"Tom, buddy please, you have GOT to get up." Lonni's baritone voice nervously asked as softly as he could muster, shaking my shoulder. My eyes fluttered open, my blurry vision barely focusing to find most of his massive 7-foot frame leaned over my bed.
"Lonni, can you get your knee off my thigh." I grunted while trying to wiggle feeling back in my toes under my sheets.
"Uhp, sorry pal." He said, lifting his leg up from mine. The sun wasn't even up yet, and Steve kept me out on the ocean yesterday until dark. Meaning, there's absolutely no way I hadn't just barely dozed off any more than like, 4 hours ago.
"What is it, Lonni? I really could use some rest if could wait until morning, man." I said, rubbing the bags under my eyes as I sat up with a big stretch.
"Yeah, I just barely got word you were back already. We're headed home. Well, me and Korbin are at least." Lonni said, the news hitting like a shot of espresso.
"Uhh, okay? Why?" I asked, confused considering the conquest had just begun. Not to mention our forces aren't nearly large enough to be self-sufficient.
"Korbin's looked over enough of Gerard's mapping of this region to know there's no unconquered Pylon's anywhere near this location. Plus, with the massive influx in talented individuals and their families migrating to Elysium from these conquests leaves even more work to be done at Elysium." Lonni answered, speaking over his shoulder heading for the door.
"Well hold on, so we're done with the conquest?! Just like that?!" I said, now a bit frustrated at the sudden change of heart. Especially without any fucking forewarning.
"No no, you and Cassi are still gonna b-…just come to the ship and bring your things. Korbin explained it better." Lonni said, shaking his head through a furrowed brow, face reddening with every word. Though he didn't looked mad, but more embarrassed at his update delivery. Doesn't actually matter anyway, not like I'm calling the shots.
"Okay, I got to get Steve though and let him know we're wrapping things up. He might have a few words about the cancellation too." I said exiting my temporary quarters, headed straight towards his sleeping spot tucked away at the back of the settlement.
"Uhh…okay. Just don't take too long, Korbin explicitly said to make sure you'd be there on time. They're leaving in a few minutes, with their first stop being your Castle Pylon, where the ship's docked." Lonni said before quickly shuffling off, his thick metal armor noisily clacking against itself. Oddly enough, his frustrated dismissal was the most informative he'd been thus far. Now, I just had to meet them at the ship, piece of cake.
Steve was snug in his coiled up self, his head hidden under layers of feathered scales stacked atop each other when I woke him up ever so gently.
"YO STEVE!! You kept us out too late, time to roll out big-man!" I totally didn't yell mentally at him, out of a touch of resentment. It was my mistake mentioning I'd hit level 7 during the siege when everything was settled, which lead to him insisting on matching my level outputs while we had the free time to hunt yesterday. He has this weird sense of pride about the level shares we have. Even though, if anything the contract plays in my favor over his in a long run. He levels, so does my profession. My class however? Doesn't do a thing for the snake. All the same there was zero debating with the winged-serpent so we traveled back to the forest biomes back west just to find something alive to hunt. Something strong enough to rationalize the fight was an entirely different migraine.
After a day of tedious fights with the local Necromancer Foxes, a few giant boars with iron teeth and literal fire spewing from their eyes, and some bears, Steve finally leveled. I definitely didn't envy the mountain that was leveling for beasts, though at first glance only having to level one classification sounded way easier to manage than this class, profession and race crap. Turns out, it's just more tedium for the same workload.
"Ughh, fucking seriously? We JUST got back, man?" Steve grumbled as his feathered head lifted from his bundled body.
"Yeah I know, I know. We got home too late from your pride-hunt to hear the news, we're heading all the way back to the shop today." I said, skipping the pleasantries. Hearing we're leaving now was going to suck one way or another, might as well rip the band-aid.
"Fine. But I'm getting on that fucking ship and sleeping." Steve growled as his eyes narrowed.
"Yeah you were allowed to already, Steve. Come on, I'm WAY too fuckin' tired to argue." I grumbled back mentally, hopping on his back before he could finish stretching. Catching up to the others didn't take long, in fact Steve decided our squad was too slow and flew ahead.
Not willing to hear it from Korbin, I had him fly low and leapt off, sending him on his way. Rather Korbin's got a grudge at him than me before heading to home base, where he gets to decide my living situation while I'm gone.
"I think your snake is running away." Korbin said, as I strolled up to him, Cassi, Lonni, and the entirety of our forces pacing behind them.
"He's just cranky, we'll meet him there." I answered, shaking my head dismissively.
"…he does know how to get back to the docks, right?" Korbin asked. Which was admittedly a fantastic question given I'd directed us each time.
"Meh, if he finds water, he'll find us." I concluded, fully trusting the scaly shit. Besides, I could internally ping him if he takes too long anyways.
The march back was long enough to make me regret being such a team player, leaving at sunrise and not reaching the ship until around noon. We beat out the scorching desert heat thankfully, and the remains of Steve's apparent boredom cleared our path of any potential danger. Based on the sheer quantity of discarded beast remains scattered along the path, I wonder if our hunt last night was even necessary. Once at the docks, Steve's body was looped around the wall of rope ladders on the side of the ship, snoozing away.
The ride back was fairly uneventful, given the majority of the waters we'd tread were well established stomping grounds of the mighty Steve and Tom. The occasional orca feeling too big for its blubber would try to bother the ship, only for Steve to intercept and exemplify the consequences of such hubris once more. The ocean was always a might-is-right ecosystem, at least from what little I learned living by the beach for some time as a teen. The integration seems to have only exacerbate the issue.
The long trip did give me a chance to read over the skill I'd unlocked during my battle with the kings guard, particularly their tank.
Flow Sever (rare) - a perfectly timed strike onto the culmination of a foe's Flow, combined with your own, provides a strike sharpened by its own harmonic nature.
+40% piercing damage
It definitely felt worth the rarity, considering the skill helped me slice through armor my weapons were previously incapable of denting like butter. Of course, it came at a heavy cost, as some playing around with the skill revealed it cost 22 mana per use as a minimum. Basically, I'd need to save mana throughout a fight, or use it immediately if it were to be useful. Still, I'd hoped to find a way to adjust the exerted mana based on some form of concentration, much like Lightning Strike. My attempts were all fruitless, but I have a tutorial to practice anyways.
We first stopped off at Savants Elysium to drop off Korbin and Lonni, along with a couple citizens that signed some contracts with Korbin to live here. Korbin called me and Cassi over before he departed from the ship.
"Alright, Tom? Cassi's gonna run the show while I'm gone on the conquest. This is me officially giving her command over you here, we clear?" He said very slowly and articulate, making sure both parties confirmed with a nod.
"Good. Then good luck out there. Cassi will brief you on the info regarding your next assignment." Korbin added before descending down the rope ladders. As he dropped down onto the beaches tan sands and started heading toward the settlement, he turned back.
"Hey Tom!?" He called out.
"Yeah!?"
"Be patient! Don't get yourself killed!" He yelled, before flipping me off and walking away. Lonni chuckled, waving alongside him at us.
"Damn, he really lays into you doesn't he?" Cassi asked with a grin as we walked away.
"Please, that's got to be top 10 of the nicest things he's ever said to me. I've known him for way too damn long for phony pleasantries anyway." I answered with a scoff.
"Damn, so you two trained that whole time?" Cassi asked, the high inflection in her tone telling me she was genuinely shocked. I laughed, reflecting on those years involuntarily.
"No, no not quite. Only in the last year prior to all this shit, though he was apparently training that whole time." I replied, a frustrated I hadn't done so myself.
"Hm, you'll have to show me how you guys trained. I'm curious about the differences in approach." She said with a knowing smirk.
"Don't need to, he's WAY nicer to you. Which I wish he told me he'd be sooner, by the way." I said, turning away abruptly heading for the ships interior hallway leading to my room.
"Wait, why?" She asked, stopping and calling down the hall to me.
"So I'd know I don't have to be. Let me know when you want to train, or when we get there." I said, not turning around at all. There was nothing incredibly kind about the process of showing someone how to truly fight, however the act itself is one of great charity for lack of a better word. For now my focus wasn't to improve her combat ability though. I just want to meditate until we arrive at whatever destination they got planned for us next.
For once, my simplest of wishes came true. Our small army of 30 organized itself onto the forest floor having leapt from the ship onto land with the original Druid squad in front. The ship was incredibly maneuverable according to our captain, a fellow named Han. A man of few words, his gruffly beard and balding head was completely grey. He was damn good at what he did though, sliding the massive vessel right next to the rock face we'd leapt over in one fluid motion. It was like he had a track under the ocean or something how easily he whipped a ship the size of a small town around.
Cassi ran a head count as Steve and I patrolled a couple dozen yards ahead. The humidity in the air here is literally palpable, though it beats the dry, skin scorching heat of the desert by a fucking landslide. Steve and I returned to the group after some time to find them ready to continue northwest.
Cassi decided to finally update me on the plan along the way. Apparently, Korbin had gotten in contact with some folks who traveled with some Minotaur clan from here when things got too heated politically between Pylons. Apparently, they floated alongside a fucking Minotaur ferry. Not only do these things exist, turns out they're also intelligent enough to make deals with humans. Part of me hoped they'd pick a fight honestly, only because I'm curious as to how they fought. The other part questioned what exactly didn't exist at this point.
We continued our trek along the forest foliage for quite some time before Steve perked up, whipping his tail in front of me and Cassi like a feathery wall. Cassi held a hand up, signaling for everyone else to halt.
"What's up man?" I asked my cautious serpent mentally.
"Another snake nearby. Female." He answered before slithering forward slowly. I leaned over and whispered to Cassi.
"We'll take point, hold the guys here for now."
"I'll allow that, sure." Cassi replied, making a point to remind me who makes the decisions. Disregarding her entirely, I followed after Steve as we crept through the rainforest. Much of the life scurrying around here seems harmless, apart from a few clusters of incredibly vocal apes we'd passed earlier. They played the chest drums and hollered wildly to assert their territory, but Cassi didn't want to engage unnecessarily until we had a Pylon to fall back to. I'll be back for them though, fuckers tossed a clump of shit at me.
Steve and I both slowly slithered through thick brush after having heard some heavy rustling coming from just ahead. We both froze at the sight of a woman in light red leather armor with a bow slung over her shoulder. Her hand was extended, both palms out as she slowly inched toward a 20 foot Boa Constrictor.
"Shh shh shh, there-there, I won't hurt you." She whispered, as she inched closer. The Boa looked uncertain as to how it felt having this human approach the way its head cocked to the side, but this level of comfort indicated some sort of familiarity. A few orcas have treated me and Steve this way at a distance, however they tend to take off the moment we draw nearer nowadays.
"Damn. She's like, really pretty." Steve whispered to me as we watched on, his tone crackling mentally.
"I thought you couldn't tell what humans were attractive or not?" I asked.
"No no, not her?! The Boa she's foolishly trying to tame. She's gorgeous." Steve said, his head never turning away from the long, dark scaly mass of muscle swaying over the incredibly brave young woman in front of us.
"Wait but, how can you tell? Is it like, the patterns of her scales or something?"
"Oh. It's a scent thing for us." Steve replied.
"Really?"
"Yeah, well kind of. Basically the ladies release their wonderful scent in the air we guy-snakes pick up with our tongue, a-" Steve's explanation was cut off by the loud hiss of said boa toward the archer trying to pet her. The archer springboarded back off both hands before drawing her bow towards the constrictor.
"We should stop that." I said, bursting from the shrubbery we hid behind.
"HOLD UP! TIME OUT! Everyone, chill out." I yelled, walking brazenly between the both of them, my hands up gesturing two 'peace signs'. The boa's eyes fixed onto me like a hungry dog for a moment before Steve emerged from the bushes behind. The boa instead grew reserved, even backing up a bit as she inspected my friend.
"Who the hell are you, and tell me why shouldn't I put an arrow through our skull right now?" The archer asked, her bow with flames along its quiver and arrow now trained on me.
"Cause he'll eat you for it." I said, pointing my thumb toward Steve. The archer's eyes widened seeing my winged companion slithering beside me now.
"Woah…how did you..?" She began, staring up at Steve in wonder.
"Oh, I made a contract with the scaly lug. Now I'm his tamer, and we get real big and strong together. That's what you were going for here, right?" I asked, gesturing toward her and the snake, who was now circling Steve. Though, Steve certainly didn't look too defensive over it.
"How exactly does a flimsy contract do all of that shit?" She asked, which I was fully prepared to answer until Cassi emerged from the behind, our soldiers in tow.
"What the hell is going on?" Cassi asked, looking at our new friends.
"Oh, we met another beast tamer!" I yelled back before turning toward the archer, who looked much more worried now seeing the army popping out around her.
"Hey, Tom? Becky wanted confirmation these soldiers weren't going to hurt her if she left?" Steve asked, indicating they were getting acquainted over there.
"Yes. Or, no? Look, no one's going to get hurt so long as no one attacks anybody. That includes you, Becky." The Boa nodded in appreciation, getting another shocked reaction out of the Archer.
"You can hear her too? It took me days to hear her, and another few for the boa to talk once she realized it." Phoebe said, furrowing her brow looking back at Becky, the Boa.
"Oh no, but I can hear my buddy Steve." I leaned a little forward, though not far enough to catch an arrow between the eyes as I whispered.
"I think he likes her." The archer cracked a half grin out the corner of her mouth before slowly lowering her bow.
"Alright, then why exactly are you people here? We haven't seen or heard of any other humans besides me…at all?" The archer asked, now turning toward Cassi and the rest of our soldiers.
Wait.
"Why exactly did you specify humans?" I asked, cutting off whatever Cassi was saying as my mind replayed the archers question.
"Because only Giants live here." Phoebe replied plainly.
"Come again?" I asked, not completely sure I heard that correctly.
"Giants, they're like humans but really bi-"
"No, motherf-…I know what a giant is, but I'm sure I speak for everyone else in saying we didn't realize they were real." I interrupted, holding back my rush of anger. Phoebe smiled deviously, as if to say my frustration was her goal.
"Right, well they were people who've allowed themselves to be 'touched' by Jaia, the Giant Demigoddess. As such, they all became giants themselves after their first evolution." The archer explained matter of factly.
"Umm…okay. Then why the defensiveness if you said there are no threats nearby?" I asked, still trying to process the whole 'giant' thing.
"When did I say that? I said no humans were wandering around. The other neighboring Pylons are all touched by sibling Demigods of Jaia, each representing different beliefs. A few hellbent on killing their kin for power, others trying to mend their families power lusting minds. At least that's what I hear, truthfully their familial squabble has only led to bloodshed." She answered, her eyes trailing off for a moment before snapping back onto us.
"Woah woah back up, how do you know all this? Correct me if I'm wrong but, you're no giant." Cassi asked, looking down at the archer. Cassi is taller than me, so it's hard to imagine many folks physically looking down at her when speaking other than Lonni.
"They give me TP and a place to hunt for levels, and in return I agreed to help them clear out their defense waves every 3 days, or fend off other Demigod factions. This last wave was fucking brutal though, and the second time in a row there were undead sprinkled in there. So now, I'm trying to partner up with this feisty girl here for some much needed backup." The archer explained, her own anger leaking into her speech as she pointed to the boa.
"What's your name, hun?" Cassi asked, after giving the archer a moment to breathe.
"Phoebe." The archer answered, inspecting Cassi thoroughly with her eyes.
"Hello Phoebe, my name is Cassi. I'm the commander of this army, and that includes my beast tamer here, Tom." Cassi said, gesturing to me.
"If you can get me a council with those giants' Pylon leadership and help me negotiate an understanding with them, I will bring you and your boa-freind back with us to Savants Elysium. I'm sure our contractor and Pylon leader will be happy to repay you with a favor." Cassi added, hanging heavily on that last word while glancing at Steve.
"Deal. But he's got to teach me how to tame Becky first, or we'll never get her on the boat in the first place." Phoebe stipulated, her finger pointing to me.
"Tell her Becky's already agreed. I told her about our deal with Perunious, and she wants in on that action." Steve said quickly before reverting his full attention back to Becky.
"Becky's cool with the contract, but I do think I can help you out, Phoebe."
"You have to agree to the deal first, though." Cassi interjected, rightfully. Handouts were no affordable commodity in the tutorial. Phoebe considered the proposition a moment before giving her answer.
"Alright, I accept. Now follow me and, if you see a big bird, fucking yell." She said, before turning and walking ahead. Cassi signaled the men to follow as she trailed Phoebe.
"Steve, time to roll bud. Let Becky know she can leave for a bit if she wishes, but to meet back here soon." I sent Steve, turning and following the rest of the army. Steve caught up with the boa right beside him, indicating either he had some solid game about him, or she was just as hungry for power as he. Either way, I had no issues with another friendly serpent to accompany our campaign.
Our journey of following our new friend Phoebe through jungle-esque rainforest was relatively uneventful. The many low hanging vines and tall plants made walking to be a more careful task, a few appearing sentient as purple petaled flowers danced around one another. It hadn't taken Cassi long to barrage Phoebe with questions regarding the settlement ahead.
"So, you said these folks are giants? How big are we talkin'?" Cassi asked.
"Mm, it sort of depends. Some are around 12–13 feet tall, while others are closer to 10 feet. All of them have adopted insane strength and toughness from becoming giants though." Phoebe answered, volunteering that last tidbit with an adopted pride.
"You seem quite fond of them?" Cassi continued, pressing further.
"Well, we've grown a sort of kinship. They all have struggled with loss this tutorial, with the waves ramping up in intensity so quickly and all. Me, well…" Phoebe's eyes narrowed as they trailed to the distance, apparently being careful in considering her next words.
"…I've had my fair share. Everyone was already gone before I got here." She finally concluded, returning to meet Cassi's gaze.
"I see. Speaking of those waves, you mentioned undead? I've never heard of any undead anywhere else." Cassi continued, changing the subject after Phoebe's mood turned grim. However, she had to be mistaken.
"No Cass, there were zombies at the woodland pylon I found Lonni in, west of the Savants Elysium. I told Korbin all about it. Happened on like the first night." I spoke out, correcting Cassi. Though, I'd forgotten all about those things by now to be honest, mainly because I hadn't found any others in all our journey.
"Why would there only be zombies there, and here? That doesn't make sense, especially since there's been no reports of any 'zombies'. As crazy as it sounds, I hadn't even considered there would be any." Cassi replied, externally working everything out.
"We figured everyone was dealing with this issue. It picked up around the third wave here, on day 9. They just flew in behind the Gorillas, and they prioritized taking the giant's bodies. It's fucked up shit over here, not too late to head home for you." Phoebe snickered, a giggle following something even I knew wasn't funny.
"No not at all. Which is wierd considering we already had a zombie rat n- AGHHH FUCK!" My sentence was cut short by the splitting pain of Korbin's stupid contract forbidding me of even mentioning…it.
"What Tom's trying to say is we have undead among us as it is that serves us, yet there's been zero interaction with them since. Let's not waste time, a conversation with their leader is becoming increasingly imperative." Cassi said, picking up for me while I rubbed the remainder of this migraine from my temples. She was right though, even the foxes we'd dealt with would fully resurrect one another, rather than merely reanimate some ugly corpse.
Another 45 minute hike later, we'd neared our destination. I'd felt like I just hopped out of the ocean water walking around in the incredibly thick humidity that blanketed the tropical air, when the Giants Pylon was within sight. Their settlement was massive, rivaling the size of the Savants Elysium, maybe larger. The thick culmination of trees, brush and high foliage cleared out about 50 yards in a circle around their territory.
As we approached, two insanely large men towering over 10 feet high stood on either side of two metal doors large enough to fit 5 of them comfortably between them. Cassi leaned into my shoulder as we approached within speaking distance.
"Behave. We fight if I say so, not a moment before." She whispered sternly. I stuck my tongue out, but new full and well her role anyhow. Besides, she's the tactician, I'm cool with just being the agile muscle here.
"Welcome home, Phoebe. We must ask why you bring an army to our doorstep?" One of the giant guards asked, their deep voice bellowing as they questioned their colleagues' motives.
"They are guests of mine hoping to assist us. Especially this one-" She said, pointing toward Steve in the back, his eyes still trained on Becky the boa slithering beside him.
"I see. These are their beasts?" The guard asked, one bushy eyebrow raising high above his massive blue eye.
"Mine, and just the big one with wings. The other's Phoebes. Well, soon it will be." I answered, not willing to have Steven spoken for by any other regardless of audience. The Giant appeared taken aback at my candor, a smile creeping on his long bearded face.
"Ahh, a beast tamer of great caliber. Well, Lord Garrin will be at least willing to hear them out, albeit they're…weak." The giant scoffed as he surveyed out soldiers.
"Want to bet big fella?!" I chirped, not allowing for that kind of slander.
"No, I concur, respect my soldiers, giant. We come in peace, not in service." Cassi added, surpassing me as I'd expected right after to be chastised. Instead, she doubled down for her men. I have to respect it. Apparently, the guard felt similarly, as he chuckled holding his hands up.
"Oh, ho-oh, of course, of course. Sorry you two, you'll fit right in here. JOHNNY!!" The guard bellowed out suddenly, his voice echoing through the forest as he banged on the metal door twice. Heavy mechanisms chambered and popped before the doors slowly opened inward, revealing a bustling settlement that dwarfed our entire army in size. The buildings were all proportional to their massive size, including their multileveled structures.
"Come, Garrin's castle is still a ways away." Phoebe said, pointing to the colossal sized castle that sat against a large mountain wall at the back of the settlement. Phoebe wasn't lying, it still took us 15 minutes to cross town, passing by a myriad of shops and homes. It was relatively empty given the total structures, but I assumed that maybe most giants weren't keen on outsiders or something.
Approaching the castle, the guards requested our army remain outside their walls, and that we may send a pair of representatives. Naturally, Cassi and I accepted, leaving Steve to care for our soldiers. Not the best leader in terms of communication but, Steve would keep them safe enough.
A couple of giant guards adorning massive green and grey warriors' medium armor, a few with ill-fitting knights helmets, escorted us up the many floors to their Pylon room. There sat their leader, Garrin, equipped in fine heavy leather armor head to toe. A massive axe sat propped upside beside his chair as he sat leaned to the side, his bearded chin resting on his knuckles.
"Phoebe, darllng. You know it's always a pleasure. However I must admit I'm rather concerned about you waltzing an army through our grounds." Garrin grumbled, his smile upon seeing her slowly fading as he spoke.
"Naturally. However, these folks came here to speak with you in peace. They claim to hold great power where they're from, and the winged snake outside was most of the proof I needed to give you a chance to judge for yourself." Phoebe said, now gesturing towards us.
"I see, and who is your leader here?" Garrin asked, looking at me and Cassi.
"That would be me, Garrin. My name is Cassi, and I will be representing my faction during these negotiations." Cassi quickly answered, as if I'd ever argue. Fuck politics.
"And what of the other one here? With the long stick?" Garrin said, chucking in reference to my sheathed and connected twinblade. I had nearly lost the urge to reveal their true nature when Cassi spoke up.
"My greatest soldier, and the tamer of aforementioned serpent that accompanied us on this journey. He's also willing to assist your friend here in officially taming the boa as well. Our faction carries much to gain, which is why I came here. To discuss a mutually advantageous agreement." Cassi announced with a hint of authority in her tone as she defended one of her soldier's once more.
"Ahh, I see. 'Protection', haha. Well, what is your supposed agreement in mind, Miss Cassi?" Garrin asked, sounding patronizing at best. Cassi's demeanor remained calm, however she spoke far more bluntly now.
"Simple, you provide our leader, Korbin Erickson, official ownership of this pylon, and in return you shall reap any and all amenities promised to you by Korbin himself. We may discuss terms with him in person, however your acceptance or refusal must be decided here." Cassi's chest puffed forward as she finally gave it to the big man straight, something he didn't take kindly to.
"Oh, so it's an 'or else' circumstance? You do realize you're vastly outnumbered here, I see no way you walk out of here alive, little lady." Garrin hissed through his incredibly deep voice, leaning forward as he spoke.
"And you must realize you'd suffer many casualties you cannot afford right now. By my guest, based on the amount of empty homes scattered throughout your settlement, you've lost at least 40% of your population in the last 6 days. You're more than likely preparing now for the walls to fail, based on the disparity in size between this castle and the rest of them. Besides, we have a 30 foot flying snake and his thirsty girlfriend down there, I'd prefer they didn't level up here, on your people. Your call." Cassi quickly rebutted, rattling off a slew of accusations.
It appeared she hit a nerve for the most part, considering the change in their leaders posture. His eyes bugged for a moment before he recomposed his uncaring facade.
"I take it you people must have it easy, then. Jaia has spoken of your lands, one that's free of such powerful beasts and undead creatures. You reek of privileged circumstances." Garrin snarled, his face scrunched in disgust.
"Give me your best fighter then." I blurted out, tired of this back and forth. Cassi shot an angry stare at me, one that I happily ignored.
"Really? You want our strongest?! I'll tell you what, little one. You beat my son, Barry, and we will consider your proposal. Otherwise, get the fuck off of my land, we have far more pressing threats to attend to." Garrin stipulated. Finally, some goddamn austerity.
"Sounds good, when and where boss-man? I'm feeling restless anyway." I said, lightly leaping side to side to warm up my muscles. It was becoming more ritualistic than useful, however I enjoyed it nevertheless. Cassi, on the other hand, looked upset to say the least. I'm not sure why, I'm not particularly worried.
At least I wasn't, until the 14 foot walking muscle of a man walked in. The giant had shoulder and leg armoring, with a massive cleaver dragging behind. His eyes glowed a bright red, matching the monster's long straight hair and beard.
"I hear a challenger? In my fathers chambers no less?!" He growled as he stomped forward. Garrin giggled as his son marched from across the large room.
"This is my son, Patrick. He's our Pylon's greatest warrior, and you will fight him-" My stomach turned as the massive cleaver came flying in at the corner of my peripherals, prompting me to duck quickly while water stepping away.
"…now."