The Big Man

Delano was working in his cubicle when his phone chimed with a new email. He glanced down at his phone, first seeing the sender and subject. The email address was immediately recognizable, and it made his heart skip a beat. It was his boss, the actual CEO, even, whom he had never even seen before. It scared him to think what the email could be about. He lived alone, and he didn’t need much money for his turtle metabolism, but still. It was his only source of income. But then the subject: “Official invitation.” It was perplexing, so he simply he opened the email. It was a relatively empty email, only containing a few lines. His boss formally extended an invitation to his house for dinner tomorrow night. Come dressed formally, etc., his address, sincerely, Abraham Probos, CEO.

For the rest of the day, the turtle couldn’t focus on any of his work. He would shuffle uncomfortably within his shell. Why would he suddenly invite me to his house like that? Am I in trouble? No… I’ve actually been commended by boss, er, normal boss before. Is that what this is? A reward for being a hard worker? Delano settled down upon realization. Yes! I’ve been the employee of the month a few times now. And I remember, other employees of the month usually got a visit to the CEO before being promoted elsewhere. He rattled around in his seat, grinning like a dork. He was so excited to be promoted, this job, despite paying well, was not enjoyable at all. And he wouldn’t miss his coworkers; he didn’t know most of them anyway. Or any of them, actually. He was able to clock out shortly thereafter, and celebrated the rest of the night with movies and pizza.

*/^\*

It really was a giant house. Or mansion, Delano supposed, it would be called. It was decently outside town, so he had never seen the mansion before. There was a massive gate and fence around the property, so first he had to hit a buzzer near the gate. Before he could say anything, a feminine voice from the other side said, “Go ahead inside. Mr. Probos will be with you shortly.” The gates creaked open, revealing a wide driveway or road down to the mansion’s doors, as well as splitting off to garages or something or another. He began walking down the long path in the semi-dark of dusk. It was rather unnerving, he thought, but the street was well lit by lamps, and the glowing mansion was rather inviting.

The doorbell of the mansion chimed a tune, which Delano couldn’t place, but it sounded rather classical. Rather expected he thought. He waited patiently at the door, realizing now that it was rather large. That was also expected, and it reminded him of some older buildings. But then he could feel his shell shake from the ground as someone approached the door. He took a step back right before the door opened, as a massive elephant presented himself. He towered over the turtle, about twice his height, and filling the entire doorway. Delano gaped slightly at the sight, and the elephant just smiled a very jolly smile. “Delano, right? I’ve been expecting you! I’m Abe.”

Abe was wearing a semi-casual sweater and pants, as well as a bowtie. Delano, wearing a different polo shirt and khakis felt sort of underdressed. But the elephant extended a hand to the reptile, who shook it after a few seconds of awe. Abe stepped aside and gestured Delano inside, who followed, after yet more seconds of awe. Delano’s first words were, “It-It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Probos.” The elephant shook his head and said, “Please, call me Abe! You’re my houseguest. Let me tour you about my house.” Delano followed him, though he couldn’t see anything at all in front of him. He gestured towards various memorabilia or furnishings as they walked throughout the mansion, though Delano wasn’t actually particularly interested, but maintained appearance by nodding occasionally. Abe, meanwhile, seemed very excited to show his house around. Only the first floor, notably.

As they reached the end of their tour, the next room glowed blue, attracting Delano’s attention. Abe noted this, and said, “Ah, yes. This is my aquarium!” The turtle gazed into the bright blue water, full of various fish and flora. The aquarium was notably even taller than Abe, but a staircase on the side lead up to the top. Delano pressed against the glass, trying to stare through to the other end of the tank, but seeing nothing.

“This is my pride and joy, all these fish. The tank is, erm, something like 33,000 gallons? Yes, that’s it. Maybe a bit over. A cube, too! 5 meters exactly on all sides. It’s very neat, all this life in one place.” They observed all the fish swimming about the tank, some looking at the two, others following each other around the tank. Delano’s eyes focused on one, a catfish, as it followed another around the tank, very closely. It suddenly swallowed this fish in front of it, the catfish itself bulging rather grotesquely while the tail of the fish swung about in its mouth.

The voracious act was suddenly interrupted by a distant, yet loud, ding. Abe clapped his hands together, scaring most of the fish, and said, “Ah yes, dinner! The event of the night.” His trunk sniffed the air, and he rubbed his hands together saying, “I do believe I can smell it already. Follow me, would you?” Delano kept his eyes locked on the catfish as it slurped up its prey, whole and alive. After it finished, he shook his head and began to follow Abe. Yes, dinner! He was ready. Hungry, too.

They arrived to a large dining room, likely made to serve many more guests at once than just them two. At present, it had one regal table in the middle, made for about four people. As Abe sat down at one end of the table, he gestured Delano towards the other end. “Bon appetit, Delano! I hope you find this meal utterly satisfying.” Delano glanced across the table, and indeed, it was full of some of his favorite foods. Various salads, fruits, and vegetables were placed across the table. Much larger serving bowls were placed near Abe, as expected. Still, Delano was able to fill his plate easily with the food available. After he eating one plate, he complimented Abe on the food. “This is all very delicious, sir. Thank you for this dinner and also inviting me to your home.”

Abe laughed jollily, “You’re welcome, my good man! Please, eat as much as you like.” Delano started to fill up his next plate, and as he did so, Abe referred to the other elephant in the room. “I also suppose that you’re wondering exactly why I invited you here! Well, wonder no more.” Delano finished filling up his plate and continued to eat, maintaining eye contact with his boss. “You see, Delano, every so often I take it upon myself to ask my managers about the best of my workers. And well, you are the best! The cream of the crop. So, I’m offering you a promotion.” Delano gave something of a smile as he continued to stuff his face with food. This was about the best point in his life, he noted. Great food, great job upcoming.

Abe continued, “The position, should you take it, will be very close to the top, actually. Working with me. It would pay very well, and it’d be much more enjoyable than your current job, I believe. I’ll let you think it over while you eat.” Delano started filling up a third plate, while thinking about Abe’s offer. Yes, obviously, right? More pay, more fun. And Abe seems like a decent enough CEO to work with. There are surely worse people out there. I mean heck, the food itself is great. In fact, when his thoughts were finished, he realized that he had burned through his third plate already. He instinctively started to gather a fourth plate, but when he stood up slightly to lean over the table, he could feel his belly scrape against the inside of his shell. He quietly burped into his hand.

Almost immediately, Abe boomed, “So, have you come to a decision, my friend?” Delano looked across the table, smiling, “Yes sir, Mist- I mean, Abe. I’d like to take the job.” Abe gave a wide grin, then shouting across the table, “That’s my boy! Here, come on over so I can take a picture with you.” Delano got up, glancing at the wall of employees, all posing with Abe. He recognized each of them from his own employee of the month wall. Abe got up also, and they both walked over in front of the wall, as a random butler appeared with a camera. As he posed with the elephant, Delano couldn’t help but look up at the towering person. He smiled, as did Abe.

There was a bright flash, and Delano instinctively rubbed his eyes following it. When he opened his eyes back up, the first thing he noticed was that Abe hadn’t touched any of his food. He looked up towards Abe, and immediately he noticed visible drool, as well as an uncomfortably close trunk. Abe turned towards him, and said, “Delano… I’d like to personally thank you for applying for this job! You’ll be moved to your new position immediately.” As he finished his sentence, his trunk wrapped around the turtle. Delano instantly shuddered in his shell, though found himself unable to make any sound. He briefly turned towards the butler, who was already gone. Turning back, he looked into Abe’s gaping maw. It was pink, very wet, and waiting.

Delano started to shake violently, to the point where Abe’s trunk couldn’t keep a hold of the turtle any longer. As soon as he hit the ground, he started to run. He wasn’t very fast, but surely faster than an elephant. He looked behind him, and saw Abe beginning chase. “You know Delano, for a turtle, you sure are fast! But I’ve caught the fastest before. None of them escaped,” he shouted down the hall. The words did concern Delano, but he wasn’t thinking properly. He figured he could outmaneuver the large animal rather than outrun it. He could feel his footsteps getting closer, despite Abe seeming so slow whenever he looked over his shoulder.

He noticed a blue light ahead of him, and immediately made a left turn. He wasn’t sure if these stairs would prevent him from catching up, but he knew what would. As he reached the top of the staircase, there was a small platform, and the open lid of the fish tank a few more steps up. He peered down the staircase, and saw Abe starting to follow him up the stairs without issue. So Delano went back to the aquarium, and dived right in. He sunk to the bottom after a few moments, and as he reached it, he saw Abe at the top, distorted through the water. Abe appeared to be grinning, and actually walked back down the steps. Soon afterwards, the elephant appeared in front of the glass, encompassing almost the entire view. The turtle felt horribly small, sitting at the bottom of the aquarium while this elephant towered over him.

Abe began, “Delano, clever. I suppose you’re the only aquatic sort I’ve ever brought here. I’d really like you to get out of there, but I know you won’t. So, my last words to you: Did you know that when I was younger, I won a water-drinking contest? I drank maybe a thousand gallons, and very fast at that.” Delano wasn’t sure exactly what he meant, but he couldn’t ask for clarification, as the elephant starting to walk back up the stairs. He waited as the elephant reached the top of the tank, and then stuck his trunk into the water. Delano’s eyes widened, and he started to feel a slight pull on his skin. He stared at the proboscis as it sucked up water at a visible rate, as well as some of the fish. He could see past that, the trunk bulging with each gulp of water. It was only a matter of time, and he knew it.

The suction of his trunk grew over time, and began to lift Delano off the ground. He tried to swim away from it, but it soon overpowered what little force that added. The suction of the water around him stopped as one of the turtle’s feet stopped up the trunk. He instinctively pulled it out from the suction, then the suction restarted and both of his feet were lodged up to his shell inside the trunk. With his feet stuck, the trunk began to lift him out of the water. Abe grinned the same grin as before, but it felt rather evil to Delano now.

He dangled above the blue glow of the aquarium, now deserted of fish. “You see that Delano? You made me swallow my prides,” Abe chuckled. “Or promote them, more like!” He let out a hearty laugh at his own remark. Delano was then lifted up and dangled now over the pink abyss of the elephant’s throat. He then was placed inside the mouth, laying on his thick tongue. The tongue licked and re-wet Delano’s body, and he could hear Abe saying, muffled, “Delicious! I must say, reptiles taste the best. Perhaps it’s the lack of fur.”

Delano started to quiver once more, feeling the pachyderm’s hot breath wash over him. “P-Please A-Abe, I-I… I have a wife! And kids!” A hearty laugh spread more spittle over him, and Abe said, “No you don’t! I checked. That’s why I knew you were perfect for this ‘promotion’. No one’s going to even really notice you’re gone! Just moved to a different department, right? Besides, this new job will do so much more for me than your old one.” Delano knew he was done for. He was completely at his boss’ mercy. He closed his eyes as he moved closer towards the pulsating throat, accepting his fate.

Then, he felt himself being pulled up. He opened his eyes again, watching as the throat grew further away. He couldn’t turn his neck around to see what was happening, but hope grew in his chest. His face eventually left the elephant’s, but when Abe closed his mouth, he remade the same grin as before. Delano suddenly realized that he wasn’t getting any cooler or less cramped. He tried to move his hands, and realized that they were stuck inside something tight and fleshy. As he realized what it was, Abe waved at him and said, “Goodbye, my good meal.”

Delano could only watch as the elephant’s grin became further and further, as the rest of his body traveled down the trunk. He couldn’t struggle at all. It was very tight around his shell, and he was even amazed that this was even happening. Outside, Abe snorted repeatedly, moving the large bulge in his trunk towards his insides. It was rather annoying to breathe through his mouth like this. Delano eventually reached said insides, feeling his feet graze over the thick tongue again, before continuing onward into the equally tight throat. He couldn’t even shake in his shell, except very briefly as it transitioned from trunk to throat. Eventually his head went through the same transition, and for a brief moment, he could see from Abe’s mouth to the ground. He realized how big the elephant truly was from this view. Then back to pinkish darkness.

Abe walked to an armchair as he continued to swallow his meal. His stomach was already decently bloated from the water and all of his fish. In fact, a button had popped off his pants and flown into the aquarium. He reclined in his chair, giving a sigh of finality as the turtle landed in his stomach at last. Rather satisfying, he felt, especially considering how much Delano stuffed himself prior.

Delano’s body had long been dipping into the elephant’s stomach before he reached it, and he could feel fish swimming about his feet. His head inevitably followed, and he landed in a tight stomach, with water up to his neck. He heard a muffled rip from outside, and Abe saying, “Like turtle soup, in a way! Better tasting, though. Enjoy your promotion!” Abe shook his belly to his own amusement, listening to it slosh around from all the water. Delano was shaken about also, then once more as the elephant readjusted in the chair, relaxing, and then sleeping.

He couldn’t think of anything to do, especially with the noises; the stomach’s ominous gurgling, the pachyderm’s snoring, or the fish’s panicked swimming. He tried to pull out his phone in an effort to call the police or something, though it was far too late for him. His phone had already shorted out during his aquarium dive earlier however, and merely served to illuminate the stomach. He watched the walls ripple around him, and also the fish swimming about. Eventually the stomach’s water would turn a shade of green, and Delano decided to try and fall asleep before anything started. As he fell asleep, he watched a bloated catfish swimming about, still working on its prey from earlier.

*/^\*

Abe woke up, yawning, and also letting out a loud belch. The sun shone in through windows next to his chair, and smiled at the morning. He smacked his lips, recalling the tasty turtle from last night, but looked down the hall at his emptied aquarium and frowned. At least I didn’t have to try and drink all that water… but still. I liked those fish. And as he smacked his lips again, he supposed he really did like those fish. He belched once more, longer this time, and a turtle shell flew from his maw and fell across the floor. He got up from his chair and picked it up. He wiped off some of the saliva and smiled at it, while also feeling his slightly fattened body. “While you may have ripped my sweater, it’s altogether a job well done, Delano! Thank you for your service.” He carried the shell down to his memorabilia collection, and placed it among other such souvenirs. He gazed across his collection, things such as horns, assortments of fur, and a few bones here and there. He smiled once more, then headed down towards the dinner hall as breakfast was called.