041 - Sky Beyond Sky

"Bad mutt! No! My meat!" Kujata snarled, trying to pull the boar carcass out of the wolf's mouth. Sif chomped viciously, tearing chunks of meat from the boar and running out of the courtyard.

"Meat! My meat! Get back here you cheeky bastard!" She chased the white wolf to the edge of the courtyard and stopped. Kujata stamped her feet, swearing and cursing as Sif ran off into the night with the boar in its jaws.

Ring! Ring!

"Bloody buggerance! If it ain't one thing its another . ." Kujata sprinted into the shrine to the telescope.

Magnus found himself suddenly alone. He watched passively as the wolf and Kujata fought, watched without thinking to act or even get to his feet. Lesson two, keeping a secret. I can do that. Hells, I ain't got anyone left to talk to . .

Magnus sat quietly in the courtyard, eyes closed. In his mind rose images of the last five years in Kloster, from when Festus first turned up, when everyone and everything was so excited and wanted to be giant.

He had been jealous, madly envious of all of them who had been allowed into the experiment. They got the fight! They got to die valiantly fighting monsters! What higher honour could there be then that?

And they were betrayed. All, everyone, every single thing . . . there was no honour in being poisoned to death, in falling helpless before a scheme. The lifeless body of Ingrid, Harkness dying like a dog in the street . .

Whatever the chance was, Magnus knew he'd take it. He would risk death ten thousand times rather than let Festus and all the blood Alchemists get away with thinking they could disgrace his friends and family. Vermin! Like bloody rats, poisoned in the streets! Made to run and jump and fight for their amusement!

Magnus trembled with anger, his fists tightened, his teeth ground together. In his head there was just a pounding, a single thump thump pulse of blood loud through every nerve and sinew.

There was a deep crack, Magnus gasped in pain, his vision turning black. Within his naval another bone crunching crack, like a tree being torn in half.

The core that had just been infused with the boars vital force splintered, from the pit of his stomach rose a sharp burning sensation, spreading through his arms and legs, up his spine.

Magnus groaned, falling on his side and rolling around in agony.

"And done . . Magnus!" Kujata jumped from the window "Magnus,? Ah hells . . shit. Deep breaths Magnus, come on lad."

The skin of Magnus arms crinkled like dry paper, yellow pus bubbling up from between pulsating black lines.

"Big sis . . ow, ow, ow." Magnus rolled around howling in agony. This was far worse, far more painful than it had been before.

Kujata shot a red thread into Magnus belly, an instant chill flowed into him, the pain subsided. Magnus ground his teeth and took several deep breaths.

"Looks like your core shattered. Let me see now . . ah . . whoa . ." Kujata fell silent, her hand on Magnus navel. "That's not . . that not right. I've never seen one like this . . a core this big . . gosh."

"Whats wrong?"

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Kujata bit her lip, "Ahem. Wrong? Nothing . . it's just, well, I'd never expected you to be so, so well endowed. The vital force you took from the boar wasn't enough, not nearly enough. Not even enough to keep your core together for half a day. That it really odd. Has it always been this, this big?"

"I don't know. Isn't it normal? I never had a look at it before, no one said anything . . I thought it was just the same as anyone elses."

"Hmm. Could it be? Well, this is something that you definitely would have noticed. The black skin . . the yellow pus . . hmm." Kujata kept channeling a soothing energy into his navel.

Magnus slowly recovered, the sudden pangs of pain and aches became a little easier to bare. Kujata lifted her hand, Magnus lay back against the dirt, his breathing shallow.

"Tired, right? Sleep a little Magnus. Rest. Don't worry, you'll be alright. We'll carry on with the lessons in the morning."

Magnus slept fitfully, tossing and turning, his dreams visions of a horde of naked giants stampeding over the earth, trampling mountain and drinking whole lakes dry. He ran amongst them, one of the giant men, laughing and fighting.

The vision soured, the dream sky turned a dismal white and grey, the sun and stars blocked by an endless wall that fell, covered the land. Magnus choked, the white sky smothering him and pressing him down against the ground.

He woke to darkness, to a world of thick fur pressing down on him. White hair in his mouth, in his nose, Sif laying full across his body pinning Magnus to the dirt.

Kujata watched him struggle from her window, greasy black hair hanging over her face. She raised a cask of ale to her lips, draining it of the last of the liquid and throwing it out into the courtyard.

"You lied to me."

"Pff, pffff! Gerroff! Damn wolf! Get the hell off me!" Magnus spat out a clump of fur, wriggling his way out from under the giant wolf.

"Magnus," Kujata snapped her fingers, Sif instantly leapt off and sat to a side. "Magnus, you lied to me."

"Big sis . . I . ."

"You lied. It's alright. No big deal." Kujata jumped down from the window and advanced on Magnus. "Only, you lied, and now A FUCKING ALCHEMIST IS ON HIS WAY."

"..."

"No big deal. No worries. Ah hells. You know, I could have taken countermeasures, avoided all this before the fact, kept you within the sealing formation. But no, you said no one was in the swamp and I believed you. Why would you have lied? More fool I!" Kujata paced up and down the shrine courtyard, kicking bones and discarded trash.

"Wooo woo wooo," Sif lay down and put its paws over its head.

"Big sis! I, I," Magnus stuttered, the words catching in his throat when Kujata turned her glare on him.

"I, I, I what? Ah fuck it. Phew." She stood still, turning her face up and closing her eyes. "It isn't too late. Alright. Relax."

"Big sis! I didn't know, I thought -"

"Shut it! Let me think. Countermeasure . . a plan . . okay." Kujata pointed a finger at Magnus, a blue thread and a green thread emerged and braided together, spiralling through the air at him. “Right. A plan. Simple. Magnus, all you have to do die.”