, eat, and eat till I feel like I’m gonna pop – like I’m gonna burst – like, look at me…” she tried to pull her blouse back together over the hole exposing her cleavage, only to give-up as the fabric tore ominously from somewhere unseen. “I’m bursting at the seams…” “Did you eat everything in the break room?” I blurted. “Wha…? Of course not!” she smiled playfully. “What could possibly make you think that I –” “This,” I poked the not-so-subtle bulge of her tummy already beginning to swell with her binging. She gasped, hands racing to her bloated midsection. “How could you be so mean? I wouldn’t eat all the food. Well… maybe I did snatch more than a snack or two…” “Or all of them,” I poked her tummy again. “Uh?” she covered her tummy to protect it from further prodding. “Seriously, you can’t be eating everyones’ food.” “But you love it; don’t you Darren?” “Huh?” “You love it when I stuff my face,” she began rubbing her middle and flexing her thighs against mine. “W-what are you doing? Are you grinding me?” “You love watching me eat all day as my curves get curvier. All these treats have been adding-up. It’s only a matter of time before my ass rips out of this skirt, before these tits pop out of this bra, before these thighs –” Rip. Whore-Chan stopped writhing against me, her mouth agape yet blessedly silent – at least for a moment. “Did I just rip my skirt?” she reached behind herself and gasped again. “Darren! I just ripped my skirt!” “Ssh!” I spotted a passing shadow just beyond the blinds on my glass door. “Not so loud. You’re going to get me in trouble.” “Darren,” she whined obliviously. “How am I supposed to walk around the office now? I can’t let your friends see me like this…” A knocking at the door silenced us both. That shadow I’d spotted earlier was now looming ominously. “Darren? You in there? Open up so I can talk to you.” My eyes bulged. “It’s my supervisor, Charlotte,” I hissed at Whore-Chan. “Just pretend you’re not here,” Whore-Chan suggested with a playful wiggle of her hips. “Darren,” Charlotte’s silhouette shifted – I could tell she was tapping her foot. “I know you’re in there. Who are you talking to?” “It’s just a video!” I answered loudly. Then more quietly: “Get off me. I need to answer the door.” “Darren,” Whore-Chan whined. “Don’t let her in. I’m… indisposed.” “Just hide under my desk,” I began squirming free of her. “Quick…” “Darren,” Charlotte called. “Open up this door!” “I’m coming!” I said as I slid free of Whore-Chan’s thighs. “I just need to –” my chair flipped over. “Fuck… uh, I need to hang-up the Zoom call!” “Zoom call?” Charlotte’s silhouette set its hands on its hips. “You said you were watching a video!” “A Zoom call is what I meant!” I scrambled to pull my chair upright and nudge Whore-Chan under my desk at the same time. “It’s a Zoom call… about a video! Uh… annual training!” Riip. What now? I stared down towards the noise. It seemed Whore-Chan’s ass had ripped clean through her skirt. She gasped silently and lay a hand over her exposed and visibly-straining panties. The door handle rattled. “Darren, I don’t care about your annual training. Just open the door!” “Coming!” I shouted as I rolled my chair as close as I could against Whore-Chan in a desperate attempt to conceal her. “Stay here,” I whispered to her. “Don’t move…” and then: “I’m coming, Charlotte!” Charlotte was fuming by the time I opened the door for her. “Goddamn it, Darren!” she slid into my room. “What’s taking you so long? You know I can’t deal with this mess alone when everything’s been going wrong today.” “Is it bad?” I asked as she stepped dangerously-close to my desk. “I was hoping the day after Christmas would be easy.” “This just isn’t my day,” Charlotte leaned against my desk. “First there’s regional HQ calling me all the damn time, and then I found out my lunch is missing!” “Missing?” I feigned ignorance. “Any idea where it went?” “It’s all missing,” Charlotte waved her hands. “All our food! I just can’t… so what’s keeping you from working? Annual training?” “Wait, don’t –” I reached-out to stop her from walking around my desk, but I was too late. Damn it, she was going to find Whore-Chan! “What the hell?” Charlotte gasped. “Darren!” Oh no, I knew she’d spot her! “I can explain…” “What happened to your monitor?” Monitor? I felt relief sweep my stress away. Of course! I’d forgotten Whore-Chan’s button had wrecked it! Of course my supervisor would see that instead of under the desk! But how was I supposed to explain this? “Oh right,” I walked to her side, attempting to block Charlotte from seeing under my desk. “My monitor. The monitor I was working-on. I was working on annual training on the monitor…” Charlotte snapped her fingers. “Hey, what’s going-on? What aren’t you telling me?” “Nothing,” I blurted. “Then why –” “Achoo!” Everything fell apart so quickly – both figuratively and literally. Whore-Chan let-off a sneeze that sent another one of her buttons flying like a bullet – straight into my dick. I screamed and curled into myself, suffering such utter agony that I almost didn’t notice myself stepping on something soft. Was it Whore-Chan’s hand? Whatever it was, Whore-Chan yelped like a mountain lion and hit her head against the underside of my desk. Bump went my binders, bump went my inbox, bump went my tape roll, stapler, pens, and papers, and bump went my monitors – right off the desk. “What in the world?” Charlotte gaped at the disaster scene before her, then locked-eyes with the culprit – Ms. Quality Assurance Manager herself – hiding under the desk in a half-torn suit. Whore-Chan stared back at both of us, blushing as she laughed nervously. “Uh… housekeeping?” she started giggling before noticing her tits jutting through her torn blouse and hiding them with a hand. “Charlotte,” I groaned. “I…” Charlotte was speechless. “Aw, don’t worry you two,” Whore-Chan carefully exited her hiding space and stood-up. “I’ve got this all – oops,” she tried and failed to catch her skirt before it slid off her thighs to the floor, revealing leopard-print panties. “I gotcha covered. I’ll just submit a work order and we’ll be Gucci.” “A…” Charlotte stuttered. “A work order?” “Guess so,” I grumbled. “She is a real piece of work…”

Chapter 5 “What’s the matter, Darren?” my supervisor Charlotte nudged me as I idly tapped my plate with my fork. “You don’t want your cake?” “Yeah, Darren,” Whore-Chan leaned over the table, revealing a slight gap between two blouse buttons and a glimpse of leopard-print bra cups. “Don’t you like cake?” “I already had one,” I replied. Me and my coworkers were gathered around the breakroom table eating cake to celebrate Whore-Chan’s supposed promotion. It was a good cake, and I hadn’t eaten much the night before, but my appetite just wasn’t there. My mind was wholly focused on Whore-Chan. She was haunting me at every turn, and it was driving me insane. How was she doing all this? Why haunt me of all people? And most importantly, when would she stop eating? “Oh well!” Whore-Chan shook her head and shared a laugh with my coworkers. “That means more for me! Jeremy, can you cut me another slice?” “I gotchu,” replied Jeremy. I couldn’t stop staring at Whore-Chan as she greedily, dug her fork into the new slice. This was her third slice so far, and I knew it was only the beginning… and I was so focused on her, I didn’t notice Karla staring at me in-turn until she inserted herself directly into my line of sight, blocking my view of the gluttonous hedonist. “You’re trying to tell us something, Darren?” the corner of Karla’s face quivered. “You don’t like cake?” “Yo,” Sumo pounded the table and spoke with a mouthful of eggs. “Cake’s not for everyone, Karla. See? I’m eating my eggs over here, but no one’s complaining about it. Let the man be happy with his one cake slice.” “That’s not the type of cake I was talking about,” Karla’s eyes narrowed, suppressing a smirk. Sumo nearly choked, but smiled. “Look… let the man enjoy his cake, alright? Whatever cake you’re talking about, let him enjoy it.” Charlotte warned them both with a finger. “That’s enough, you two,” then, smiling broadly at me. “See what I have to do? The day’s barely started and they’re already testing my patience. Goddamn! And right in front of the new Quality Assurance Manager too.” Whore-Chan laughed at the ceiling and held-out her cleaned-plate. “It’s alright. I love cake – as you can tell. By the way, can you give me another one, Jeremy?” “Aight,” Jeremy obliged her. “But sheesh! Didn’t I just give you one? What happened to it?” “What, you don’t think I can handle all this cake?” Collective “ooh’s” sounded from around the table. “You know what?” Sumo stared at me and nodded vigorously. “You’re a lucky man, Darren.” Charlotte patted my arm. “We’re so happy for you. I was worried, you know. You’ve been trying to find a girlfriend for so long…” “Yeah,” I eyed Whore-Chan warily as vacuumed the fourth slice. “I guess we’ll see how this goes.” This was checkmate. Whore-Chan had followed me to my office and embedded herself into the community like a fat cuckoo bird, and just like a fat cuckoo bird, she was eating everything… “Ah!” Something tickled my thigh! My knee jerked straight into the table with a loud bang and I groaned. What was that? Whore-Chan started laughing at me, and my coworkers joined-in. It took me a moment to realize what had happened: she’d tickled me, violating my thigh with her foot! “Haha, real funny, guys,” I sighed. Footsie in the office! This was going to be a long day. What even was my job? Nothing I did matched my original contract, and did it even matter? Such questions were better left unspoken. I was paid well here, and had a personal office most could only dream of: corner location overlooking the city, a large desk with two monitors, and even some orchids that the Plant Guy would prune and water about once a month. I guess it wasn’t so bad if I didn’t know why I was paid so much. Hell, if I didn’t know why, that meant no one did, and I could just pretend to be busy. It probably wouldn’t matter that I was starting late… I’d barely settled into my office and opened Outlook when a dark shadow loomed from beyond the blinds covering my glass door. “No,” I groaned as my door handle clattered. “Not her again…” Sumo poked his head into my office. “Yo. Can I come in?” “Oh, it’s just you,” I sighed in relief. “Huh?” “Nothing. Just thought you were uh… come in. You can come in.” Like a caveman on the hunt, the burly Mongolian bodybuilder slid silently into my office, glancing about with cautiously-hunched shoulders. “So,” he clapped his hands and held them thoughtfully in front of his face. “What?” I asked. “You’re acting weird – wait, did you clog the toilet again?” “No,” he thoughtfully rubbed his hands. “Someone ate my meal-prep. Did you eat it?” “You’re meal-prep? I didn’t even know you brought it in. Did you misplace it?” “It was in the fridge this morning. You know the four Tupperware bins shoved in the back of the fridge? The ones full of rice, chicken, and asperagus?” he lolled his head in anguish. “It was half a week’s worth of meal-prep, man. I can’t believe you’d do this to me.” “But it wasn’t me. There’s no way I could eat that much food at… at once…” I froze, eyes bugging-out. “What?” Sumo hunched over my desk with his knuckles on the polished wood. “You have an idea who took ‘em?” “No,” I lied instinctively. “It’s impossible to eat all that in a day. It shouldn’t be possible.” Somehow, the possibility of my coworkers discovering my “girlfriend’s” gluttonous nature made me uncomfortable. How would they treat me if they learned about her? Would they believe me when I said she just started following me everywhere? Surely not! They were friends with her now! They’d take her side of whatever story was developing! I could already picture it: Karla gossiping away, drinking Whore-Chan’s every word and weaving a scandalous story so embarrassing, I’d never live it down! No, I couldn’t let that happen! Sumo, for his part, seemed ready to drop it. “Shit sucks, man,” he turned to leave. “Maybe someone moved them, or maybe the janitors threw them out. I dunno. Talk to you later, man.” Alone again, I leaned back in my chair and rubbed my face. There was no denying it: Whore-Chan was feeding again. No snack was safe from that cuckoo! Not unless someone stopped her… Hence, I rose out of my comfortable chair and left my office. Work could wait; I had to stop Whore-Chan! Jeremy and Karla were arguing in front of the fridge when I entered the break room. Both paused to look at me, eying me suspiciously. “Let me guess,” I said. “The fridge is empty?” Karla raised an eyebrow. “You wanna tell us somethin’ Darren?” “Yeah,” Jeremy added. “How’d you know that?” Shit. Did I really just frame myself? I did not sleep enough to be able to handle all this drama. “It wasn’t me,” I told them. “I was just talking about it with Sumo.” “About what, exactly?” asked Karla. “His meal prep is missing.” Jeremy glanced around. “Not exactly. His Tupperware is in the sink – they are empty, though.” “My whole bag is missing,” said Karla. “I’d been saving that Arby’s for lunch.” “I mean,” Jeremy leaned against the counter and crossed his legs. “Are we sure our food was eaten? Cause this is a whole lot of food.” “Oh yes,” Karla plucked a fork from the sink. “It was definitely eaten, all right, and with only one fork in the sink, we’re looking for one hungry big back.” “Big back is wild,” Jeremy chuckled. “So basically,” Karla held her chin in thought. “It should be easy to find the thief. All we have to do is look for whoever’s noticeably-stuffed.” “I think they’ll be a lot more than noticeably-stuffed,” said Jeremy. “I still think it was more than one guy.” “What do you think, Darren?” I thought this was a waking nightmare is what I thought. Whore-Chan hadn’t just infiltrated my office and befriended my coworkers – oh no. Now she was eating everything in sight again! What the hell was going to happen when my coworkers found her wandering the halls stuffed like a thanksgiving turkey? Damn it, my mission to stop her before she raided the fridge was a failure! “I uh…” I swallowed. “I think…” Behind me, someone barged-in. I flinched, expecting my nemesis, but it was thankfully only my supervisor Charlotte. “Darren,” she set her hands on her hips. “What are you doing in here? You got ten incident reports in your inbox. I just got a call from regional HQ asking what’s the hold-up.” Thank God! An excuse to escape! “My bad,” I began walking out. “I’ll get started on those right away.” It was too late to try to stop Whore-Chan. My only hope now was to hide in my office from all the drama that was sure to unfold. Even now as I turned the corner, I could hear my supervisor starting one of her tirades as she found the fridge empty. It seemed I’d left just in time. “Gonna have to skip lunch,” I thought as I entered my office again. “Oh well. I got some jelly beans in my drawer. It’ll have to do; not like there’s anything else left to eat around here.” The incident reports could wait a minute longer. I deserved a snack, so as I scooted myself against the desk, I opened my desk drawer to find… nothing. My jar of jelly beans was gone! “What the hell…” I muttered as I pawed at everything in the drawer to find the missing candy. “Where’s my –” Click. I froze. Was that the sound of my door locking? I couldn’t tell. My monitors blocked my view. “Heya big boy,” said a sultry voice behind the monitors. “How’s my favorite bean counter?” A perfectly-manicured set of fingers wrapped around the top of my monitors, and like a prowling lioness peeking above the reeds, came Whore-Chan’s grinning face. “My beans!” I pointed angrily as she popped one into her mouth. She smiled as wide as she could while chewing vigorously to clear her mouth and speak. “Ready for your inspection?”

Chapter 4 I’m one of those types that wakes-up in the middle of the night and checks their phone in the middle of the night to see if they accidentally overslept, and tonight was one of those nights. Good thing, too! I’d apparently forgotten to set my alarm completely. Close call! That would be an awkward phone call to my supervisor for sure. Now for one more hour of sweep slumber… Wait a minute. I sat-up like a catapult. I was alone! Where was Whore-Chan? Immediately, I sprang to my feet. That vixen was as unpredictable as a rolling cannonball. She could be anywhere in the house… doing anything. And so I searched for Whore-Chan, checking every room and even looking in the fridge for signs of foraging, but there was no sign of her. Whore-Chan was gone. “Was it all a dream?” I asked myself as I sat on the couch. There was no sign that she’d ever been here. Even the pizza boxes were gone. Could it be she was never here in the first place? No… there was one small clue that she was real: the front door was unlocked. I walked to it to be absolutely sure. I never left my doors unlocked, and moreover, the screen-door was swinging loose, which was another thing I would never allow. Whore-Chan had left through here. I was sure of it now. She was real and I had absolutely no idea why she visited me. I eased back onto the couch, sitting with my head in my hands. How? Who? Why? The only clue was that 4chan greentext ominously describing her arrival even as she knocked on my door. Could it all be a mere coincidence? Perhaps she mistook me for someone else, or perhaps this was some clever prank. Yes, that could be it… No, it couldn’t. Whore-Chan ate twelve family-size pizzas like a fish gulping water. No one could do that. It wasn’t possible! Was it? I couldn’t get back to sleep – not with less than an hour to spare before the alarm. There was nothing to do but get dressed and drive to work. It was the only thing that could clear my head now. The drive to work turned-out ot be exactly what I needed. Getting out of the house was the perfect way to put last night’s memories behind me. Now I could focus on the future: my work and my coworkers. I smiled to myself at the thought of seeing my coworkers again. We were all very close to each other. There wasn’t a thing we didn’t talk about, and we even had a discord chat for gaming. I could almost picture how it would be when I entered the office: first, I’d enter the breakroom and sign-in. My supervisor Charlotte would look bitter, but would smile at my arrival all the same as she fought her own fatigue. Jeremy would peek at the breakroom TV permanently tuned to ESPN and would discuss football tactics to anyone who would listen. Next to him would be Sumo – our local Mongolian bodybuilder – eating a dozen hardboiled eggs. And finally there was Karla, who would be the first to talk to me. I’d have to be careful about her. She was a notorious gossiper and snitch. None of us minded it; we just had to be sure we were all together whenever she overheard something so that she didn’t turn it into some wildly-exaggerated tall-tale. In any case, I’d arried in the parking lot. I parked near the front (being early had one perk), walked inside, greeted the lobby guard, entered the elevator, ascended to the top floor, and made my way to the breakroom. Odd… was that laughter I heard just through the breakroom door? I paused just beside it, curious at the break in routine. Was there a birthday I’d forgotten? Perhaps a post-Christmas white elephant gift party? I wasn’t prepared for either, so perhaps I should wait for it to end. I was about to turn and go elsewhere when I heard a new voice amongst that of my coworkers – a feminine, familiar voice… No, it couldn’t be! “Who’s the-ere?” sang the familiar voice. “Dar-ren, is that you? Get in here already!” I didn’t want to go in anymore, but what choice did I have? I needed to sign-in sometime. Damn it, this was checkmate! And sure enough, as I entered the breakroom and met my coworkers for the thousandth time, there – sitting atop the table in their midst as casually as a cat – was Whore-Chan. “There he is!” Whore-Chan grinned tomboyishly. “There’s my big boy!” I stared dumbly at her from the doorway. Whore-Chan was thin. How could this be? Just last night, she’d been a bloated ball of food that could barely walk, but now she was her trim self again… or was she? It was hard to tell now that she’d dressed herself in a secretary outfit that hid most of her body in layers of faux-professionalism. The black jacket draped her sides from view, as did the matching black skirt, though both complimented her general shape. The white button-down blouse just underneath them fit well enough, with no signs of strain on the buttons, and the Michael-Kors belt seemed to serve no further purpose than fashion. There seemed to be no sign at all that she’d eaten anything at all last night, but then again… did my eyes deceive me? That swell of her breasts pressing against the white blouse, and the soft spread of her thighs against the desk seemed somehow different than the girlish figure I remembered. Had she grown… curvier? No… no, that was impossible. No one could gain weight overnight. Right? My thoughts were cut short as my coworkers proceeded to roast me. “Well, well, well,” Charlotte smirked knowingly. “Look who we have here.” I cautiously shuffled inside. “Good morning?” Karla squinted suspiciously at me, as she often did for any gossipy situation. “Darren… you want to tell us something?” “Tell what?” “That you have… you know… a little somethin’ somethin’ going-on with the new boss?” “Boss!?” I took a step back, gawking at Whore-Chan grinning and swinging her legs innocently on the table. Sumo was the next to roast me. “Yo. I dunno how you did it, but congrats, Darren. Dating the boss? Real pro-gamer move – real alpha behavior.” “I mean,” Jeremy peeled his attention away from the TV. “She’s not literally the boss.” I felt my back brush the calendar off the wall. “What is going on?” I demanded. Finally, Whore-Chan told the punchline of the roast-session. “I did it, Darren!” she sprang to her feet and wrapped me in a hug. “I’ve been promoted to Quality Assurance Manager!” “W-what?” I was being squeezed by her plump, round boobies (oh, they definitely felt bigger). “H-how?” My supervisor Charlotte seemed unbothered by my trouble. “She’s going to be visiting all the offices for workplace inspections,” she smiled. “You must be so proud of her.” “Now I can visit you more often!” Whore-Chan kneaded her fingers against my lower back. “Why don’t we start by inspecting your office?” I’d have protested if Whore-Chan’s tits weren’t actively squeezing the air out of me. There was no doubting it anymore: her boobs were bigger. I remembered them being perky last night, but no bigger than an average hottie. Now they were at least a G-cup (not that I was an expert in boob sizes). “Aw, you two are so cute together,” my supervisor cooed, oblivious to my suffering. “But before you do that, why don’t we all inspect the fridge? Karla? Go ahead and fetch the cake.” I was going to faint. “C-cake?”