by Billy Wong
"That was an evil fight," Rose said. She shook, wracked with guilt and rage at Finn and herself, and Kayla for pushing them along this path. She should never have let their morals be so compromised.
He had no rebuttal, and she saw shame in his eyes. He knew what they did wasn't right, and could only offer cold comfort by saying, "Hey, at least the kids are still alive."
She looked. Five huddled by the bodies of what must be their parents, moaning in sorrow. If adult giants didn't much care for their young, the reverse didn't seem to be true. "Yeah... let's try to keep it that way." As carefully as she could manage, Rose helped Finn secure the huge children with chains.
#
They used their tent and magic to descend slowly to the ground, the prisoners tied to the top of the canvas. Mick stared at their bloody forms as they made sure the immature giants were okay and helped them stand up. "What happened? It looks like you've been in a fight, weren't you just going to kill the adults in their sleep?"
"They woke up," Finn said, Rose too miserable to reply. He'd tried to soothe her on the way down, but his efforts amounted to little, and he knew she would be dejected for some time. He wished there wasn't one more giant group to deal with, and feared what another disaster like today's would do to his beloved wife.
"And you won? You really are amazing. But what's wrong with her, is she hurt?"
Finn glanced at Rose, who had sat down heavily against the rocks, and sighed. "She's a little banged up, but not too bad. Mostly just feeling lousy inside." Mick fell silent, and he added, "So why do you talk so little most of the time? You're a bard, you ought to use your voice."
"People always say that when they get to be around me for a long time. I'm shy, okay?"
"There's no reason to be shy. I'm not going to eat you, even if I look like I could."
Mick laughed. "You do. Well, I've been shy all my life, so it's hard to change."
"And you became a bard? Seems an unlikely choice."
"I've loved listening to songs and stories since I was a kid, and didn't think anything could be better than making a living that way. Besides, I thought it could help me not be so shy. That part didn't really work out, but I enjoy what I do anyway."
Finn grinned. "You ever have a woman in your life?"
The bard recoiled, his face indignant. "What kind of question is that?"
"A simple one."
"I did, once. My friend Jillian, one drunken night."
"She pretty?"
"Very. Why?"
"Oh, just curious." Finn studied his face. "So how old are you, twenty-five?"
"Twenty-six and a half, actually."
"You need to get out more often. Rose here is younger than your twenty-five and a half."
"Twenty-six! And a half."
"Even worse."
Mick spread his arms and waved them about overexcitedly. "I'm a bard, how much more often do you expect me to go out?"
"I don't mean just physically. Let yourself go, be free. This is the only life you have."
"What about reincarnation and the like, that the faiths speak of?"
Finn shrugged. "I don't know, but if people do get reincarnated, it seems like they don't retain their memories. So if reincarnation exists, for all intents and purposes this is still your one life."
"Well, other faiths say our souls stay the same forever in the afterlife, but I get what you mean. So what are we going to do with those kids?"
"Bring them to town, like Rose said. It doesn't sound like the best idea, but eh. I don't really have a better one other than just putting them out of their misery, and Rose won't stand for that."
"She's really nice. Especially considering she's killed thousands and thousands of men."
"She's soft." Finn paused. He wasn't scared of her hearing, because she deserved to hear what he thought. "I love her so much, but it's hard sometimes. She lets people go we should never have, and that rarely turns out well."
"Like Prince Victor? I bet you would have killed him if she didn't hold you back."
"Exactly."
Mick frowned. "So if not for her weakness, everything would be all right?"
"I guess so. But that's who she is, and I can't change it or try to force her to accept my way. I love her too much for me not to respect her wishes most of the time—not that she wouldn't deserve every bit of respect in the world anyway."
"But do you bend to her will, thinking you're right?"
Finn considered. Sometimes he thought himself wiser than Rose, and that things would have gone better if he had his way. On the other hand, her actions were much closer to those of one who might be thought a saint, if still not all that close. Being a slayer of thousands, evil and not so evil, precluded her from being that pure. "She's a better person than me, I'd say. I might be more practical; you decide what you think is 'right.' We all have to."
Rose looked up from her seated position. "Yeah, but once you've decided, stick by it! An open mind's fine, but don't let your core beliefs get too compromised. Even for non-saints like us, that wreaks havoc on the heart."
"That's one thing we agree on. So Mick, you write any new songs about us yet?"
"Not yet. What I've seen so far on this trip hasn't been so inspiring... but now that I think about it, that's life. So I'll give it a try tonight."
Chapter 6
They arrived in the town of Leep two days south of the tomb with their five despondent giant children in tow, and Rose hoped they weren't wasting too much time. They had one more sanctuary to invade, where she prayed they could stop the giants without bloodshed. But they hit a snag in Leep. No matter what they said, the people would not allow them to leave the giants in their care. They simply didn't want to risk having strange creatures among them, even under lock and key.
When Rose was sure they couldn't convince the town guard to change their minds, she asked while leaving the constabulary with her companions, "What are we going to do? We can't go all the way to the next town, when we already wasted so much time..."
"Yes, already," Finn said. "We've done the best we could for them."
She caught his grim tone. "No! We're not going to kill these kids now, after all this."
"Maybe we could just leave them outside and hope they survive until we get back."
"No, they're babies"—apparently their mental development must take a big leap at the same time their physical did, considering they could barely speak now—"and the next tomb is far away. It would be cruel and they'd probably die, especially if we chained them; and if we don't, who knows where they'll be?"
Reluctantly, Mick suggested, "How about if... I take them to a safe place? Somewhere friends of yours can hold onto them, maybe?"
"That's a pretty good idea, actually," Rose decided. "But can you make it back alone?"
"I'm used to traveling, remember? Maybe not in Kayland, but I can learn. Every place used to be new until I went there."
From where they were now, the closest of their friends equipped to deal with such a situation would probably Count Brandon of Resnick and his wife Ashleigh. "You know where Resnick is?"
"Sort of, but a map would be nice."
She gave him one; luckily, she and Finn carried multiple in case they were separated. "Let's buy a wagon and horses for you to take them there. When you see Brandon, tell him the Iron Meatball sent you." She smiled despite herself. "He'll know who you mean."
"Wait, how will I prove you sent me?"
Finn laughed. "Who else would send him a bunch of children from an elder race?"
That was probably proof enough, but Rose drew one of her daggers and handed to him anyway. "Here, I forged this myself—Brandon should recognize it, or Ashleigh if he doesn't. But don't lose it, okay? I did make it myself."
"You lose daggers all the time," Finn pointed out.
"Yeah, but that's when I fight."
They got Mick his horses and vehicle, and wished him good luck. "Taking him along wasn't such a bad idea, huh?" Finn mu
sed after he set off. "We did need him for something."
"I guess. Time for one more trip."
"Yeah, and then war with Victor and his allies."
She frowned. "I know, I know. One step at a time." And they headed north, hopefully not to their next fight.
#
"You think there'll be any more elemental themed monsters this time," Finn asked a tad too cheerily for Rose's liking, "like the frogs for the water and the birds for the air?"
She shrugged, having little spirit for lighthearted talk. The below-freezing cold of the far north bit deep into her body, but she didn't really care. She deserved to suffer a little for her sins. "I don't know. There weren't any near the second tomb."
"Maybe they all died."
They reached the boundary of where the land turned to ice, and Rose said, "Kayla said it would be surrounded by ice. It must be out there somewhere. Careful, Finn, we don't know how thick this is."
The ice seemed solid enough to support their weight, and they walked out in search of the giants' final resting place. Looking down, Rose eventually saw something large and gray beneath the surface. "Hey, I think this is the place. The sea must have covered the island a while back."
Nearby, a small mountain of what they'd taken to be ice unfolded itself into a towering cross between a scorpion and a praying mantis. "Yeah, it would seem so," Finn said while a frantic clicking sound issued from it.
"Ugh, another themed monster. At least there wasn't a full set..."
The insectoid skittered on six rear legs at the couple, jagged claws swiping down with immense force. One clanged against Finn's shield and knocked him down; Rose dove past the other and stabbed into the monster's side. It tried to turn towards her, but she held onto her hilt and stayed alongside it. As it turned away from Finn, he stood and hacked away a leg with his axe. The thing attempted to face him again and Rose braced herself, making it rip itself open with the motion. Ichor gushed over its icelike hide from the gaping wound, and it shrieked in anguish.
"All weapons, no brain." Finn struck the plunging stinger aside with a yell using his mace. Venom hissed on the ice, and the claws snapped forward again. While Finn dodged, Rose dashed up a leg to drive her sword into the beast's back. It screamed. Its body dipped lower with weakness, and she stepped forward onto its head. She stabbed down again, and it died.
"That wasn't so hard," she breathed, standing atop its crumpled corpse. Then she noticed Finn was looking away. "What's wrong?"
"We came too late." She followed his gaze to where giants climbed out of a crevice in the ice. Indeed, they'd already awakened and then some.
"Come on, we can still try to talk," she said in a voice desperate even to her ears.
"Rose..."
She ran clumsily to where they continued to arise from the ground, and yelled at the first old male she saw, "Please don't go to him, don't be fooled by his lies! The one who calls to you isn't Kayla, but evil incarnate that deceives using her guise!"
"And who exactly are you?"
"My name's Rose, but it doesn't matter. All that matters is I'm telling you the truth, please believe me!"
"What proof do you have, besides your words? For all we know, they could be the lies."
"I don't have any proof, but I'll do whatever you need to make you believe me. I'll swear, I'll fight, I'll beg—I am begging! Just give me a chance, all I ask is you watch what happens to the rest of your kind, and how much regard Clearsky gives their lives!"
The giant frowned. "You sound so determined, not like you're lying."
"That's because I'm not!"
"I would be willing to wait and see if you're right. Clearsky... that's the name of Kayla's trident, no? But I don't get to decide."
Her shoulders slumped at her wasted tirade. "Who does, then?"
He looked to the crevice, and Rose watched half again as many giants emerge as from any previous group. The last to come was an ancient even larger than the first elder she'd seen, his snowy beard long enough to touch his mountainous belly and his hair of equal length. He measured her with icy eyes and demanded, "Who are you to disturb us with your inane prattle, little girl?"
"My name's Rose, and who are you to be so rude? I'm trying to help."
"I am Thonng, king of the Ulir."
"Thonng?" She almost laughed, but held it back. "If you're wise, you'll stop following the call of the one you think to be Kayla. It's not her, but an evil that seeks to use you for its destructive purposes without a care for you. Don't throw your lives away!"
"Are you crying?"
She wiped away a tear already close to freezing on her face. "Yeah, I'm crying, for the sake of your stubborn kind."
"What do you mean?"
Fearful how he would react to the murders of his race, she told him everything except for how they had slain sleepers the last time, saying instead that they had caught them waking and stopped them after a fight. Not a complete lie, but the omission pained her. "And you prevailed?" Thonng asked doubtfully.
"Me and my husband are strong. After all we've been through, we can't seem to die."
The old giant she had talked to before said to Thonng, "Listen to her. There is only honesty in her eyes." She bit her lip, but kept her mouth shut.
The king looked at her. "And if we listen to you, will you expect us to fight on your side?"
"No, I don't 'expect' anything, except for you to go back inside and sleep. And if that's not possible, do whatever you need to survive, but don't go to Clearsky. I know his voice may be strong, but there's no will we can't fight."
He nodded, to her vast relief. "All right. If Glim thinks you are correct, then I will take heed, for he is wise. We will explore this new world for a time, and decide if we should stay or wait for a better day."
"Thank you so much." She hadn't really dared to expect he would listen, but for once, something had gone right.
"Thank you for the warning. Goodbye." He waved for the other giants to follow, and the group stomped away.
"What, you're not going to go after them and inform them all about the state of the world today?" Finn asked.
She shook her head. "No—I know it's discriminatory, but I feel a little tired of treating with their race, for now anyway... and they walk too fast."
"What now, then? Go back home?"
"Where else? Hopefully the war isn't that far along yet."
"We'll stop them, Rose. We beat Wilner and Joghra together, didn't we?"
"Yes, but this isn't just any fight. It's civil war, and I'm afraid nothing will ever be the same."
#
Though their conquest of the western seaboard had gone well with the forces he and Victor already gathered, Wilner was annoyed by his partner's inability to keep his promises. As they drank together in the richest manor in the port of Efierd which they now held, he asked Victor, "Where are the giants you said would come to your aid?"
"What do you mean, they're right here. You witnessed their magical prowess for yourself—a rather impressive and mobile type of artillery."
Wilner scowled. "Don't try to fool me. You said there would be a hundred, yet I saw less than fifty."
"They haven't all gotten here yet, and I admit I don't know why. Something must be preventing them from obeying Clearsky's command. Maybe the magic preserving them failed and they're long died. But we've been doing well as things are, haven't we?"
He fingered the hafts of his great twin axes and grunted. "We have done fine. What worries me is that we've taken just about the whole western coast, and Rose and Finn have yet to show their faces. They're always at the forefront in any battle with Kayland at stake, and already foiled two of my attempts at conquest in the last decade. Where are they? Their blood calls to my blades."
Victor frowned at him. "Hopefully, they got themselves killed on some adventure far away. I had my run-ins with them as well, and I've no desire to repeat the experience."
"Really?"
"Really what?"
&n
bsp; Wilner clenched his fists. "You wouldn't wish to finish them with your own hands, after all the grief they've brought you and your plans?"
"Not particularly. I don't care about them. I just want Kayland."
"And I'd thought you had more of a warrior's pride."
"I don't like to seek fights I'm bound to lose."
He pointed at the trident on the other prince's back. "But you do call that the ultimate weapon, no?"
As if growing suspicious of his intentions, Victor stiffened. "Yes, and I'd like to keep it mine."
Though he hadn't thought much of taking it, the idea of controlling an army of giants now began to appeal to Wilner. If Clearsky was the ultimate weapon, after all, it would suit the ultimate warrior to wield it rather than some overrated coward and traitor like Victor. Even if Wilner had lost to Rose in the past, he still considered himself the most skilled fighter on the continent. It was only her freakish, superhuman constitution which had earned him defeat at her hands.
But he supposed plans of taking Victor's things for himself should wait until after the war against Kayland had been won. "I'm just saying that if you're any good, you should be able to defeat any enemy with such a powerful aid."
"Maybe you're right," Victor replied with a grin. "But perhaps, in a different way."
Wilner wondered if he was pondering whether he could use Clearsky to control Rose's mind. A bit of a scary thought—if that were possible, couldn't the same be done to him? Trying to distract Victor from that track of thought, he said, "Is it possible Rose and Finn are involved in your giants' failure to arrive?"
"What makes you think that might be?"
"Don't they always manage to butt in when we try to do something nice?"
"I suppose. Well, I doubt they'll remain out of sight for long, when we threaten the rest of their beloved Kayland. And then, they'll die."
"Yes. That's what I intend as well. Say, I notice those frog-men who came with your giant allies seem rather useless. You know, the ones who refuse to wear any armor and can't seem to walk right with their webbed feet. Is there any hope for them?"
Victor chuckled. "Oh, those? I put them to use digging the latrines. Better off promoting the diggers to fight."