The next morning came, and the trio of travellers found themselves having deflated overnight. However, they also found themselves with an extra body on their team. Apparently Ajax had missed a tent in his original search, and in it was a gray-furred fox, of whom had been captured by the minions that previously inhabited the site.
Red claimed to be a potions master primarily, although he also had a pump next to him when the group found him. He had red tattoos on his face, and seemed to be a rather cunning fellow. After being freed, he agreed to join the trio in their quest. His name was Kyle, and apparently the reason he was out here was to investigate some requests for help from a nearby village, but got stopped along the way by the now-defeated group of minions.
The group now discussed where they should go from here, and Kyle explained the location of the village he originally came out to assist. “The village is probably not too far off from the path you need to take. Just a little to the West, if I'm correct.”
Ajax smirked, chuckled, and replied. “Heh, isn't that the one where everyone thinks it's an honor to be blown up? Why should we visit them?”
Zaru shot a glare at the cheob cat. “Because they need help, according to Kyle here. Besides, they could have useful supplies.”
Ajax sighed, relenting. “Fine, but if I get another pot belly from these people I will personally make sure both of you are rendered immobile by the end of the day.”
A little bickering between the taur and cat, and soon the group was off again, Kyle, Tsuki, and Ajax having mounted Zaru's back for the journey.
Kyle was right about the village being nearby; only a half hour's journey brought them to the tall, wooden walls that Kyle identified as those that were made by the villagers. A couple more minutes and they had found the village's front gates, which had two foxes guarding it. Ajax immediately checked their stomachs, and both of them had basketball-sized bellies, causing the cat to sigh.
One of the guards saw the group and waved to them, asking a simple but direct question. “Who are you, and why are you here?”
The group gave their names and stated that Kyle had received a call for help from the leader. The gray fox held up the parchment which had the request written on it, and soon the group was through the gates.
Around them roamed many other villagers, all of them sporting bellies of various sizes, ranging from that of a soccer ball to having bellies so big that their chest had merged with their stomach, making them look like they swallowed a yoga ball.
Kyle re-read his note to himself before saying anything. “Apparently the leader has more information for us. Ironically, he'll be the smallest one of all of them.”
Ajax laughed, seeming genuinely surprised. “Well, I think I see him in that case.”
In fact, Ajax was seeing the only fox in the whole village with a flat belly, aside from Kyle. He was looking towards the group, and approaching them with a welcoming smile. “Welcome, you four! Have you come about our request for help?”
Kyle nodded and dismounted Zaru, giving the parchment to the leader. After a moment of reading and a slight nod, the leader smiled again and addressed the whole group. “Some villagers went to the nearby cave a couple days ago, but they haven't come back yet. I fear they were captured by some of those minions, probably being teased with the prospect of being pumped full of something until they burst. If you wouldn't mind, we'd be grateful if you went after them to see what happened. Even if you bring back nothing more than a few piles of scraps, we'll be happy to know what happened to them.”
Ajax was about to speak, likely in protest, before he was given a sharp glare from Zaru and quickly silenced. Tsuki ended up being the one to speak instead. “Sure, we'll do it!”
Kyle spoke up. “What would we get in return?”
The leader thought for a moment before getting an idea. “Well, seeing as you're currently travelling through the minion-infested forests, perhaps some things to enhance your fighting abilities would be of worth. New weapons, some things to improve your spells, and even a few things to increase your overall capacity! There may be more than that to it, but that should be more than satisfactory, hm?”
The group gave varying signs of agreement and approval, and the leader gave them a map with directions to the cave. Now with a way to go, everyone headed towards their new destination.
On the way, however, their journey was interrupted by a trio of blobs of green slime crossing their paths. There was a common knowledge throughout the land that, if one ever crossed paths with slime that showed interest in them, the best thing to do was simply let it do as it wished, otherwise it can easily pop a victim out of aggravation. Knowing this, the group watched as the slimes approached the four, each of them showing interest in a different group member.
The biggest of the three went for Zaru, and the taur felt the cold blob climbing his leg as it made its way towards his mouth. With time, the slime was inching its way up his middle, and was soon touching his chin. He reluctantly opened his mouth and let the slime go inside, feeling it force itself down his throat and into his belly. His underside began to expand and stretch as the slime filled into it, quickly becoming a dome between his legs that was growing steadily. By the time he looked like he had swallowed a beach ball, the slime was only about halfway done, and Zaru was being forced to widen his stance as his underside pressed against his legs. Soft creaking noises began to emanate from his hide as the slime kept coming and coming, although now it was near its end. When the last of the slime went down Zaru’s neck, he looked like he had a yoga ball pressed between his walking legs, the sides of his belly bulging outwards between his legs. Walking would be a hard task at this point, but he could likely make it to the entrance of the cave.
The other two slimes showed interest in Tsuki and Kyle, and they tried to climb up the sides of Zaru’s distended stomach to get to them. The two nervously got off of the taur’s back and stepped right into the blobs of goo, Tsuki shuddering as her feet were covered in the cold substance.
Kyle’s slime was much faster in its progression, and was at Kyle’s lips in a little under a minute. Kyle, knowing it wouldn’t be worth fighting it, opened his mouth and let the slime flow into him, even gulping it down himself in an attempt to make this go by faster. He could feel himself getting full, yet the slime didn’t slow one bit as it funneled down inside him. His hide started stretching outward as his stomach was forced to make more room for the continuous intake of goo, and he could feel himself growing outward as he swelled. Kyle’s hands moved to his stomach, rubbing it as he moaned, and at this point his gut stuck out a good foot at the very least, his chest beginning to expand to join his stomach. As he kept growing, the feeling of slime pressing outward from within him was taking up every idle thought in his head, and it took concentration to not constantly focus on the building pressure. Despite his efforts, however, the pressure won out, and soon Kyle found himself having laid on his back as he rubbed his distended middle, the last of the slime now making its way down his throat. His middle now looked like it could fit Ajax inside of it, but the only thing making him look so big was a blob of green goop. His vision was somewhat blurry, but all he could think about was the pressure in his belly, the way his hide felt so tight, and how every tiny jiggle from the slime sent a wave of sensations through his whole body. Whenever he tried to say something, he would only mumble incoherently, if not just moan from the pressure.
Tsuki, at this point, was only halfway done with her slime, and it seemed to be somewhat bigger than the one inside Kyle. She was also having the same problem as Kyle in terms of keeping herself focused on anything other than the pressure, but she was faring far better than her dazed companion. Rather than being uncomfortable, the sensation of being filled with something was very pleasing to the Lynx, and she had a wide smile on her face as she rubbed, and even squeezed, her growing stomach. Eventually, she found herself on her knees, leaning onto her stomach purely to feel more of the pressure that was constantly building inside her. She loved everything about it, and any moan that came from her was in bliss over discomfort. As the last of the slime entered her, she hugged her belly and purred loudly, signaling her enjoyment of the predicament.
Ajax, still sitting atop Zaru, simply smirked and chuckled. He and Zaru shared a single look with each other and immediately decided it would be better to rest where they were rather than to continue onward, and such was what they did that night.