How it came to this, Alex Greenman couldn't say. Was it because he snored too loudly at night, keeping everyone awake? Was it how he always left drinks, pizza boxes and polka-dot boxers in the common area, littering the floor like forgotten debris? Was it the video game sessions, first thing in the morning, that awoke his roommates? Or did the avid conspiracy theorist finally hit paydirt, unearthed the Truth among his myriad of crackpot theories, and the Deep State finally cracked down on him?

Either way, Alex was doomed, wholly and completely. Bite-by-bite, chomp-by-chomp, his roommate and the resident fish monster, Olivia Marinus, was swallowing him alive. As cold, wet jaws clamped onto his waist and caked Alex in sticky phlegm, the pressure grew immense. Try as he might, Alexander couldn't wiggle free. Heck, it felt like his legs might snap in two like twigs! Was Olivia's throat that strong, or was she intrinsically connected to the fathomless depths she hailed from, allowing her to crush Alex like the deep sea?

Questions on top of questions! How Alex's mind churned, desperate to learn such secrets! If only he was set free, Alex could learn so much more and expose the Truth to the world!

“Ms. Olivia, please! Whatever I've done, whatever secrets I've learned, I'm sorry! Forgive me!” Tears pricked Alexander's eyes as he squirmed about like a worm caught on a fisherman's line. With every chomp, reddish pink gills flared on Olivia's neck; beautiful, wonderous, deadly. How Alex wished to study them and uncover what dark mysteries they contained therein. "Whoever's paying you to do this, I'll double— no, triple it! Even if I've gotta work every day of my life, I'll pay you! It just... can't... end like this!"

Alexander breathed heavily. The world spun wildly around the black-haired twenty-something as the gigantic gut growled ominously. It swelled large as a base drum as Alex’s legs descended into the fleshy prison, much like his friend and fellow Truthseeker Conrad Williams had before. Every time Alex kicked his feet, he trod upon the slurry soup that once-was Conrad. Alexander's heart wept for his fallen comrade, yet his mind itched with fiery curiosity even now. What would become of his friend's remains? Would they churned into whale oil for the Bloodheart Cabal's dark designs? Would Conrad's knowledge be harvested from the goopy slurry? Or would they be discarded like so-much-trash?

Was there no end to the cabal's despicable ways, their endless evil?

With a wet sluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurk and a sharp lurch, Alex's abdomen was gobbled up. The young man was ripped from his reverie and thrust back into the present. This never-ending nightmare. Alex could only watch as Olivia devoured him like a catfish that caught a juicy maggot.

“I mean it!" Alexander sobbed from the back of his throat as Olivia's gut growled loudly, drowning out his whimpers. Why, the whole condo echoed with the gross glorp glorps, slimy slork slorks, and rubbery bwomph bwomphs as Olivia's gut expanded evermore to fit its meal. "Heck, I'll become your slave! That's what you monsters want, right? To enslave humanity!”

Without hesitation, Olivia continued this delicious meal. Her jaws worked rhythmically as sharp, eel-like teeth tugged on Alex’s red shirt, slicing holes into the fabric and digging grooves into the pale flesh beneath. Beads of drool dripped from a purple tongue and damp breath tickled the back of Alex’s neck, raising goosebumps over skin. Every bite was gentle, yet firm, confident in their ability to devour the young man whole.

While wincing a bit, her olive-colored orbs locked onto Alex's chestnut eyes like a shark that caught the whiff of fresh blood, Olivia enjoyed the meal immensely. Husky moans of satisfaction escaped her throat as it squeezed tender meat, crushing Alex down to size. Her mouth tingled with rich flavors, for humans tasted far more exotic and savory than the fish and squid Olivia ate all her life. Despite herself, Olivia’s tail wagged like a dog’s, back-and-forth, spraying salt water off its rudder-like tip.

With another gwulp, Olivia swallowed Alex’s right arm, pinning it against her muscular throat. The young man sank into the fishy gullet like quicksand; slow, steady, but certain. With a strangled cry, Alexander clutched the Gilna's chest for support, clawing at anything to slow his descent. If Olivia wasn’t already eating him, she’d devour Alex for such a lewd act. As things stood, she took an extra hard chomp.

To Alexander's embarrassment, he realized his pants grow tight. A manly hardness pressed against the inside of Olivia's throat, rubbing against the fleshy walls. No, he couldn't be... that wasn't how Truthseekers acted. No way could he be aroused, not by a tall, comely fish monster! This must be a trick

"Curse you, Deep State!" shouted Alexander, glaring through his tears. A hiss escaped between his teeth as Olivia slid his other arm down her toothy maw with a wet ploink. The pressure was so immense that Alex could scarcely breath; instead, he breathed in-time with Olivia, her own muscle contractions forcing his to move. "This is how you ruined anime!"

After several more wet gwulp gwulp gwuuuuuuuuuuulps, Alexander was nearly gone. Only his head remained, tucked back into Olivia's throat. With his chin resting upon a purple tongue, the young man was wholly at the mercy of the Gilna's gluttony. Past a row of ivory teeth, Alex gazed upon daylight one last time.

"You monsters... you won't get away with this! The Truth will come to light!" Alexander growled angrily even as gastric groans rang in his ears. "You may silence me, but you can't silence the Truth! The people must knooooooow!"

With a tilt of her head and a final gwulp, Olivia swallowed Alexander whole. A claw-tipped finger traced the bulge in her throat as he sank down with a slimy gluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrk. The young man landed into the globular gut with a splash, where he half-swam, half-floated in the sloppy slurry that was Conrad. A pleased hum escaped Olivia's lips, and slowly her tail came to a stop.

Groping her globular gut, Olivia savored its hefty weight. When was the last time she ate her fill? Weeks, months? There was nothing quite so satisfying as eating like a whale. She certainly felt bloated like one.

Only the faintest purse of her lips betrayed Olivia's feelings.

"Alex, what in the Seven Seas were you blathering about?" Olivia raised an eyebrow. Firmly, she jostled her belly about, making the greenish globe jiggle. "How many times must I say it? I'm not connected to the 'Deep State' or whatever. I'm upset you broke my jar!"

With a frown, Olivia gazed across her bedroom. Ever curious, Alexander and Conrad snooped into her room and fiddled with the Gilna's stuff, making a mess of her workbench and leaving ancient tomes half-hanging off the bookshelf. Of greater insult, however, was how they treated her tools. Many lay scattered on the floor, each more expensive than the last, and her jar of Calchas' Curse was shattered to pieces. Even now, the water stain grew ever wider on the carpet.

"Dang it..." Olivia picked up the orangish-red shards of porcelain one-by-one and placed them into a basket. Her behemoth belly grinded across the carpet, making gross sloshing sounds. Once the shards were together, Olivia let out a sigh. "You idiots. It'll take weeks to repair this! How will I talk to family across the world without the all-seeing waters!?"

Gently stroking her stomach, Olivia strode out of her room. The massive mound shrank all the time, constricting Alex's body until he felt like sand in an oyster.

"This was a birthday gift from Auntie Korene too! That's what really bothers me. Do I mess with your treasures and heirlooms? No? Then don't touch mine!"

Unfortunately, Alex heard none of this. Within the belly's depths, the muscular walls and fishy scales were much too thick. All Alexander heard was gastric groans as bubbles rose across the caustic soup around him. What's more, the stomach was so pitch-dark, the darkness so absolute, that Alexander couldn't see the nose on his face. The young man couldn't help but hyperfixate on every last sensation, whether it was the intense heat baking his bones, the flex of muscles, or the stiffness in his pants.

"Damn you... Deep State..." said Alex, before he drifted off into darkness. "The Truth... must be... set free!"

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About a week later, Olivia Marinus emerged from her room with a grin, humming happily under her breath. It took time and an inordinate number of sweat and tears, but the Gilna managed to repair her jar of Calchas' Curse. Seams of gold lined every crack in the porcelain, filling it with a warm luster and brilliant beauty. Vapor trailed from the jar's lip, sparkling faintly with arcane power, and the water inside smelled faintly of rotten seaweed.

Once Olivia set the jar down, she poured its water into a shallow basin, which was decorated with ancient runes that swirled together like ocean waves. Olivia inserted a claw into the water, whispered her thanks to Mother Oceanus, and began to chant.

"O mána, ánoixe ta mátia mou. Diévryne tin ankaliá sou kai diévryne to myaló mou. To neró eínai to filí sou, to polýtimo dóro sou. To neró eínai éna. Óla eínai syndedeména. Anoíxte to drómo kai ftáste—"

"OMG! Olivia, is that you, gurl!?"

Before the ritual was complete, the water shimmering vibrant shades of cerulean and silver, a bright and bubbly voice cut through the living room. Olivia stood upright with a start, then whipped around. Across the room stood her roommate, Alice Greenman.

Her eyes wide and warm as chestnuts, Alice hopped on the spot.

"It is, it is you! What happened, gurl!? I went clubbing for two weeks, only to come back and see you like... like...!"

The bronze-skinned beauty waved a manicured hand at Olivia. The Gilna blushed a deep shade of red. Admittedly, Alice wasn't wrong. After exacting rightful retribution on Alex and Conrad for their childish antics, the Gilna had certainly... changed.

Simply put, Olivia was big. Really big. As the Gilna learned firsthand, humans were terribly fattening like seals and walruses. Not only had her hips grown humungous like a whale shark, her boulder-sized buttcheeks barely able to fit into her skirt, but her thighs were extra thicc. Olivia could crush coral between such meaty pillars. Her arms and tail were packed with adipose-rich fat, and her breasts had swelled like brine-filled sponges. Such bountiful bazongas could make a cowfish jealous and feed a litter of dolphin pups; it may benefit Olivia to learn what 'bras' were, for fist-sized nipples bled through her green dress, which had torn in two and turned into a sheer-fabric bikini.

As for Olivia's stomach, well, it was no less massive than when she devoured Conrad and Alexander. The greenish-gray globe was simply plump with fat instead of juicy human meat. The behemoth belly was stacked with love handles upon handles, each fold thicker than the last. Every time Olivia took a breath, it jiggled up-and-down; every step made it sway side-to-side. That mountain of flesh dwarfed anything known to mankind, and was the very picture of beauty. It should be illegal for a creature so far-removed from humanity to look like a resplendent goddess of the sea, but Olivia achieved it in spades.

As for Olivia herself, she cared very little for her weight gain. Every decade or so, the Gilna traversed the world's oceans to pay pilgrimage to Neptrus, the birthplace of Voni, their religion. Neptrus was hidden far beneath the Arctic ice, so the Gilna gorged themselves on fish, squid, and on any other creatures to put on weight. Anything to insulate them from the frozen tundra.

The real novelty was that fw Gilna ever put on so much weight so fast. It'd take months to burn this much blubber off, especially if Olivia slacked on her swimming routine and buried her nose in books. Privately to herself, Olivia pursed her lips.

"Note to self: If Geygia and the other cities ever declare war on the Surface World, we'll have to be careful how many humans we consume. It'd be inconvenient for our soldiers to get this fat..."

While Olivia contemplated the extinction of the human race, Alice crossed the distance in a flash. With hearts in her eyes, the bronze-skinned beauty groped the gigantic gut, her hands sinking deep into the greenish-gray blubber. It felt soft and spongy between her fingers, and while the scales felt cool and slick to the touch, they warmed right up. Alice herself was a chubby woman, no older than twenty-two, but she couldn't compare to the mountain of meat that was Olivia.

"Oh gosh, oh geez! You look great, gurl! A total knockout, a five-star bombshell! Golly, I'd give anything look so pretty! What, no— who did you eat!?"

Although taken aback at first, Olivia quickly recovered. Alice was a queer creature, even by human standards, but the Gilna had a good grasp of Alice's mind. The college student was a gutslut, pure and simple. She loved nothing more than big bellies, fattening meals, and chunk. If Alice could, she'd spend every day in the company of big, beautiful women. The fact she lived in a house full of voracious aliens and muscular supersoldiers was a dream come true.

"Well, to be frank, your brother." Olivia gave a nonchalant shrug. "He broke into my room and messed things up pretty bad, so I—"

Without a hint of grief, Alice continued to fondle the fishy gut.

"Are you for reals? That's great!" Alice's hands roved all over Olivia's body. She groped the gut, nuzzled fat folds, and squeezed the behemoth bosom. This close, it was clear Olivia's bazonkas dwarfed Alice's head. Not particularly surprising, really; Olivia would wager her boobs were smarter than Alice herself. "Gee, Alex! How come some guys get all the luck? You look great as Olivia's belly fat!"

With a sigh, Olivia arched an eyebrow.

"Aren't you getting too... handsy?" With both hands on her hips, Olivia drummed her fingers. "I've eaten pesky fishermen and nosy know-nothings for less."

"Really? You mean it!?" Alice gazed up from the behemoth belly she adored from the deepest cockles of her heart. "Could you eat me too? It's been too long since I rolled inside a belly!"

Olivia rolled her eyes.

"... fine, fine! Just let me find Cercux's stupid Vita de Morte gizmo first." Olivia pointed over her shoulder, gesturing to the still-glowing bowl of water. A thin mist hovered over the porcelain lip. "And let me make a call too! Feels like forever since I've heard from Hector and Lydia, wanna see what they're getting up to."

"Oh?" Alice smirked slightly and waggled an eyebrow. "What about Penelope? Don't you miss your fishy-fish friend too~?"

If possible, Olivia's cheeks tinged a deeper shade of red. With a growl, she pointed a claw at Alice.

"Alright, I'm definitely eating you now."

"Yay!" Alice leapt on the spot, clapped both hands together, then dashed for the kitchen. The bronze-skinned beauty's ample butt bounced with every step. "Thank you thank you thank you, Olive! You make that call while I get ready! Mama's feeling like a chocolate drizzle bath today~"

Whimsical as a water sprite, Alice vanished into the kitchen. Soon, there came the sounds of metal clinking against glass, the roar of the fridge, and of clothes hitting the floor. Knowing Alice, the brainless beauty would nestle into a bowl of ice cream and serve herself in a giant hot fudge sundae. Anything less flashy would be disappointing.

Shaking her head, Olivia rolled her eyes.

"... humans are such mysteries. How will I ever understand whatever insanity bounces around those thick skulls?'

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Art by the naturally talented and jubilant  xxnatsumeraxx