Ludo and Althea did not waste their time, they traveled quickly through the forest and hills, arriving in the vicinity of the lair in days instead of weeks with the help of Otar’s map. Thanks to him, they now had a slim chance they could pay off Althea’s debt. Their only obstacle now was for them to find the precise area where the lair resided. While they strolled through a lightly forested area they encountered an unusual sight. Large holes and tree stomps dotted the area. Ludo ran up to one of the holes and encountered something that made him enthusiastic about their search. A large footprint.
“Althea, come and see!” Ludo said, gesturing at Althea to come and see, but the Lobid remained still, watching something to her side. Ludo called for her again but she quickly turned and shushed him.
“Did you hear that?” Althea whispered to Ludo who finally understood her stillness, she had most picked up something his ears did not.
Ludo did not have to wait long as mere seconds later a distant booming sound followed by the ground shaking slightly caught Ludo by surprise. They quickly hid behind the trees and bushes to escape whatever was approaching them. Soon, the booming sound got louder, the earth shook with greater strength and trees swayed back and forth violently. Animals large and small began to run opposite them, almost knocking them over as they ran in sheer terror. Then from beyond the tree line, like a living mountain the giant emerged. Tall as the trees around him, scarred and ugly, the giant passed by, making earth shattering earthquakes with every step.
The giant was carrying a large bow on his hand and a bag a few stories wide strapped to his shoulder. The bag itself was tainted red at the bottom. Ludo kept watching closely as the giant stopped and placed the bag in the ground and grabbed a dead moose from the inside and ate it whole in three bites. The giant scratched his nose which made a wheezing sound and proceeded on his way.
Ludo and Althea followed close behind but it was not easy due to the casual destruction each one of his steps caused. Somehow they managed, and followed the giant into a large hill,. They saw a large hole on one of its sides and the giant gleefully walked into it, as it disappeared into it, Ludo looked at it with his magical eyes to confirm what was already obvious to him.
GIANT
HUMANOID
LEVEL 19
THREAT: HIGH
Both of them were awed at the sight of such a monster but more than that, Ludo let out a sigh of relief, knowing that they had finally found what they were looking for. His relief was short-lived as Althea tapped his shoulder. Ludo turned around to see her with a worried and uneasy expression.
“How are we even supposed to kill that?”
Althea was right, if a well prepared party had perished, what hope did they have?
“Well” Ludo rummaged through his bag and took out a handful of herbs. “We have this!”
“Grass?”
“This isn’t any grass. They’re ingredients for a poison.”
Althea’s eyes widened.
“It’s for the giant!” Ludo added as he noticed her frightful gaze.
They hid far away from the giant’s lair and began to form a plan all while Ludo prepared an area to brew the poison. After about an hour it was all set, a medium size pot filled with water over the campfire. Once the water boiled, Ludo began to drop the ingredients in an arbitrary manner.
“I didn’t know you could actually make potions.” Althea said while observing closely.
“I actually can’t. Auria never let me do it after the incident.”
“The incident?”
At that moment the leaves and roots Ludo had placed on the water melted, turning the transparent water into a hostile green. The water began to bubble violently and to jump out of the pot until a small explosion occurred right on their faces and sent the pot flying into a tree. Ludo and Althea’s faces were covered in green smoke and Ludo spat out some that had gotten into his mouth.
“I think I can guess what that incident was.” Althea snickered. “Did something similar happen as well?”
“Well this one wasn’t as bad. That time the bottom of the pot melted and I almost burnt the entire house down.”
Althea laughed while Ludo restarted the process from the beginning. This time, he did something he had not done before by using his magical eyes, to his surprise they worked. He was quickly able to navigate through the process thanks to it and after half a borrage flower, seeds of neople, and around a dozen or so dandelions he began to stir the pot with a wooden spoon not so fast or slow.
The eyes warned him every time he botched the rhythm and he was quick to correct it until, with a flash of green light, the brewing process was finally completed. The liquid inside the pot whizzed and green steam floated above their heads followed by the stench of death.
“Did you manage to make it this time?” Althea said, covering her nose.
“I think so, yeah.”
“When did you learn to make poison!?” Althea peeked over, looking closely at the potion.
“I helped Auria make them a few times. You have no idea how many angry wives come looking for them.”
“Did they kill their husbands!?”
“No, no. Auria always gave them some potion that gave them food poisoning for a day or two.”
“That doesn’t make it any better!”
“Well,” Ludo shrugged. “I wasn’t going to question Auria’s business decisions as long as they didn’t kill anyone.”
After the poison had cooled, Ludo placed it inside three bottles he had on his half destroyed bag. The rest he spilled on the ground to avoid any possible accidents. For three days they observed the giant’s daily life as he made fences out of whole trees, came and went with a club and bow and game, and cleared city wide areas of land which he then plowed, most likely to set up a farm. As the fourth day dawned, Ludo decided that it was best to poison the giant then. They waited until it left for its morning hunt and got ready.
“You’re ready?” Ludo asked Althea as she finished placing the containers on her bag.
“Yes.”
The plan was simple. Althea would descend into the giant’s home and poison its supply of food while Ludo kept guard on the surface. Ludo helped Althea pack the poison in a small bag.
“Remember, I’ll distract if it returns, so finish quickly.” Ludo said.
Althea nodded and left her hiding spot and began to dash quickly towards the giant’s home.
“Wait!” Ludo said to Althea before she went too far. “Be careful.”
After a brief pause Althea answered. “You too.”
Althea ran towards the entrance and like a flash of white light, disappeared into the darkness below. Now all Ludo had to do was sit and look out for the giant in case it returned. He didn’t have much to worry about, as Althea’s endeavor was quick and straightforward, there was nothing to worry about!
...Or so Ludo thought as the minutes turned into hours and morning morphed into noon. Althea was nowhere to be seen. Unsure on what to do, Ludo contemplated going down to search for her but at that very same time a distant earthquake made him freeze. He turned around and saw a moving hill coming their way. The giant was close and Althea was still inside its home, Ludo looked back and forth, praying that she somehow would emerge from there just in time to then hide but as the giant now stood at the entrance, flaying a large moose he had hunted, it became clear to Ludo that he had to distract it somehow.
He paused, unsure of how he could do such a thing without coming out unharmed. Ludo looked at his sword, then at the nearby trees and finally concluded that he would need to be harmed if he wanted to stop the giant from harming Althea. Reassuring himself with a deep sigh, he took out his old bow and emerged from his hiding place. The giant had not taken notice of him, instead he was busy happily preparing the pelts and meat of its prey. Ludo wavered at the colossal being ahead of him but again stepped forward despite every part of his soul telling him not to and aimed an arrow at the giant, shooting at him a few seconds later.
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Unsurprisingly, the arrow bounced off the giant, not harming him in any way or form. However, the giant did take notice of something hitting its leg; Ludo realized this and began to shoot all his arrows at the giant. This time, the monster looked at the direction the arrows were coming from and saw Ludo. The giant grinned, showing a great amount of missing teeth and then growled as it stood up, somehow taller than before, before trying to grab Ludo who jumped back.
With a roar the giant began to chase Ludo who ran for his life. The giant’s screams and roars echoed through the forest, drowning any other noise; his footsteps toppled the nearby hills and uprooted the trees around him and every time the giant lunged his hands forward trying to grab him he destroyed the ground where Ludo had just been, creating large holes. Yet despite all of the destruction occurring around him, Ludo was able to keep his distance from the giant but he did not dare to look back, scared that looking at the giant’s eyes might kill him.
The giant howled and grabbed a tree, pulling it from its roots and throwing it at Ludo. The tree almost hit him and it was his quick wits that got him out of the way in time. But the giant was not about to give up just yet as it grabbed another and then three more, hurling them at the running Ludo every single time. Ludo continued to bait the giant as far away from its lair as possible, buying Althea as much time as he could until he reached the edge of a gorge. He stopped right at the edge, he looked around, thinking of something as the trembling footsteps of the giant got closer every second. Jumping into a bush, Ludo hid himself from the giant as he appeared ahead of him, throwing any tree unfortunate enough to be on his way high in the air.
Ludo stayed still hidden between the branches and leaves, cautiously observing the giant’s tantrum for a while. At last the giant stopped ripping trees in half and turned back to his cave, towards Althea. Knowing such a thing would spell doom for the quest, Ludo jumped out of the bush and screamed to get the giant’s attention. The monster turned around and growled again before lunging at Ludo who unsheathed his sword and cut two fingers from the giant’s hand. The giant howled and moaned in pain while a stream of blood flowed down its hand. The giant stomped in anger, rocking the entire world with each step and tried to step on Ludo who desperately avoided it.
The giant, so engrossed in destroying Ludo had forgotten where he stood and the gorge, assailed by the clash above it, gave away, creating a cascade of rock and dirt and both Ludo and the giant were part of it. Ludo jumped between the falling chunks while the giant, heavier and unwise was swept away alongside the rest of the cliff top. Not soon after, a loud crashing noise echoed through the land. Ludo breathed a quick sigh and a groan from down below thwarted any hopes Ludo had that the battle was over. Knowing it was just a matter of time before the giant regained his senses, he sprinted back to the lair.
The lair became visible to Ludo after a few minutes of running and he began to look while calling for Althea, hoping for her to appear, for her to be safe, but the lack of any response confirmed his deepest fears, she was still down in the cave. Ludo ran up to the entrance and in a restless manner began to yell Althea’s name but got no reply. Reading his sword, he began his descent.
After a lengthy journey through a large tunnel with a pleasant earthy smell. Ludo found himself in a large dimly lit chamber. There was no doubt a giant lived here as the furniture was twice his size, a set of javelins and a spare bow rested besides a stool and a desk with a scroll as large as a tree dangled on its edge. But Althea was nowhere to be found. In desperation, and through a tedious and elaborate repetition and focus, Ludo activated his magical eyes for yet another time in less than a week, the dark room quickly vanished into basic figures around him and far away he could see the image of a Lobid, Althea. That was not all, beside her, there was something large and cubical that seemed to keep her occupied. Feeling a bit drowsy, Ludo deactivated his magical eyes and ran towards the direction of Althea.
Ludo ran into another part of the giant’s home, this time, it was filled with rustic but easy to spot cooking stations. A crude stove rested in one corner of the room while a large table with a single chair decorated the center of the room.
“Althea!” Ludo called out and soon after her face appeared at the edge of the table.
“What are you doing down here?” She said.
“What am I— The giant was about to come down here and I had to drive him away, why are you still down here!?”
“Ah, is that the friend of yours you mentioned?” An unfamiliar voice said from behind Althea.
“Who is that?” Ludo quickly climbed up the table and saw a large cage behind Althea. Inside was a man, no, another Lobid, grizzled and dirty and missing his right ear. Using his magical eyes, Ludo quickly extracted all the information about the Lobid.
POGHOS SUPPA (44)
LOBID - MALE
LEVEL 32
STRENGTH: 4
STAMINA: 8
MANA: 12
SPEED: 9
DEFENSE: 4
INTELLIGENCE: 10
POINTS AVAILABLE: 0
SKILLS: SKILLS: ONE-HANDED LEVEL 1, RIDING LEVEL 2, ELEMENTAL LEVEL 10
“Otar’s alive?!”
Althea looked at Ludo with eyes that could kill before turning back to Poghos. “No. Ludo found his soul and items.”
“That’s unfortunate.” Poghos said, lowering his head. “May his death had been swift.”
There was an awkward silence thereafter where the only thing that could be heard was a distant earthworm making its home in the giant’s wall. Althea broke the silence first. Explaining to Ludo that she found the cage and Poghos while she poisoned the giant’s food supply and had been trying to get him out ever since. Ludo looked at the cage’s door and a keyhole was there to greet him.
“You have no idea where the key might be?” Ludo asked Poghos.
“I’d already be out if I knew, boy.”
Not wanting to leave Poghos to die, Ludo began to help Althea search for the key through the giant’s kitchen; scrambling the drawers and even going inside the stove, the key was nowhere to be found. While they searched, Ludo felt a slight tremble around him, almost unnoticed had it not been followed by many, stronger trembles, as this went on, the room rocked back and forth, the table creaked and bounced and it had finally dawned on Ludo that the giant was returning home. He jumped out of the stove and ran to Althea who was rummaging through one of the upper cabinets.
“We need to go!” Ludo yelled, as Althea jumped down, Ludo grabbed her arm and began to run towards the exit.
“Hey! Don’t leave me, I beg you!” Poghos cried out from above. “He already ate Sevan, I don’t want to die the same way!”
Ludo stopped, the giant’s steps were echoing louder as each step was closer to them, Ludo looked back at Althea and then at the faraway exit.
“Hide!” was all that Ludo said. Both ran opposite directions, Ludo hid underneath the table shrouded by the shadows and Althea hid behind a large forgotten bowl covered in dust and webs.
They awaited in the shadows, each step boomed through the borrow now. Another step, the table shuddered violently. Another step, the roof of the borrow dropped chunks of dirt onto the ground. Finally, a large head appeared from the edge of the wall. Battered, bleeding and bruised. The giant limped his way towards the table while cursing in a language that escaped Ludo’s knowledge.
The giant sat on the table, making it jitter and screech. Ludo did not dare move a muscle as the giant’s feet were mere distance away. Groaning and grunting, the giant then got up from the chair and threw it in a fit of rage across the room. He stumbled through the room and disappeared into the other chambers. Ludo jumped up on the desk, hoping to see if the giant had left the key to free Poghos but there was none. The quaking sounds of the giant’s footsteps alerted him of the incoming danger and in the heat of the moment, Ludo hid behind Poghos’ cage. Using the thick bars to hide himself.
The giant reappeared, a towel coated in red was wrapped around the area where his fingers should have been while in his other hand there was something shiny that caught Ludo’s eye. It was the key. The giant walked past the desk and plunged himself into the cabinets. Taking out something resembling bread dough, a huge amount of vegetables, a titanic number of spices and a bottle of some brown liquid that Ludo wasn’t sure if it was alcohol or badly maintained water. Peeking through the gaps of the cage with his magical eyes, Ludo looked at the ingredients the giant had taken out and smiled when an expected thing appeared in his view.
POISONED
Everything was going according to plan and so Ludo kept himself hidden. The giant rolled the ingredients together with great care despite his wounded state, forming some sort of wrapped sandwich. The giant then laid it on the table and proudly looked at it for a few seconds. Ludo kept a close eye through all of this, looking for the moment the giant let go of the key, then, to Ludo’s dismay, the giant plunged the key into its hole and swung the cage’s door open, grabbing Poghos.
“Look, we can talk about this right!?” Poghos asked, the giant ignored him as he placed Poghos on top of the wrapped sandwich, there was no way Ludo could save him without fighting the giant again and despite knowing this Ludo jumped out of his hiding place.
“Wait!”
The giant noticed him and growled, throwing Poghos away. Raising his fists high in the air, the giant smashed the table, breaking it in half and sending Ludo and his food flying at all directions. Ludo landed on his side and he was certain he heard a bone or two crack. A sharp pain rose from his left arm as he got back on his feet. Althea and Poghos were nowhere to be seen but that was for the best, he would fight to the bitter end to buy them some time. This time, however, the giant kept his distance from Ludo’s sword, learning from his mistake, the giant began to throw anything within his reach at Ludo. A piece of the chair flew over his head, a spoon his own size almost hit him and finally a plate landed a hit on him. Before he could get back up, the giant grabbed him and dangled Ludo over his head.
The foul odor almost knocked him out right there and then if not for the terrifying sight underneath him as the giant opened his toothless mouth and dangled Ludo above it, ready to devour him. Then, Ludo felt an abnormal wind swirl around him which descended into the giant. Confused, the giant tried to block the air with his hand and in response the wind danced around him before settling around his feet and lifting him up the in the air. The giant dropped Ludo and began to desperately scream, punching at the air and trying to get free. Ludo looked around and saw Poghos was using magic and lifting the giant high in the air. His hands trembled and it looked like he could barely stand, it would not be long before the giant overpowered him.
“Push him down, it’s our only way we can win!” Althea said as she ran into view.
Poghos gritted his teeth and yelled in pain his hands swung to his right, a mere seconds later, the giant moved towards the direction his hands went and dropped the giant face first into the giant face first into the ground. With a gesture from his hands, he pinned the giant on the ground. At last Ludo acted, running close to the giant’s neck.
“Althea, your sword. Go for the neck!” Ludo said, and both of them began to attack the giant.
They slashed and struck at the giant’s neck and head multiple times without stopping while the giant struggled to free himself from Poghos’ magic. So violent were Ludo’s attacks that he feared he would break his sword as he hit the giant with it until, with a long drawn out swing, Ludo hit something hard within the giant’s neck and that caused the great monster to go limp. The giant struggled no more and Ludo and Althea, covered in blood and sweat, dropped to the ground exhausted. A few seconds later the giant exploded into a purple mist and the only thing left behind was his valuables for them to reap. Now that their reward awaited them in Balessia, if they could arrive in time before Walter’s deadline that was.