*Crash!*

The sound of branches breaking and foliage being shoved aside broke the quiet of the Amazonian forest as a figure emerged from the trees, tired and panting as he finally reached another clearing. Light had been trying to hack his way through the untamed wilds for the last few hours, getting lost and turned around on a constant basis; the uniform trees and lack of landmarks made it hard to tell which direction was which, and as a result the wolf had found himself doing nothing but running in circles, covering himself in scratches and scrapes from the branches. He was exhausted from his arduous journey, and took the liberty of resting atop a half-buried boulder at the edge of the clearing. The rock was covered in moss, suggesting it had been there for a long time, and it made a great seat, stopping just at waist height.

Flopping down, Light leaned back and wiped the sweat from his brow. Black backfur made for easy overheating, so the wolf made sure that his spot was at least beneath the trees so he wouldn't soak up the sun. The darker fur contrasted with his white chin and belly, which were both visible; due to the natural humidity of the forest, Light had changed into a more reasonable outfit consisting of only a small green vest that left his shoulders bared and was left unzipped as well as a pair of loose off-gray shorts hung comfortably around his hips. It was an outfit designed to allow a lot of air circulation, which was important in an area with such damp heat, where he'd end up sweating a lot and losing a lot more liquids from his body if he didn't keep himself cooled down somewhat.

Brushing back his short white hair, and irritably noticing that the spikes were starting to droop in the humid forest, Light tugged the backpack off of his shoulders and dug through it, looking for the documents that had led him here. Finding them, the wolf unrolled a large map along with a scrap of paper detailing his mission. An avid explorer, Light often liked to go to uncharted regions and look around, see what treasures or ruins might offer themselves. This time, he had been actually commissioned to search for the lost Reportando ruins, which supposedly held a valuable artifact mentioned in several ancient documents. No one knew its real name, but those who had shown interest in the hidden ruins referred to it as the Cup of Avalon, taken from a translation of one of the documents. The language was old and hard to decipher, and so this was the closest the researchers could get. Light had been approached to look into this mystery and possibly retrieve the artifact, should be find it.

The map he had been given was no help, unfortunately; it only marked a general region in the jungle to explore. The area spanned over dozens of miles, meaning that Light was expected to trek through it until he stumbled upon the ruins or gave up. The wolf was far too stubborn to give up, however, and so he had spent the last two weeks exploring as much of the jungle as he could during the day. At night, he huddled in his tent and sleeping bag, as the temperatures dropped rather rapidly; aside from that, it was best not to be out in the darkness due to the number of dangerous hazards he wouldn't be able to see, and that wasn't including the predators! Light much preferred the safety of his lit tent, where he could plan his next day's travel route and rest up for another long trek.

"Where is this place?" Light asked himself with a soft grumble, starting to get annoyed. He had enough water for another week, along with ample food supplies, but the heat and damp stickiness of the air was starting to get to him. It didn't even seem like the ruins existed anymore, in all likelihood; Light figured that, following the map and not getting too badly lost, he should have found it by now. The Reportans supposedly had built their ruins around a large central structure, like a temple or castle, and so it should have been visible from a fair distance. However, the wolf hadn't spotted anything that seemed artificial or unnaturally made, and he was starting to think that the ruins were long gone, worn away by time and the elements. It would be his luck that he'd end up wandering around the jungle for three weeks for nothing!

Stretching his arms above him, Light let out a long sigh before grabbing the map to try and figure out where he was. His finger dragged along the map as he tried to find the clearing he was in, but the map was so old and missing no shortage of landmarks, as this area had only been briefly surveyed. Growing in frustration, the wolf threw the map down and grabbed his canteen, taking a long drink to try and cool his temper as well as his throat. It was irritating, working with subpar materials and no help, and Light was starting to reach the end of his rope. He decided right there that if he didn't spot any sign of the ruins by the end of the day, he was going to call it a failed trip and write the ruins off as lost. Someone else could spend their lives looking for ruins that didn't exist!

As he bent over to retrieve the map from where it had fallen on the ground, Light spotted something odd; rising from the mossy loam of the jungle floor was a smoothed stone. It was still overgrown and partially hidden by the grasses and weeds, but still visible. Curious, the wolf leaned in closer and cleared away the overgrowth, finding that the stone seemed to be cut into a square shape, somewhat unnatural compared to the area around it. It almost looked like a cobblestone for a path, but without accompanying tiles around it to confirm that. Tilting his head, Light looked around, spotting another similar stone buried in the ground, though this one was far more worn and cracked, making it harder to see among the plantlife. The wolf moved to follow this next stone, and spotted another nearby, and another; clearly, there was some sort of path here!

Light's ears perked up in renewed interest as he realized that he had found the first signs of a walkway, perhaps a road that was part of the ancient ruins! Knowing it was too soon to get his hopes up, but now much more excited than he was before, the explorer quickly grabbed his bag and tent before following the path, noticing that the cobblestones were becoming more and more common as he walked along the roadway, with only a few missing here and there due to time wearing them away. Several others were broken or cracked, probably from similar catalysts. It didn't matter, though; there was enough of a pattern to present the path, and Light followed it eagerly, almost breaking into a jog to see where it went.

However, that jog soon stopped; the stones ended at a thick wall of brambles and bushes covered in sharp thorns that did not look inviting. But the pathway seemed to continue under the growth, though, and Light wondered if it continued in the same direction. He didn't want to risk the thorns, however, and instead looked around for a less prickly means of access. Off to the left, about two dozen paces away, the thorns were much less present, and it was mostly the standard foliage Light had been traveling through before; the wolf decided that he'd simply follow parallel to the path until he found a spot where he could cross back to following the path. With luck, it would continue past the thorns and continue towards the lost Reportando ruins.

Shoving his way through the brush, Light found himself constantly getting hung up on branches and bushes that caught on his backpack straps or tangled in his clothing. The trees in this area were much thicker than the rest, and though they were more manageable than the thorn thickets, Light still felt branches poking into his body where they had broken off and gotten stuck in his clothing, while leaves were caught in his hair and fur, making him look all the more unkempt. Twice, the wolf was forced to stop and detangle his equipment from the trees, and another time he had to turn around and find another path through, as the trees became too thick to squeeze through. But slowly he was making progress in approximately the right direction, occasionally able to cross over a bit more towards the path he was trying to find.

It took about a half hour, but soon the explorer managed to find a large opening in the trees and emerged in a slightly less crowded area, one with the cobblestones of the path running through it. Along one side of the path were several large bushes that looked like they may have been tended at one point, but had long since overgrown. They bore large berries easily twice the size of grapes, bright blue in color and completely round. Light's belly let out a grumble, reminding him that he hadn't eaten since breakfast, and it was a good deal after noon now; it was a good opportunity to take the time for a late lunch. Plus, he could camp on the path itself since it was level ground, so that he wouldn't lose track of it.

Setting down his heavy pack, Light dug through for his food stores. As he did so, the wolf paused and considered; he had about a week's worth of travel rations, and it would take him at least four days of travel through the jungle to get back to the nearest town. That meant that he couldn't waste more than three days' worth of food before he headed back; it might be time to start foraging to try and conserve his supplies. The berries were looking particularly tempting; they were full and round-looking, not to mention plentiful on the branches of the bushes. They were right next to the path as well; though it was possible that they had grown in over time, their placement suggested that the natives of the Reportando ruins had planted them, which meant it was likely that they were safe.

Moving over to the bush, Light tugged one berry off of its stem, looking closely at it. It was firm and the skin seemed tight, without wrinkles or bruises on the fruit. It smelled sweet, a sort of tart scent wafting off of it, and two or three would easily fill his paw. Shrugging, he grabbed a bag from his pack and started plucking berries, tossing them into the bag carefully to make sure they didn't burst. The sack didn't take long to fill, given the size of the fruit, and Light estimated that when combined with his current rations, it gave him another three or four days' worth of food before he started to run out.

Once his bag was filled, Light set about filling his belly next. He plucked a few of the berries from the bush and popped them into his muzzle, biting down and finding the fruit's skin to be firm and chewy before exploding into an extra-sweet juice in his muzzle, a hint of tartness at the very end of it. They were rather good, and the juice was cool despite the heat of the jungle. There didn't appear to be any seeds either, meaning that he didn't have to spit anything out, allowing him to enjoy his treats without interruption. Before he knew it, the wolf had finished off several pawfuls of berries, his appetite satisfied and his belly full. Licking the juice from his lips, Light patted his middle and sat down on the path to rest for a short bit before resuming his search.

As he rested, however, the wolf began to feel an odd sensation through his body. It was as if the coolness of the berries was starting to fill him from head to toe, not quite unpleasant but certainly odd compared to the outer heat around him. It was sort of like having a fever, where heat and cold caused shivers and sweating at the same time. Were the berries poisonous after all? Light couldn't say he felt *bad*, but he certainly did feel odd. Atop that, his clothing felt constricting around his body, though the wolf thought that was an effect of the feeling the berries were giving him. He wasn't choking, wasn't feeling dizzy or passing out, and wasn't feeling sick, but Light was certainly feeling weird.

The sensation vanished after only a few minutes, though the constricting feeling and general strangeness of the whole situation remained. Light stood up worriedly, wondering if something had happened, but he was standing just fine; his balance was a little weird, though he attributed that mostly to shock. Aside from that and the tight feeling his clothing was giving him, everything seemed normal. That left only the clothing to check. Light did so, tugging at his vest, noticing that it wasn't as loose as it had been. It still stretched slightly, but it clung close to his body. Maybe it had shrunk a bit due to the humidity in the air? His shorts seemed to have the same difficulty, though the legs were still fairly loose; it was mostly around the hips that he was having difficulty.

It was only then that Light really got a look at himself, and realized why his clothing had gotten tighter; he was larger than before! Though he was no taller, the wolf had a visible paunch protruding from his middle, swollen and round, sort of like the berries he had eaten. His chest was still fairly firm and muscular, though it did seem a bit bigger than before as well; most of the weight seemed to be in his gut, like it had bloated outwards. His hips were a bit broader as well, including his backside, though for the most part he wasn't too much larger; it was about twenty or so pounds, noticeable on his body but not too bad. Light was suddenly thankful he had only eaten a few berries; more would have certainly been bad for his situation!

"I think I'll avoid these... hrm. Bloatberries, I guess. Not the most original name, but it'll do..." Light shrugged his pack back on, thankful that his belly's weight in front helped counterbalance the size of his backpack, but still curious about the berries that had been planted near the path. Who would put fruit that bloated the eater up so close to a walkway? It certainly seemed like an odd plant to have in the first place, aside from novelty, and it didn't seem to be near any structures that may have been considered homes. There were just a few large bushes near the path, larger than the average plant for sure, but they were just randomly placed.

As he got ready to go, Light noticed something he hadn't seen in his brief meal; a large set of footprints were visible behind the bush, sunken into the dirt around the plants. Several large patches of grass were broken as well, suggesting that something very large went through the area. It was possible that it was just an animal or something that fed on the bloatberries regularly, getting rather large as a result. That would explain the deep footprints; it was probably nothing worth worrying about. Still, Light warily kept an eye out, just in case. It wouldn't do to come this far only to run into something big enough to eat him!

The path continued to twist and turn through the trees, getting more and more solid as it went. It seemed that the deeper Light got, the better-preserved the area was. There were still missing cobblestones and areas of overgrowth, but they were less and less common as the wolf made his way down the walkway. It seemed he was getting closer to the ruins, judging by the well-maintained road! The wolf found himself picking up the pace again, though he was careful to keep his eyes open; he had nearly run into the thorn bushes before, and he was not eager to add to the scratches and cuts he had already gotten. Instead he kept himself at a fast walk, wary of his surroundings.

The trees opened up as he reached a large river, and the path continued to what had once been a stone bridge over the water. The bridge was in pieces, though, with the middle completely falling through and several large chunks missing along the edges, making it impossible to jump over. The bridge seemed to be the same kind of stonework as the cobblestone, confirming Light's suspicions that he was drawing close to the ruins. After all, the walkway was only a hunch; finding an actual structure was confirmation! The wolf excitedly pulled out a waterproof camera, taking a few quick shots of the broken bridge to take back with him, along with a few of the path, and then set about finding a way to cross the river.

Thankfully, the water didn't seem to be fast-flowing, a rather mild current gently splashing against the banks. The area around the bridge sloped down towards the water on both sides, and at a glance the river didn't seem to be very deep; Light guessed that at best it would reach his chest. If he held his packs above his head, the wolf figured he could probably ford his way across with only minor difficulty. It would be better than attempting the bridge; even without his increased weight, the explorer was fairly certain he wouldn't be able to jump the gap, which had to be a good fifteen feet in length. That left fording as the only option, as he didn't have a boat; Light was determined to press on, no matter what it took.

Quickly the wolf changed clothes, first; it wouldn't do to go through the jungle in a soaking outfit. Instead he pulled out a swimsuit in a large plastic bag, one that would hold the water without leaking after he changed back into his normal outfit. Stripping and redressing quickly, tucking his vest and shorts into the pack, Light hefted his pack above his head. As he approached the water, he noticed just how fat his reflection now looked, his gut protruding above the waist of his swim trunks, and wondered if the fruit's effect was temporary or not. Worst came to worst, it would only require a few weeks at the gym to shed the extra weight, but Light had a preference for actually fitting in his clothing.

"Well, on the bright side, I'll float a bit better with this belly..." Light took a deep breath to steady himself, and then started wading into the water. It wasn't too cold, probably due to the area's climate, and the wolf barely noticed the current; it moved so slowly that it hardly even pushed him. The river's bed wasn't too bad, either; it was lined with thick, smooth stones that almost seemed soft beneath Light's feet, making for easy footing. It also was a fairly even curve, making the going safe for the explorer as he slowly got into deeper and deeper water, feeling his way forward with his feet to make sure there weren't any surprising drops. The water was already past his hips and halfway up his belly; soon he would be reaching the deepest point, and then it would be cake from there.

As he started wading across the deeper point, with the water at his chest, Light felt the rock beneath his foot shift, almost like it was squirming. Stepping back, figuring it was just uncertain footing, the wolf felt a weird sensation against his leg, almost like a tickle. The same feeling followed at his belly, and another at his backside, causing him to yelp and move forward. As he did so, Light noticed that it felt harder to shift through the water, like he was wading through something far more solid. Atop that, there didn't seem to be any more stones along the riverbed; it was all squishy muck and silt at this point. It seemed odd for the river to only have stones along one half of it, but there was probably some explanation for it.

The tickling sensation came again, and Light reached towards his belly, where it had originated. His paw found something slick and smooth, almost like the river rocks, and he tugged at it suddenly, wondering what it was. The thing came up after a quick tug, but as Light pulled at it, he felt the same tickling sensation on his arm. Pulling his arm out of the water, the wolf was shocked to see a pair of enormous leeches, easily as big as his paw; one was held in his grasp, but the other had bitten down his arm, causing the tickling he had felt before. Light tossed the one he was holding onto, about to grab the one on his arm before it could suck at his blood, but he noticed something odd; the leech was getting smaller with ever tickling itch, and his arm was getting bigger. Was it pumping blood *into* him?

No, it wasn't blood; as Light moved his arm to pull the leech arm, he noticed that it shook and jiggled lightly, like fat. The leech was injecting him with more weight! Then it hit him; he had been feeling that tickling sensation for a few minutes now, all over his body. What if there were more leeches? With a yelp, the wolf suddenly lunged forward, trying to get out the other side of the river as fast as possible, only to notice his whole body was feeling heavier. As he hit shallower water, the wolf noticed his gut was much, much larger than before, with several small leeches falling off as they finished injecting fat into him. His swim trunks seemed painted on fat thighs and a wide backside that shook and wobbled with every step he took, and Light realized he was still growing by the minute!

Suddenly his foot caught a hole that he hadn't noticed in the riverbed, and Light fell forward onto his face with a yelp, headfirst into the water. The lukewarm liquid closed in overhead, and the tickling began all over his body, including his arms, chest, and neck that had been above the water before. Even his face was treated with the same feeling, and he could feel the weight starting to pile on. The wolf struggled to get his head above the water, but kept tripping and losing his footing as he flailed about. He found himself starting to get light-headed from lack of oxygen as he struggled to get above the water's surface, but his increasing weight and the slippery muck of the riverbed made it more and more difficult. Everything started getting hazy before fading out as Light lost consciousness in the leech-infested waters, drifting into the darkness.

---

The wolf groaned, coughing as he stirred. Every part of him felt heavy, sore and tired like he had been working for hours. His muscles were tense, and his skin ached as the fur on it was plastered against it from the soaking he had been through. Light coughed again as he tried to clear the water from his lungs, opening his eyes and trying to figure out what had happened. He remembered falling into the water with the leeches all about him, struggling and trying to get to the surface before passing out. The wolf was surprised he hadn't drowned; buried in the mass of slippery creatures, he should have sunk like a stone and stuck to the bottom of the river. Regardless of how he had gotten out of it, he was alive at least.

A look around showed that he was by the riverbed, though the stone bridge was nowhere in sight; Light figured he had been washed a fair distance downstream, away from the area that the leeches had been in. He wondered what sort of creatures they were; it was odd to see parasites that gave rather than took, and those ones seemed to pump fat into him before falling off and swimming away. How did such creatures live? Did they eat certain creatures and implant the fat into others, or did they fatten up their meals in order to eat? They certainly were enigmas, but not ones that Light wanted to look into. He didn't want anything else to do with those creatures that had nearly drowned him while trying to fatten him up!

That brought something else to mind. Light looked down at his body, and his jaw dropped as he barely recognized the alien mass that was below him. Where before he had only been about one-sixty and a fairly slim wolf with only a bit of muscle, now there was a large wall of white-and-black fur that was his gut. The belly alone looked massive, a big, jiggling shape of blubber that rested heavily atop his lap, sagging off to the sides slightly. His firm chest had been replaced by a pair of hefty moobs that jiggled with every breath taken, and the wolf was surprised by his inability to tilt his head all the way downwards; his chin (no, chins!) pressed up against a rounded tire of a neck that now occupied the space between his head and his bloated torso.

Sitting up with difficulty, unused to his new weight, the wolf took stock of his situation. He was certainly much bigger, easily pushing over three hundred pounds, probably more than twice his weight starting out. His swim trunks were incredibly tight, making it a little difficult to walk as they strained around his lower belly and his wide hips, constricting them slightly. Light looked around for his pack, wondering if his normal clothes would fit, only to find that it wasn't anywhere nearby. The backpack must have washed away in the river! The only thing that seemed to have fallen free was a single bag at the edge of the river, one that the wolf quickly retrieved. It took a few tries to bend over that far, or at least a way to twist his body so that he *could* reach the bag, but soon he got it and opened it, only to find to his dismay that it was the container of bloatberries he had saved from earlier.

"Great... I've got no water, no clothing except a swimsuit, and no food except berries that would probably immobilize me before long..." Light sighed, looking at the bag in his hand. "Well, I better hold onto these anyway... it's better than starving. Maybe I'll be able to forage or something later..."

The wolf grunted and headed up the bank of the river, thankful that it was such a low slope. It was hard work, walking with his new weight, and with his center of gravity all weird the wolf was stumbling from leaning too far forward thanks to his gut. He was starting to get nervous about this journey; that was two obstacles on the way that were determined to fatten him up. What was with this region? Were these defenses that the Reportans had set up to prevent invaders? Or were these mutant strains that happened to be on the path? This seemed too deliberate to be coincidence, and Light wasn't so sure it was. Things were lined up far too well to slow him down, and he hadn't even caught sight of the castle yet.

Thankfully, the ground past the riverbank wasn't too bad. Though it was still a slight slope, it was gentle enough that Light wasn't too hard-pressed to work his new weight up it. His paws sank slightly into the wet mud, deeper than he was used to back when he was only half as heavy, but he still had enough traction to make his way away from the river and towards the thicker jungle once more. He had long since lost sight of the path, considering he had been out cold for a while, but the wolf guessed that if he headed generally upstream, he'd eventually find the broken bridge and be able to get back on track with his exploration. It all just depended on how far away he had drifted while he was unconscious.

The brush and vines were thicker than ever, this far downstream, and Light found himself getting even more tangled than before, despite the loss of his pack and most of his clothing. Still, he struggled through as best as he can, despite his extra weight making it that much more difficult. When he emerged from one patch, the wolf almost looked like a part of the jungle himself, with vines trailing off of his body and leaves tangled in his fur. To his dismay, exiting from one patch only caused him to face an even thicker one. This was a repeating pattern as he tried to continue upstream, only to find himself losing his sense of direction as the jungle seemed to close in about him, trees and vines and roots in every direction.

To make matters worse, it was getting dark. Without his tent and lanterns, Light realized he would have to find shelter of some sort. He had already been an appetizing snack for any predators hunting in the jungle, and with an additional hundred or so pounds of fat, he was that much more delicious-looking. Thankfully, the wolf could see a small range of mountains, barely foothills really, rising just above the trees in one direction. There was a chance that there would be caves there, and those could easily be converted into a makeshift shelter for now. It would be a rather uncomfortable night with no fire and no blankets, especially with how quickly the temperature dropped, but Light figured that if he could close off a cave enough and insulate it, his newly fattened body could provide plenty of warmth to get him through the night.

His new course set, the wolf proceeded to fight through the overgrowth once more. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad in the direction he had chosen; still, there were plenty of vines and thorns to make him tread carefully. Slowly he made progress, pushing aside branches and squeezing through openings wherever he could find ones big enough for his bulky frame, and the day passed as he continued to work towards the hills. Night was starting to fall rapidly as he came close, but it looked like it would be a race against the clock; would he make it before it became fully dark? Atop that, would there even be a cave for him to stay in? Light began to feel nervous as he continued to beat a path through the trees, imagining predatory eyes on him. What if there wasn't any shelter?

Thankfully that worry was availed quickly, as the trees finally broke into a large clearing at the base of one of the large foothills.  The ground was completely open, without any brush besides the high grass, and right across the clearing from Light was a large opening in the hill. The cave was a bit large, meaning that he wouldn't be able to just cover it with branches like he had originally hoped, but in the falling daylight he was willing to take what he could get. Quickly the wolf ran across the open land, stumbling a few times as his body wasn't exactly made for running now, and the swaying of his enormous gut threw off his balance every few steps. Still, despite the stumbling awkwardness with which he made his way across the clearing and into the cave, Light made great time and managed to enter just as the sun vanished beneath the horizon, leaving it pitch-black.

Of course, that also meant the cave was dark as well. Light immediately ran into a wall as he veered off of his path, but his belly took most of the impact, cushioning the force of the blow. It was enough to knock the wind out of the wolf, however, who sat down heavily with an oof of surprise from the contact. Feeling along the wall with his paws, he slowly moved back deeper into the cave, stumbling every few steps as his feet caught loose stones or he stumbled over uneven ground. He didn't hear anything in the cave, though, which suggested either it wasn't home to any other wildlife, or else said wildlife was out hunting right now. Either way was preferable to having some wild animal in there with him, ready to ambush him while he couldn't see.

Once he was far enough away that he couldn't see the cave's entrance, Light decided that it was safe to rest for now. He shivered a bit in the cold, but it was more uncomfortable than dangerous; his fur had dried to the point where he wouldn't freeze. It was still a bit of a miserable experience, though, and the wolf huddled into a ball along one of the walls, tucking his knees in close and wrapping his arms around them to make use of his lardier frame's higher body temperature to keep him warm. He still shivered and shook a bit, but it was far better than it could have been, and he soon fell asleep, dreams oddly filled with thoughts of nothing but food to fill his large belly.

---

The next morning came, and Light woke sleepily when sunlight started to stream in through the far opening of the cave. The wolf stretched and stifled a groan at the stiffness in his limbs from shivering in his sleep, but he was well enough rested that he felt alert and ready to go about his day. The ruins were close, he could feel it, and with a full night of rest the explorer was feeling much more optimistic. So what if he was without most of his clothing, his food, or any sense of direction; if he kept his wits about him and proceeded carefully, Light was confident that he would be able to survive and find his way towards his goal. Nothing could stop him as long as he paid attention and didn't give up!

As he pushed himself to his feet, using the wall to help support his newfound weight, Light noticed something in the floor of the cave that he hadn't been able to see in the darkness. Several sets of large footprints, not too much larger than his own but apparently much heavier judging by how far they sank into the damp dirt of the cave, crisscrossed the floor in a number of directions. This suggested that this cave was recently occupied and visited frequently. Light nervously backed away from the footprints; he hoped that the occupants had recently moved out, or wouldn't be back for a while yet. He didn't want to see what made footprints as deep as those ones; it would have to be something very large, or very heavy!

The wolf started to sneak towards the cave entrance, determined to flee as fast as possible, when his ears perked up at a sound in front of him. Light froze, trying to listen, and soon caught the deep rumbling again. If he didn't know better, he would have said it sounded like someone snoring. But that couldn't be possible, right? Who would be out here, deep in the middle of the jungle? Curious, he began to slowly inch forward, hugging the cave's wall. He was thankful that the cave dirt was so loosely packed and soft, muffling his footsteps as he moved along the wall to find out whose cave he had shared overnight.

Another loud snore broke the silence of the cave, and Light froze as he realized that there was more than one. He didn't know how he had missed it before, but there were clearly several of them, and the noise was more apparent as he drew in closer. That didn't deter him, though; the wolf made his way forward carefully, reaching the last bend before the room where the sounds were coming from. The tunnel was fairly serpentine, twisting and turning so that he had a wall between him and the source of the noise, and it enabled him to get particularly close before having to poke his head out to see what lay on the other side of the stone barrier. He took a deep breath, and then looked carefully around the corner.

The wolf's jaw dropped as he caught sight of the creature that was making such a ruckus. Rather, it wasn't a single creature, but a whole pack of them. In the shifting shadows from the rising sun, it was hard to tell at a first glance, but a closer look revealed what was obviously a community of gnolls. The monsters had canine features, mostly visible in short, stubby muzzles and pointed ears. Their fur was a dusty brown mottled with darker spots, similar to that of a hyena (though most hyenas would deny any relation to gnolls, savages as the latter were), and coated with a fine layer of dirt and grime from a life outdoors. There were at least seven or eight of them slumbering heavily in the chamber before the cave's opening, blocking the way and providing little to no space between them.

Sleeping heavily was an appropriate term, as well; each of the gnolls was *huge*! Not a one of them lacked a thick layer of blubber under their stretched hides, their forms jiggling and shaking with each snoring breath taken. Being wild and uncivilized, they forwent most forms of clothing, content with just a loincloth woven of vines and leaves. Of course, this could be more practicality rather than lack of ability; with each one easily appearing to be over a half ton, if not more, it would take a rather sizeable amount of material to cover their enormous frames. Standing at no larger than seven feet at an estimate, many of them were pushing wide to the point that it was competing with their height, and not a one of them lacked a substantial amount of additional weight.

Light quietly crept back around the corner, taking a moment to steady his breathing. He had been worried about predators in the night, and here he was cornered by creatures who would hardly notice him as an appetizer, let alone a real meal. What had they eaten to get so big? Clearly there was far from enough wildlife to support such a large-bodied tribe for long. Then the wolf remembered the bag that he had hanging at his side, the one with the berries that not only filled him up substantially but also caused his frame to bloat out in size; there had been large footprints not unlike the ones in the cave near the bush in which he had found it, which suggested that the pack possibly fed from it regularly. Their weight would probably explain the depth of the footprints despite the size; weighing several times what a normal gnoll did, their footprints would be much, much deeper.

What was he to do now? Light was trapped in the back of a cave with a large pack of obese predators between him and the entrance, and they were packed so closely together that it looked impossible to slip through them without waking any. The only other option would be to explore deeper into the tunnel, hoping that it led out the far side of the mountain, or at least met other branches that would allow him to escape. However, without a torch or any source of light, it would be a blind run through who knew what obstacles? The wolf was far from eager to explore a hostile environment without his vision, especially after the encounter with the river leeches; if he wasn't careful, he'd be bigger than the gnolls out in front, and find himself caught without escape. But he couldn't sneak past the gnolls either; their size would make it so that it was easy to simply bump one and wake it from its sleep, and then Light would face being eaten among the other troubles on his steadily-growing list. He had to find a source of light, or else he would have to wait until the gnolls left.

The faint smell of smoke caught Light's nose, and he followed it back to the chamber that the gnolls were sleeping in. Peering around the corner carefully, breathing slowly and evenly to try and avoid any noise, the wolf surveyed the room. A moment of searching allowed him to catch sight of the smoke, rolling up from the far side of the mountain that was the belly of one of the gnolls. It seemed to be a fire of some sort, though it was probably either sputtering or out judging by the thinning spirals of smoke. Still, that meant that the gnolls had some basic tools, like a flint for starting fires, and maybe there were a few smoldering branches left to be made into torches. It wasn't the most ideal setup, but Light was sorely pressed for options short of sitting and waiting. He had no guarantee when the gnolls would leave, and he only had so much food, none of it necessarily safe for continuous consumption.

That meant, however, that the wolf had to sneak around the gnolls as best as he could to get to the smoke's source. There were few openings, and what little there was ended up turning into a maze of careful steps over tree-trunk sized thighs and around mountainous, jiggling bellies. Light wasn't sure that he would be able to do it, having lost a lot of his agility and balance along with his trim waistline, but beggars couldn't be choosers; he had to take what he could get. The wolf swallowed, trying to plan out a path that would take him safely towards his destination, but with his vision limited due to the sheer bulk of soft, fleshy mountains before him, it was hard to really see enough to set a course. He was going to have to wing it.

Slowly the wolf crept forward, thankful that the layer of dust on the floor helped pad the sounds of his steps. Every time one of the gnolls gave a snort or shifted in its sleep, Light froze, holding his breath; he felt like he was walking into a veritable minefield, and one wrong step would have the whole pack pouncing on him like the last appetizer on a plate, fighting to get a bite out of him. It was a stressful process, and the wolf could feel his fur standing on end as he inched forward carefully, doing his best to avoid making a single sound. He could hear his heartbeat, and every breath seemed to echo in his ears as he made his way towards the pack.

From a distance the gnolls had seemed morbidly obese; up close, it was almost impossible to imagine them having mobility in the first place. The one closest to Light seemed to be an average size for the pack, and he had rolled onto his belly, the mass forming a large, padded mattress beneath him. The gnoll's fingers barely brushed the floor as it rested its multiple chins on the tire of fat that made up its neck, while its tail lazily swished back and forth in the creature's sleep, causing the mass of lard to jiggle and shake in time with the motions. Each limb was easily wider than Light's thick waistline, and rolls of fat made it hard to imagine the joints bending very far as fat mashed up against fat at the slightest bend of the arms. And this was an average one, eyeballing the whole pack!

Swallowing nervously, Light moved around the creature, carefully stepping over the arm of another one, only slightly larger than the first. It was like stepping over a small log; though the wolf could easily clear it, it still was a prominent obstacle. Imagine if one of them rolled over when he was taking a step; Light could only imagine one of them bumping into him and being alerted to his presence. It was nervous business; the wolf moved as quickly as he deemed safe when he stepped over or near one of the gnolls, doing his best to keep quiet while maintaining as much distance as he could to avoid waking them.

Stepping around another slumbering behemoth, Light finally caught sight of his goal. A large pile of broken branches sat in the middle of the cave, still smoldering and letting off a faint light from the last few burning chunks. The branches glowed lightly along the center, a rudimentary fire that would only provide a small amount of light or heat, but it was clearly enough for the gnoll pack. The wolf knew that the branches would work for him, too; as long as he hurried, he could still rekindle the burning embers into a real torch, one that would last maybe an hour or two. Hopefully that would be enough to get through the tunnel; Light was already hesitant about trying to sneak a single lightly-burning brand past the tribe of predators surrounding him, and wasn't even going to try and take more.

Slowly Light bent down, having to adjust his body's angle due to the gut that hampered his movements. His eyes were fastened on the gnoll nearest to the fire, the one that was likely the leader; the creature was easily bigger than the ones surrounding it, several sizes larger than the one that the wolf had seen near the edge of the group. Closer to a full ton than the rest, the creature slept on its side, unable to rest atop its belly without being completely beached. The gnoll's massive paunch was bigger than a car, resting heavily against the cave floor and spreading along it, fur thin thanks to the enormous amount of flesh that had to be covered. A thick chest forced the arms out to each side slightly, unable to close around the massive mounds that squished up against its gut, and the creature's muzzle was so surrounded by fat that it was hard to tell there was a muzzle at all; it was buried in rounded cheeks that squished up nearly as far as the nose, and it was hard to count the number of chins.

Swallowing, Light kept reaching for the fire while watching the gnoll, keeping his eyes firmly on the large behemoth; while the other ones wouldn't look at him as more than a snack, this one could swallow him in a single bite. His fingers pressed against something course and rough, and the wolf quickly grabbed it, tugging to free the branch from the fire. As he did so, however, Light realized that the branch had a lot of give to it, and wasn't quite as firm as he had thought it would be. In fact, it was downright flexible, bending in his paw as he pulled. Too late, the wolf recognized his mistake, even as the gnoll in front of him opened its eyes with a bellow of surprise at its tail being tugged.

Light reacted quickly, adrenaline causing everything to slow down in his vision. The wolf grabbed one of the burning branches, for real this time, and immediately started running as the gnoll attempted to roll to its feet, bracing its gut against the ground before digging its feet into the dirt and tugging it upwards. The monstrous creature came up easily, showing that it was heavily muscled despite its flab-laden exterior; that wasn't good! The other gnolls were starting to wake and stir at the leader's roar of surprise, and Light found himself dodging around sleepily grasping claws and rising limbs as he tried to make his way for the cave's depths; there was no way he was going to go into the open jungle with the pack hot on his heels to catch him! Only in the caves would he have a chance of losing them, assuming that he didn't run into a dead end.

"Intruder! Food!" Light was surprised to hear the leader talk, its voice deep and booming, its words grating growl that was hard to distinguish as language. "Food! Get food, get food!" The call was caught up by most of the other gnolls, repeating the word "Food!" in a chorus of assorted growls and snarls. The wolf ran faster, not wanting to be food for the gnolls as the leader so eagerly suggested. His weight made it hard, but at least he wasn't anywhere near as massive as the predators behind him; they had to deal with far more bulk than him. Of course, they were also more heavily muscled, making it a much more even race, with the gnolls very slowly closing the gap. It would be a desperate run to avoid becoming a meal!

As he ran, Light quickly blew on the brand he had, trying to coax the end of it into flames. The pace he was running made it difficult, however; every time the branch started to flare up, it was blown out again, making it ineffective during the run. Quickly he dived into a side passage, pausing for a moment to try and get his torch going. It sputtered and flickered a few times, greasy smoke rising up from the branch, but soon there was a small light going, enough to see by for a few feet or so ahead. It would still make running through the tunnels a dangerous feat, but it was better than sticking around with a pack of hungry gnolls hot on his tail! Once it was lit, the wolf immediately started on his escape again, shielding the far side of the torch from the rushing air as he ran.

The tunnel twisted and turned, but the gnolls didn't seem to be falling any further behind. Light could hear them sniffing the air, likely following the smoke trailing behind him from his torch. He couldn't afford to drop the light, though; if he did, then he would risk running into walls and slowing himself further while the gnolls caught him in the darkness. The wolf just continued running through the tunnels, taking turns wherever he could find them, trying to throw his pursuit off. Every new turn brought the same sounds, however; the snarling and growling of the gnolls, along with their heavy, labored panting and the loud sniffs at the air all reminded the wolf that they were on his trail still.

Suddenly, a large figure loomed before Light as he took a new turn from a crossroads, and he found himself face-to-face with a large gnoll, one with a thick scar running across its rounded cheek and down its muzzle. The wolf quickly turned to try and flee past it, only to feel a heavy weight press against his body; the predator had grabbed him by literally slamming its body against him, pinning the explorer with its weight. The creature's massive belly was a wall of shaking flab that yielded as Light pressed against it, but he couldn't get any purchase or grip to pull himself free, and the gnoll was far too large to be pushed away. The wolf continued to attempt struggling anyway, causing a growl from his captor before a large paw came down on his head. For the second time in two days, Light found himself falling into the darkness of unconsciousness.

---

"Nngh..." Light groaned as he slowly began to awaken, immediately aware of a throbbing headache and a sharp pain at the back of his head, behind his left ear. The latter was reminiscent of a bruise, probably where he had been struck. Slowly the wolf opened his eyes, wincing as bright sunlight seemed to stab into his vision after his long run through a dimly-lit cave. He hadn't expected to be out in the sun; last he remembered, he had been trapped in the hillside caves and their dimly-lit tunnels. It only served to further his headache, causing another groan of discomfort, but slowly he opened his eyes the rest of the way to look around.

Light immediately regretted looking around, as it only served to further sink his hopes. He had thought he was in a large pack of gnolls before, but it seemed as if it were only a small segment of it; he was surrounded by what had to be a town's population worth of the predators, not a one of the adults smaller than a half-ton. The gnolls varied slightly within the populace, mostly in fur color, which suggested different packs or maybe just different families. They all bore the same general resemblance in their canine appearance and their weight, at least. Even the younger pups seemed to be well on the way to their parents' girth, taking puppy fat to a new level and likely outweighing Light as they ambled about, looking over at him curiously.

The wolf himself was bound by crudely-woven ropes made of vines, tied to a large stone pillar so that he arms were forced downwards, unable to bend in the least. He was at the top of a small platform in what appeared to be a large segment of ruins, broken buildings and fallen statues filling the area. Immediately in front of him was a paved walkway that was surrounded by several toppled pillars, leading up to a large building reminiscent of a broken palace. Either side revealed much smaller buildings, several of them seemingly "renovated" by removing rubble and creating living quarters made of vine curtains and leaves.

What was truly interesting, however, was that the entire area was surrounded by rock walls, rising above the ruins in what had originally been a dome before breaking due to time and wear, letting sunlight stream in from above. It was no wonder that the ruins hadn't been located in aerial surveys before; they were buried underground! Even with the holes in the dome providing plenty of light, it would be hard to tell the ruins from any other portion of the jungle due to the amount of cover still remaining. The gnolls had likely found the structures from the caves in which they lived, and doubtless they all connected at the ruins at some point, provided that one knew the route.

Light squirmed in his bonds as he tried to figure out what was going on; he had expected to be eaten, a small dish for the pack of gnolls that had captured him. Instead he was tied up, and by the look of the two large gnolls that were standing guard at the base of his platform, he was a prisoner. One of the two guards was talking to the other in guttural growls and snarls that wasn't anything like the speech that Light had heard before; perhaps the creatures had some rudimentary language skills when it came to common tongues, but kept their own language as well for more effective conversation. Either way, judging by the one looking at him, the two guards were talking about Light, likely about the fact that he was now awake.

"H-hey! What's going on?" The two gnolls looked at Light in confusion, tilting their heads at his words. The wolf tried again, but got the same blank stares. Perhaps the guards didn't understand him; the pack that had captured him had only spoken rather clipped and simple words. It was worth a try, however; after all, he wasn't going anywhere, and all he could do was sit and wait to see what would happen.

A moment later, another gnoll came trotting up, moving at a cross between a four-legged and two-legged jog. At times, the creature was moving on its hind legs only, but every few steps it shifted its weight forward and dug its paws into the ground, probably to keep momentum going when it was up in a bipedal stance. It approached the two guards quickly, and both gnolls stood to alert quickly, ceasing their conversation. The newcomer spoke with both briefly in that same snarling tongue, leaving Light curious about the conversation, but he didn't have much time to dwell on it; both of the guards soon trotted up the staircase, panting with their tongues lolling out as they approached, and cut the vines binding the wolf to the pillar with their sharp claws. He wasn't free for long, though, as each one grabbed his arms in a paw whose fingers were easily as thick as his wrists.

Light found himself half stumbling, half dragged across the walkway, heading towards the large building. The wolf assumed that it was originally the temple for the Reportando ruins, converted into a living area for someone important, assuming that the gnoll tribe worked the same as any other savage population. Leaders liked big and decorated buildings or shiny objects; it was just how they worked. The temple was certainly well-decorated as well, with carvings lining the stairs and walls as Light found himself being led up into the temple. It seemed similar to the Egyptian hieroglyphics, showing stories and legends through pictures rather than words. That in itself was surprising, since the two areas were an ocean away, but it was possible that it was just primitive communication as well.

The most noticeable caving was one placed above the entrance to the temple, as it was far larger than the others. It portrayed a large circle, one that Light had seen before on the papers and documents that had brought him to search for the ruins in the first place. Atop it was a chalice, the cup that everyone referred to as the "Cup of Avalon" despite not knowing its name or translation, and to either side were two figures that seemed to be worshipping the circle. Light had assumed that the circle represented the sun, as there were many heliocentric cultures in the world, particularly in many historical populations. It didn't explain the cup resting atop the sun, however; normally revered or sacred objects were placed within a central figure, and having it atop the sun was a scholastic oddity.

There was little time to think on it, however, as Light was pulled through the doors, managing to regain his feet at the top of the steps again for only a moment. The doors were large, but didn't seem designed for the gnolls; it was much smaller, and the two guards had to go through the double doors one at a time, pulling Light between them. The wolf found himself pressed against the front guard's wide back as the one behind him ended up pressing its gut firmly against his body, pinning himself between the two of them. Thankfully they moved back to his sides after they were through the door; the odor of unwashed fur had Light holding his breath as he was stuck between them, wondering if he could ever forget the smell.

The interior of the temple was just as heavily carved as the exterior, showing several murals involving the cup from the larger carving atop the structure's front door. Most of them were simple worship scenes, though there were several that seemed to depict the sun, only as a smaller circle, and with odd lines radiating out from them. Light would have loved to look closer, to get a better idea on the Reportando culture, but he wasn't given an opportunity as he was shoved forward again, finding himself being led towards a flight of stairs leading up to an enormous platform at the far side of the room. Gnolls, larger than the average ones and seeming more muscled rather than just fat, stood at the base of the platform, probably guards like the ones that had been watching Light. However, these guards weren't protecting a prisoner; they were keeping others away from their charge.

Atop the platform was an enormous gnoll, putting to shame the leader of the pack that Light had seen before. Where the latter had been about a full ton in weight, the one sitting atop the platform across a pair of thrones had to easily be closer to three. A massive body rippling with untold amounts of fat sat heavily across the two stone chairs, wide backside too large for a single throne and easily overflowing the two that it rested atop. A gut that looked like a mountain of jello surged down over the creature's lap and spilled past the flabby thighs on each side, reaching almost to the knees as the enormous behemoth reclined, while the gnoll's broad chest sagged and wobbled heavily wit h each breath, each mound as big as Light's new gut and then some. It was almost impossible to see any features in all the fat that made up the face, the muzzle quite literally buried in a covering of fat that squished into countless chins and a neck that seemed almost nonexistent for its girth. Squashed black eyes peered out from behind folds of flab, staring intently at the wolf below.

Light found himself almost speechless as he stared up at the colossal predator above him, amazed that anything could get that big. Judging by the guards at the bottom of the platform, the gnoll had to be the leader of the ruins, and likely the alpha for all packs within the region. Size seemed to play a big role in determining leadership as well; the one who had headed the pack that had captured Light was significantly bigger than the rest of the gnolls, and this one put any others the wolf had seen to shame. This one was clearly in charge, as it growled at the guards holding Light, and they dropped him to the ground before he could catch his balance.

The leader growled at Light a few more times, but the wolf just held up his hands in confusion, unable to understand what it was saying. The gnoll looked down at him, and suddenly Light understood why this monstrosity was the alpha; he could easily see the intelligence gleaming in its eyes. An imperious gesture, if a weak one given the size of the paw that had to be lifted, brought forth a gnoll who, while it was large-bodied and lard-laden like any of the others, was clearly smaller than the average. The leader snarled and spoke with the new arrival a few times, who nodded and listened before turning to Light, tilting his head oddly at him.

"Speak your tongue," The new gnoll said briefly, "understand your tongue, will tell what leader talks." The language was crude and rough, but understandable, suggesting that the smaller predator was a translator or perhaps an advisor, able to help its large leader communicate with outsiders, despite how rare they must be. "Leader wants know who are."

Light winced at the grammar, but it was better than not being able to communicate. He spoke simply, explaining himself in words that he was sure would be mostly understood. "I am an ex... er, I've come to find these ruins. My name is Light." The gnoll's ears twitched as he gave his name, seemingly interested, and it began translating quickly to the leader, pointing up at the ceiling several times. Light assumed that was because of his name; if the ruins' culture was a heliocentric one, then the gnolls might have picked up their worship of the sun, and the name "Light" suggested something from above. He might have unintentionally named himself a representative from some god or something; either way, it would be interesting to see how things played out.

The leader snarled back, and the smaller gnoll continued translating. "Leader know light; light from above, from ball in sky." The creature pointed upwards to illustrate its point. "Wolf not light; wolf has body, is not bright. Is dark." It pointed to Light's black fur, which was quite the opposite of bright. "Leader says wolf lies."

"My *name* is Light." The wolf sighed, trying to explain himself before he angered the gnoll chieftain further. "I am not made of Light, that's just my name."

The translator shook his head, seeming annoyed, but he translated it again, returning with the leader's answer. "Name is what are. Name is person." The smaller gnoll paused and spoke, pointing to itself to illustrate. "My name, mean talk in tongue. Name is what are." Light raised his voice to argue, but was silenced by another loud rumble from the chieftain. "Leader say enough. Leader has order. Leader must be obeyed."

He continued translating. "Leader look at pictures, see ball in sky. Pictures show cup, make ball in sky from leader. Leader want cup, leader want be ball, be god. Cup be in building." The gnoll motioned around him with his paws. "Door small. You small, like underfed pup. You go, get cup. Get cup, no get eaten. No go, be food. No cup, be food. Get cup, no food. Yes?"

Light took a moment, trying to comprehend what the translator was saying. There was some kind of cup, probably the Cup of Avalon, and the gnoll leader wanted it. The wolf didn't understand what was meant by "making the ball in the sky from leader;" did it mean that the cup made the bearer a god? Either way, it was clearly an important relic to the gnoll tribe, and they wanted it as a symbol for their leader to be a god of some sort. Apparently the cup was also past a small door, so they couldn't get it; that much made sense, considering none but the pups were under a half ton, and certainly the young ones couldn't be trusted with such an important relic. So the tribe had captured him to get the cup, and had given Light quite the ultimatum: get the cup, or be dinner. There wasn't much of a choice in that!

"Okay, I'll get the cup." The translator snarled to the leader excitedly, and the larger gnoll rumbled back in a pleased tone. The two spoke in their language for a few minutes, leaving Light out of the conversation due to his inability to understand them, before the translator broke away, gesturing to the guards that had "escorted" Light to the throne room in the first place. The wolf found himself dragged again, no less roughly than before, and wondered if the gnolls treated all their potential dinners this way; clearly it made no difference whether he was helping them or not! The guards didn't seem fazed by the glares shot their way, and Light was forced to stumble his way down a side hallway that seemed to descend further into the temple's basement.

The passage started getting narrow again; the translator still was moving fairly well, if a bit more carefully, but the guards were forced to squeeze in as they made their way down the stairs. Light found himself being pressed between two walls of spotted blubber again, holding his breath and praying that the staircase wasn't long. Thankfully, they reached the bottom just as he was starting to feel lightheaded, and the wolf let out a gasp of relief that the room was large enough for the guards to stand away from him again. None of the gnolls seemed to notice his aversion to the smell, and either didn't take offense to his obvious relief at being away from him, or just ignored him.

The new room was similar to the throne room in which the leader had sat, albeit on a smaller scale. Carvings and stone pillars lined the room, following a large bricked pathway that lead to a door at the end of the chamber. Compared to the others in the temple, the doorway was small; Light would be able to fit through it, but it would be a tight squeeze, and the gnolls didn't have a chance with their enormous girth. Two guards stood, one at either side of the door, and a glance showed that even if they stooped down to fit through the entrance, their wide bellies would have them stuck in seconds. It was no wonder that they needed someone from outside to fit through the doorway!

Light was dropped before the door without ceremony, landing flat on his face. Groaning from the impact and rubbing at his sore muzzle, the wolf pushed himself to his feet only to see all four guards staring at him almost hungrily, plenty of encouragement to get moving. The translator nodded at Light as the wolf's gaze slid over to him, encouraging him a bit more gently, waving him forward with one paw. "Go now. Bring cup, or be food." Well, so much for gentle, with the threat in his words. Light swallowed and nodded in understanding.

Without waiting around, as all five gnolls already seemed to be getting impatient with him, the wolf quickly pushed open the door. It opened easily, showing that it wasn't locked, and Light quickly headed inside, closing it behind him. The doorway opened up into another spiral staircase, going even deeper belowground, but it was lined with torches that, while unlit, seemed serviceable. A few sharp rocks that had apparently fallen from the walls at some point served as a decent enough flint, provoking sparks when struck that were used to light one of the torches that the wolf pulled down in preparation for the descent.

"What a heroic venture this is... me in nothing but a swimsuit with a torch and a bag of berries, forced to retrieve the very artifact I'm after for a tribe of gnolls that will eat me if I don't give it to them..." Light complained to himself as he continued to move down the stairs, his torch creating flickering shadows across the walls as he headed towards the lower basement of the temple. "When I get back, I think I'll call it quits and retire... I can't take any more of these crazy adventures. I draw the line at being eaten."

As the wolf made his way down the stairs, he noticed more carvings on the walls, and held his torch up to him. They seemed to be in a sequence, and they were going in the same direction he was, so he slowed his pace to read them. The first showed a group of three figures, stick-drawn without much detail, all standing together. The middle one held a cup, which was probably the symbol for the Cup of Avalon again. The next scene showed the same thing, but instead of the central figure, there was a round shape with four lines and a circle radiating outwards again, similar to the one that had been out in the main temple. After that was another similar picture, but the circle was bigger and had the cup atop it. It was almost like the picture that was over the top of the temple, but the lines were still there. The last one, however, was identical, without the lines; it seemed almost like a progression of sorts.

Shrugging, unsure of what the pictures meant except that the cup seemed to make a ball, which was supposed to represent the sun, Light continued to the bottom of the staircase. It wasn't far from the last picture, and it had another door identical to the one at the top. This too was unlocked, left open many years before when the ruins were inhabited by a people that could actually fit in the narrow hallways. Made of stone, it slid open easily on carved grooves in the floor, opening into a chamber that might have been lit one day in the past, but was now filled with darkness that fled at the light from the wolf's torch.

Light stepped in carefully, keeping his eyes peeled; he didn't know what was down in the basement, or if any traps had been left to protect the Cup of Avalon from unwanted thieves. He waved his torch back and forth, checking the floor as well as the walls for any hidden marks or clues as to what could be guarding the Cup, but nothing seemed to present itself. So far, the room seemed to just be an enormous cavern, easily as big as the rest of the temple could be if it were made into a single room. As large as it was, Light's lone torch hardly seemed to provide any illumination, making him feel like a small island floating in the ocean of darkness. He couldn't begin to see anything in the gloom.

Suddenly, an object became visible in the darkness; a large altar rose from what had to be approximately the center of the room, surrounded by several small pillars that were placed ornamentally around it. Each of the small pillars seemed to have a gem of some sort embedded in the top, each with its own stone that sparkled and glimmered in the glow from Light's torch. They seemed decorative only, but the wolf approached carefully, keeping an eye on the gems in case something was triggered when he came near. Slowly the light from his torch illuminated more and more of the small area, before coming to rest on another object resting atop the central altar.

A cup of pure gold sat alone and unguarded on the altar, taller than any simple drinking chalice. Across the front of it was the symbol of the sun with the cup atop it once more, and a figure on each side of the cup worshiping the round circle. This had to be the Cup of Avalon! Light's ears perked up in excitement as he moved in closer to get a better look, though he kept his paws to himself as he examined the relic. This was the very object he had come to the jungle to look for, and he had finally found it! It certainly looked like the real deal, at least; made of solid gold and carved with the same symbols that led to it, it was hard to mistake.

Light examined the altar carefully, wondering if there was some sort of weight trap that would be triggered when the Cup of Avalon was removed. There didn't seem to be any sunken panel that the Cup rested on, and none of the stones around the altar seemed to be pressure plates either; it seemed safe at a glance. Still the wolf moved slowly, reaching out carefully for the cup and keeping an eye in case even his presence activated something, ready to pull back and run if he needed to. Cautiously, he let his paws rest on the golden cup, taking a deep breath as he started to remove it from its resting place atop the altar.

As he did so, however, the cup began to glow brightly. At the same time, each of the gems atop the surrounding pillars began to shine as well, casting a light over the room that made Light's torch unnecessary. The wolf backed away, still holding the cup, as he tried to see what was going on; why had his touch caused everything to light up?

Suddenly, a robed figure caught Light's attention. The wolf let out a yelp of surprise and backed away quickly, though he was surprised when the figure didn't follow him. A glance around showed several more, and at a count Light realized that there was one for each pillar. Carefully, the wolf snuck forward and placed a paw on the figure before him, only to find himself passing through. It was a hologram or illusion or something; he swept his paw through it a few more times and got the same result, with no reaction from it. What was its purpose? Were the images meant to scare thieves? If so, it wasn't a very effective trap aside from the initial scare. Light had seen far worse on other trips.

"...who bears the Cup..." Light jumped again as he heard a voice, several voices, that came from different directions. The words were disjointed, fragmented, like the message itself was broken. Light could only make out a few words here and there, though he was surprised he could even do that; somehow, the images were speaking his language! Slowly the figures began to remove their hoods, one by one, and Light was shocked to see that they were gnolls, much like the ones aboveground, only these ones weren't lumbering masses of flesh. "...those...greed in their hearts... beware... Cup of Avarice...outside... circle... body reflect... mind..." 

Cup of Avarice? Light's ears perked up as he heard those words, wondering what that meant for him. There was obviously a mistranslation in the documents; apparently the word wasn't "Avalon," but instead was "Avarice." Still, it was an artifact nonetheless, and one that the wolf intended to retrieve. He reached to put the cup in his bag, only to be reminded once more that he lacked his supplies; he would have to carry it out while carrying it. There didn't seem to be any adverse effects from holding it, so Light figured it was safe enough. Instead of worrying more, the wolf headed for the door, now that he could clearly see it in the light from the gems glowing atop the pillars.

As he passed the pillars, however, Light felt a jolting sensation throughout his body, starting from his paws. Twitching in surprise, the wolf paused and examined the cup, which was glowing even more brightly. Atop that, the floor was lit up as well, a large circle traced around the pillars and the altar within them. Light's foremost paw had just stepped outside the circle, and suddenly the wolf had a sinking feeling that it had triggered the shock. His mind went back to the warning, the one that said to beware the Cup of Chalice outside the circle. But what did it mean, to make the body reflect the mind? His goal was to simply retrieve the chalice and take it above so that the gnolls would let him go.

Another tingle filled Light's body, and then warmth began to spread throughout it. The wolf let out a soft groan at the uncomfortable sensation, shivering almost as if he had a fever, and then he noticed something unusual about his arms; they were slowly growing thicker! His eyes widened as he tried to let go of the cup, only to find that his fingers wouldn't come off of it; they felt almost as if they were a part of the metal itself! Light tugged and tugged to try and get the Cup of Avarice away from his grip, even trying to bring his foot up to push on the metal chalice, only to find that his knee ended up bumping against his gut before he had even brought it halfway up. In his shock at encountering such a large midsection, the wolf lost his balance and fell onto his backside, which had apparently been swelling as well, providing a suitable cushion for his landing.

With a whimper of surprise, Light kept trying to remove the cup from his grip, only to find it more and more impossible as he continued to grow larger. His form was swelling with fat before his eyes; his cheeks were slowly rounding out thicker and thicker, masses of blubber sagging and pressing up more visibly against his muzzle by the moment. He could feel his chin wobbling with his panicked motions, and knew that he probably had two or three more of them at the rate he was going. Even worse, the motion of his head was starting to decrease as he started pressing up against a cushion of fat that had once been his neck, now a layer of lard to limit his movement rather than a support for his head.

The changes continued down his body, and the wolf could only stare as the rising curve of his belly continued to grow higher and higher in his field of vision, becoming a horizon all of its own. White-furred flab grew above him, taking on a round shape that still had a fair amount of squishy sag to it, his arms sinking into it even as he tried to push against it and get the Cup of Avarice out of his grasp. His chest was mounding outwards as well, thick moobs squishing down against his weighty frame and only growing with more and more fat, sagging downwards and sideways thanks to his prone position.

As he pushed, there was suddenly a loud pop, and Light's paws were suddenly free from the cup. However, he found himself unable to sit up; his gut and chest weighed down too heavily atop him, and it was too much to simply move into a sitting position. Atop that, his arms were growing rapidly, thickening like water balloons, rolls of fat swallowing his elbow and making his limbs heavy. Soon the wolf could feel himself dragged down onto his back, his fat limbs spreading out away from his body. He couldn't see his legs thanks to the enormous wall that was his growing gut, easily a few dozen feet above him now and still growing outwards, but he could feel them fighting for space, whimpering as he spread them as far as he could and still couldn't provide suitable space for them.

While he continued to grow, Light realized just what the drawings on the murals before had meant; the Cup of Avarice reflected the bearer's mind, and anyone who was greedy, either physically or mentally, had that reflected on their frame as the cup made them grow enormously. That was why the middle figure had vanished and been replaced with a ball-like shape; he had been fattened so enormously, he could be mistaken for the sun in drawings. It was a symbol of how large and fat they had become, to be massive enough for such a mistake. And it was obvious that the gnoll leader knew this, considering that the hooded figures had been gnolls as well. Perhaps the tribe had devolved and become more primitive over time after the ruins collapsed, and as the species became larger and lardier, and with size being the determinant of rank, the cup went from being a warning to a symbol of godliness to them.

"Mmrf... how did I not catch onto this before...?" Light groaned as he felt another surge of growth. He was already threatening to reach the gnoll chieftain's size, and was still swelling rapidly; already his gut, rounded as it was, felt as big as a truck, and the rest of his body wasn't far behind. His moobs were so thick and heavy that they could be mistaken for small hills made of rolling fat that rippled with even the slightest motion, while his arms were impossible to lift, masses of jiggling lard that pressed up against his body no matter how he tried to move them. His backside had swelled out enormously as well, bloated cheeks causing him to rest at a slight angle with his head lowered compared to the rest of him. His swim trunks were long gone, but thankfully his massive frame was so laden with sagging lard that he was decent no matter what he did.

The wolf had to wonder just how long this growth would continue for; though the warning had suggested that the Cup would make his body reflect the greed in his mind, but it hadn't indicated to what extent. Already he was starting to resemble the pictures; his gut was far bigger than the rest of him, and his whole torso was swelling rounder and thicker, beginning to swallow his fattened limbs enormously. Light's head was even starting to sink in slightly, chin no longer pressing against his neck, as that would require it to be distinguishable from the rest of him. He was starting to become a massive ball of black-and-white fat, hard to distinguish as a wolf at this point, and he wasn't slowing in the least as he felt his belly impact the ceiling of the chamber.

A loud groan alerted Light to a potential problem as the ceiling started to experience stress under his form pressing up against it. "Oh dear..." Cracks started to form, causing dust and rubble to begin to fall off in small chunks and shards, and the wolf whimpered, wondering if he'd be buried as a result of his actions. He hadn't expected to be turned into a massive blob! Already most definition was gone from his body, his head and his paws the only distinguishing features, as his tail was long since buried beneath his bulk. Thankfully he didn't seem to be sinking any further than he had been before, and was just growing generally fatter in all directions, threatening to outgrow the temple at this point.

Suddenly, a loud crash indicated that a chunk of the ceiling had come loose, and sunlight began to stream in. More pieces of the roof began to fall in, but thankfully they either bounced off or sank into the mass of blubber that was his new body. Slowly his bulk began to press out through the opening, and Light could hear a commotion from above him. Clearly the gnolls were not happy that their temple was collapsing around them, and emerging from the hole in the floor was an enormous blob that resembled the wolf they had sent down to get their "sacred artifact." Light began to wonder what was in store for him if he was too large to get away from what would be a very, very angry gnoll civilization.

More of the ceiling continued to collapse, but suddenly the warmth started to fade out of the wolf. His ears pinned back as best as they could considering that he was an immobile bulk, and Light realized that his growth was suddenly slowing to a stop. He couldn't tell with certainty, as everything was just a mass of weight and warm, soft flab for him, but he suspected it by the fading sensation that had finally disappeared completely. He was now just stuck in the basement of the temple, his fat body flooding into the upper section, and from the sound of it, the gnolls were coming back after fleeing from his sudden emergence. Things couldn't get any worse for him!

Light could hear the growls and snarls that was the gnoll language, but he couldn't tell if they were aggressive. The tone sounded almost curious, confused. A deeper growl that had to be the leader (how had they managed to move that three-ton bulk, anyway?) came and echoed above the others, causing them to go silent. For a moment, all that was audible were brief growls and grunts from the leader; Light couldn't tell what was going on from his position, and could only sit and wait.

Suddenly a voice echoed from above, and Light recognized it as the translator from before. "Leader sorry, ball-god. Leader not know god. Leader sorry for say make food." Light's ears perked up in surprise; were they referring to *him* as a god? Then it occurred to him that the images showed a ball-like shape to represent the tribe's "gods," and he realized his newly fattened form not only made him the biggest, and thus the leader in their society's culture, but also made him appear to be a divine being to the primitive tribe. "Leader say ball-god be worshipped. Ball-god be fed, and lead tribe. Ball-god new leader."

Well that was a sudden turnaround, and Light found himself confused. He had gone from being a prisoner, force to retrieve the Cup of Avarice from the temple's interior, to suddenly being a god and the leader of a whole gnoll tribe. Speaking of the Cup, where had it gone? The wolf couldn't see it anywhere, but then he couldn't really see much beyond his own massive frame. It could have fallen off anywhere within the temple exterior, but at the same time... Light suddenly remembered the pictures all over the temple, showing the ball with a cup atop it. He wondered if it was stuck there for the time being, but there really was no way to find out. 

That was worries for another time, anyway. A loud rumble echoed through the temple, and suddenly Light blushed as he realized he hadn't eaten all day. It seemed it was time to make use of his new worshippers. "So, what's a ball-god got to do to get some food around here...?"