#pennvore

The R.ito caws as another thick gulp sucks him in up to his waist, his feet already pushing into the gurgling gut below. His wings are useless as he attempts to flap them and get out. "R-R.evali, please, we can talk about this! You don't have to--" Another gulp sucks him in up to his chest, making him yelp before he can finish pleading.

The great Champion of the R.ito was a cocky bird, but it was well deserved given all he's done and his immense skill. That doesn't stop other R.ito from challenging him near daily--races, archery contests, hunting, and sparring are among some of the things that many R.ito believe they can best their Champion at. They're always wrong, and the R.ito currently armpit-deep in R.evali's gullet is starting to realize why exactly no R.ito ever returns from these contests.

Another gulp sucks his head in, leaving the R.ito's vision framed by that drooling beak, only his arms left outside of the deadly maw. "P-Please! Have mercy, R.evali! I don't want to die over a stupid race! Let me go and I'll tell no one of this, I swear! I'll leave the village! You'll never see me again! Please, let me--" A thick gulp muffles whatever else the R.ito was saying, his head momentarily bulging out R.evali's neck as it sinks down. His arms are slurped up and R.evali lets out a soft sigh as he feels the full weight of one of his kind slosh down into his feathered stomach.

He gives it a few pats as the R.ito inside thrashes around, trying to find a way out or perhaps just get more comfortable. A belch escapes the bird, a few stray feathers fluttering from his beak and floating away in the breeze. "You whine far too much," R.evali comments, casually digging a finger into his stomach. "If you had won, you wouldn't be in this position. It's not my fault your only worth is as my food." Ever since he'd become the Champion of the R.ito tribe, R.evali has been getting all kinds of challenges from overconfident R.ito.

It'd been annoying at first, but when one took the loss particularly hard and practically begged R.evali to devour him...well, suddenly he'd become much more willing to take on any challenge coming his way. So long as they take place in more secluded areas, of course. Already, R.evali's gut is bubbling intensely, the R.ito inside really starting to scream. It makes R.evali groan and clutch his stomach, wanting to feel the process take place.

"Thankfully...all of you lesser R.ito have given my body plenty of time to...nnff...practice. So let me show you how superior I really am!" R.evali's stomach begins to reduced in size rapidly, the screaming R.ito being pumped away at incredible speeds. He couldn't even finish yelling before some thick rumbling cuts him off and R.evali belches up all of that leftover air. More feathers float off in the breeze and he licks along his beak with a content sigh.

His hands gently cup over his belly, now just an unassuming beer gut that stuck out a measly inch or two. "And there you are, put in your rightful place. I'd suggest you enjoy it and settle in...but I'll burn you off before day's end. Your type never sticks around for long." R.evali gives his stomach a few careful pats and then takes to the sky to get some real work done. He'd forget all about the poor challenger by the time the next one is sinking down his gullet.

---

R.evali frowns to himself as he soars through the sky. He can’t find anything good to eat and it feels like he’s been hunting for hours. Or maybe that’s just what his incessantly growling stomach is leading him to believe. He’s gone out much farther than usual though, and even then, he’s got nothing. He’s about to give up and fly back home when he spots something.

...oh, no, it’s just L.ink, off doing who-knows-what all by himself. R.evali rolls his eyes and is about to go back but his stomach lets out another needy growl and it makes him pause. L.ink is all alone out here. No one really knows that R.evali has come out this way, either. A smirk begins to pull onto R.evali’s beak as his grumbling stomach wins over and he dives downward instead.

L.ink perks up slightly when he hears something coming. He recognizes the sound as a R.ito flying in and looks up to confirm that it’s just R.evali. He smiles and waves to his companion, but instead of receiving a warm welcome in return, R.evali practically dive bombs towards him. The R.ito lands hard on his feet next to L.ink, making the H.ylian step back in surprise. Before he can even ask about what R.evali wants, the R.ito’s wings flap down hard and sends the two of them up into the air with a strong gust.

L.ink cries out in surprise and flails as he’s suddenly airborne. Without his hang glider, he doesn’t go up very high, but it’s just enough that R.evali gets what he wants. L.ink’s eyes widen as he turns in the air and finds himself staring down into R.evali’s wide-open beak. He braces himself with his arms on instinct but all it does is make his descent even easier.

GLLL-MMPH! With a massive, wet gulp, R.evali sends L.ink plummeting straight down his gullet. Flying up while the H.ylian falls down makes sure that it takes nothing else. R.evali is already in the sky again before L.ink has fully disappeared. The Champion falters just slightly in his flight as he feels his gut slosh and sag down, his delicious hunt curled up tight inside now. But with a wet “BRRRAAAAP!” and a smug slurp of his beak, R.evali’s flight smooths out again.

“I’m so lucky to have found you, L.ink!” R.evali comments, though he’s not entirely sure if his voice can be made out by his catch. “I was just starting to think I’d be ending my hunt empty handed. But thanks to you, the great Champion of the R.ito’s has nothing to worry about!” R.evali smiles smugly as his gut sloshes under him. He can feel L.ink starting to kick and shift inside. “I dare say it’s the greatest help you’ve ever been to me. Be proud of that! Anyone would be.”

By the time R.evali lands at the R.ito village, his gut has shrunken down to a much smaller and rounder size. It sloshes around as he settles and what would have been a very loud belch gets muffled into his wing. He pats his gut gently with the other wing and smirks slightly. “Settle down, L.ink.”

The Champion saunters off, eager to rest and let the last bits of his meal digest. One of the R.ito guards catches his eye as he passes him. “Champion R.evali! Another successful hunt, I take it?”

R.evali rubs along his stomach slightly and pushes on it a bit. His wing sinks in, making his gut bubble and churn loudly. “Mm...one of my better ones, in fact. I don’t think I’ll have another quite like it.”

---

R.evali doesn’t get envious. Envy is for people that don’t have something. R.evali has everything--skill, strength, adoration. There’s nothing for him to be envious of! He does, however, get jealous. Because while he might have something, it’s possible for someone else to come along and take it.

It started with T.eba. He was an up-and-comer among the R.ito. He was faster than most others, a better shot, strong and reliable and a natural leader. Of course, R.evali only considered him second place to the Champion of the R.itos. But then T.eba started to try learning to use R.evali’s Gale. That was a line crossed.

Of course, he did try to learn it from R.evali himself, and spoke with all the humbleness he could muster. But R.evali saw it for what it was--a R.ito that wanted to be top of the pecking order. That wouldn’t stand. R.evali offered T.eba to do some special training, just the two of them, and no one else may know. T.eba agreed enthusiastically, and R.evali could barely contain his smirk.

The next morning, some guards were asking around to see if anyone had seen T.eba recently. Of course, R.evali hadn’t seen him for a while. Not since he went hunting the day before The guards didn’t find the R.ito’s bloated middle suspicious, and they walked off just before a sharp gurgle made R.evali belch up some white feathers. He carefully kicks them off the edge of the walkways and lets the wind carry them off.

Things were fine after that. People murmured about T.eba’s disappearance, but R.evali reassured them all that nothing was wrong and that they still had their Champion to protect them. But a week later...K.ass returned to the village. Everyone was excited for the bard to return. He had new songs to sing and stories to tell. People stopped worrying about T.eba then...they also seemed to lose interest in R.evali. That was a problem. And the Champion’s slightly pudgy belly grumbles out a reminder of how he can handle it.

K.ass left the village as suddenly as he arrived. He’d only been around for two days, and didn’t leave any impression he planned on leaving again. But that’s what everyone had to assume happened when he was simply missing one morning. It just so happened it was also a day that R.evali requested to be left unbothered in his room for a while. A stomachache, apparently. R.evali found out the hard way that accordions don’t agree with his digestive system. Hacking it up over the side of the village eased those troubles eventually.

R.evali’s worries didn’t end there. T.eba and K.ass both going missing wasn’t causing a large panic, but it did get the rumor mill turning. R.evali didn’t mind that at first, but when P.enn suddenly came by to interrogate R.evali on the situation, it caused problems. Especially when the reporter found K.ass’s accordion nearby...and some familiar loose feathers...