Vortheim was a relatively new city, built seventy years before Gray’s arrival in Ragnofheim. It was founded by the mountain giant survivors of the great Rock Wurm Stampede, an anomalous event where the population of the enormous wurms exploded and collapsed great swaths of the Sea of Stone into sinkholes and ravaged the land with earthquakes. The relatively sheltered cove kept the titanic swells somewhat tamed, and filled with a healthy population of edible sea creatures.
The architecture was mostly carved from the dark stone of the cliffs. Some giants were blessed with earth elemental magic, and could soften stone to a clay consistency before hardening it once it was in the desired shape. Vortheim boasted a population of twelve thousand giants, and grew almost daily as giants from abroad fled the famine and conflict in the central ranges.
As a rule, giants shied away from the coast as no mountain giant would willingly enter the water for fear of sinking into the soft sand or being sucked out into the great sea as their bodies sank faster than stone. Only one creature in the area avoided the coast more, and that was the Rock Wurm. One peril was greater than the other, and the mountain giants adapted to a life on the coast. They were highly successful fishing from the safety of the shore, able to hurl nets and lines further than any human could ever hope to.
One such giant could be found braving the coastline on this drizzly gray autumn morning. He sang a soft tune as he plodded along. The words were in a lost giant dialect that he couldn’t understand himself, but he cherished the melody of it. His grandmother had sung it often while stirring the cauldron or mending clothes. His voice was pitched high for a giant, and he had been heckled over it since childhood.
The long split logs attached to his feet were a recent invention of his own design that looked somewhat like skis. They distributed the great weight of the giant and prevented him from sinking into the treacherous patches of wet sand that could trap and even kill him. The giant named Bruni was a shy sort, and always tried to come out as early as possible to avoid the other anglers which tended to be quite aggressive and were quick to bully the timid Bruni.
Coming out before the sun and more importantly before the other giants carried the risk of running into dangerous creatures. Bruni kept his large head moving constantly as he worked, scanning the beach up and down, ready to flee at the first sign of trouble. The large chunk of driftwood soared far out into the waves, with fine dwarven made cord trailing behind. The wooden bobber landed in a satisfactory spot, and the carved bone hook retained the stinky bait made from fish innards. Bruni sighed happily at the expert throw. This would be his final cast, he wanted to return to the safety of his home before the others arrived to steal his catches. He eyed the wicker basket on the sand next to him, already heavy with rock fish and snapper. He would eat well today, and could even buy himself a day to sleep in.
As if to cement the morning’s good fortune, a light tug on the cord in his hands made Bruni smile. He waited a second longer and gave the line a sharp tug of his own, securing the hook into whatever was nibbling at it. Based on the amount of resistance this was his best catch yet, and he took his time. Using too much strength could snap the line or rip the hook out. The key was finesse, allowing the fish to swim side to side as it pleased and draw in any slack that it gave him, slowly shortening the gap.
His smile suddenly dissolved as he noticed something tall and dark emerge from the water and move in the direction of his impending catch. It was unmistakably the dorsal fin of a rarely seen and greatly feared sea monster. Bruni abandoned his finesses and began to haul in the precious line as fast as he could. It was not something he could replace. It was crafted with secret dwarven techniques, woven with strands of mithril and silk from goliath spiders. Such goods were currently priceless since all trade with Grandring was blocked by the wicked humans. This fishing line was his livelihood, and the only thing keeping him from starvation or worse, the inland hunting parties.
His catch was nearing the edge of the water now, and Bruni pulled faster still. The dorsal fin had not slowed, and was angling its approach toward the beach. Bruni could now see the immense shadow beneath that ominous five foot fin. Suddenly Bruni’s catch was clear of the water and flopping vigorously as he drew it closer. It was a massive spiny black snapper, a true trophy fish. Bruni’s relief was short lived, however. The dorsal fin did not change course, and fear gripped Bruni’s heart as the legendary sea monster burst from the surf and ran on four short legs directly at him.
Bruni forgot all about his fish and his precious cord. The creature was none other than an Anu’bas, a rare amphibious cousin of the killer whale. It was rarely seen, and almost never encountered on land. Those facts offered little comfort as the ten meter behemoth bore down on poor Bruni. He turned awkwardly and scrambled, the thunderous sounds behind him growing rapidly closer. He could see several figures further inland, and his heart dared to hope for a second that he might be rescued.
That hope was dashed as he realized they weren’t coming out to him, but simply pointing and gawking in his direction. Of course they wouldn’t save him. Those giants tormented him, and more often than not stole most of his catch. Bruni turned, resolved to be brave at least once in his life. He pulled the sharp stone knife from his belt and prepared himself to be ripped apart. One look at the enormous gaping mouth lined with razor sharp teeth shattered that resolve and he shrieked out instead.
“Someone save me please!” The giant fell back and covered his face.
A second passed, then another. The cowardly giant dared to look and his face screwed up in confusion. The whale was no longer moving forward, but seemed to be struggling and thrashing against something holding it back. Then it suddenly began to turn at an odd angle, as though it were spinning from its tail. Bruni then beheld a truly absurd sight. The Anu’bas was being spun by its tail, by a human. Faster and faster the great monster rotated, skipping across the sand and then leaving the ground altogether as wings of shadow appeared from the human’s back and he lifted the whale off the ground as he spun. Soon there was little more than a black blur, and suddenly the sea monster was launched high into the sky and back out into the cove where it splashed into the far distant swells.
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“That’s gotta be the first whale to ever swim, walk, and fly. Am I right?” The human spoke to Bruni in perfect monstrous common as he approached.
Stunned silence was all the poor confused giant could offer in return as he poked himself in the cheek to make sure he wasn’t just having a very strange dream.
Before Bruni could manage a response, a great spear stuck into the sand between Bruni and his savior.
“Hold right there, human!” One of the dozen or so gawkers that could have easily hit the Anu’bas with that same throw barked. “What trickery was that? Lie at your own peril.”
“Oh, no thanks I was just on my way to talk to someone more important when this guy asked for help. You all were just laughing about him getting eaten, and arguing over who’d get his things so I decided to step in. You can throw another spear but you might not like how I give it back.” The mysterious man’s eyes flashed at a giant that had begun to heft a spear. An oppressive aura darkened the beach then, so dense and menacing that it became difficult to even draw breath. “I think I’ll check in on this guy here later, and if he tells me you all gave him a hard time after I bothered saving him... well let’s just try to make sure that doesn’t happen.” With those parting words, wings once more appeared, and the man disappeared from sight.
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I really hadn’t intended to intervene, but I couldn’t help myself. Nothing pisses me off like a group of bullies, and that was the most pathetic cry for help I had ever heard. I hoped that decision wouldn’t affect my plans but if it did, oh well.
I hovered above the city, camouflaged by my cloak. It was a really impressive place, built right into the cliffs with wide stone roads and pulley powered lifts between the various levels. According to Ignea, the leadership resided near the top of the cliffs in a mutli domed stone castle decorated with sculptures of great giants from history.
I spotted the place, and nodded. It was every bit as majestic as I could have imagined. It had a massive central dome probably a hundred feet in diameter, flanked by two smaller domes roughly half that size. The courtyard before it was lined on either side with life size stone statues of various giants, some nude and others armored in epic looking platemail. In the center of the courtyard, a great black pike dozens of meters tall held the bleached skull of a cyclops. Appraisal revealed it to be the weapon of a defeated titan, now kept as a prized relic of the mountain giants. I doubted the somewhat puny skull belonged to the original wielder.
I descended and revealed myself to the two armored mountain giants guarding the palace doors with a bow.
“Greetings. My name is Gray and I come in peace to speak with your king.” I looked up just in time to see an enormous axe head descending to split me in half.
With a sigh I caught the blade between my thumb and index finger and held it tightly as the giant guard struggled to yank it free in vain. To his credit the other guard wasn’t attacking, just staring stupidly at the tiny man holding his partner’s axe.
“Not a human!” The struggling giant grunted. “Demon! Sound the alarm!”
“Hey dumbass, I said I come in peace!” I yelled in frustration as I released the axe blade, causing the giant to over balance backward. I phased forward and up, appearing in front of his face before tapping him lightly on the chin with my palm.
He collapsed instantly into an unconscious heap, and I turned to the seemingly more reasonable giant.
“Look, I don’t want to hurt anyone here and you guys are gonna feel REALLY stupid after today plays out if you keep coming at me like this.”
The great double doors flew open then, and a burst of deep laughter heralded a much larger figure. This giant was very clearly the big shot around here. He was easily thirty feet in height and had to duck to exit the castle. He was also wide, and wore layers of luxurious pelts over his boulder like shoulders. Atop his head was a crown made of steel, with many sharp spires.
“King Thrym, is it?” I asked with a hop backwards and another respectful bow. I used the name Ignea had given, hoping this wasn’t some new king.
“Nay, tiny devil with great strength!” The crowned giant looked positively joyous. “Thrym is my father. I am Hygnar, Prince of Clan Torbas. Defeat me and you may speak to the king! Only might gives you a voice here.”
“If might is what you wish to see, then so be it.” I summoned my wings and leaped up and back, hovering just above the tip of the great pike. “But first, it would be rude to intrude without presenting a gift.” I opened my inventory and selected the item that was taking up nearly all of my space.
The head of Thurg appeared, fully four times the size of the cyclops skull already on the pike, and I drove it down the shaft to stop around halfway up. The great evil eye was clouded over now, but still glared with menace.
The joyous expression on Hygnar’s face vanished, his eyes widened, and all color drained from his ruddy cheeks.
“Weapons down!” Hygnar bellowed, never taking his eyes off the gruesome severed head. At his order, I could hear dozens of great bolts being removed from ballista sized crossbows on the walls around me. “Please wait here a moment.” The now subdued giant added before returning to the castle interior.
The knocked out giant guard slowly came to, and his eyes found focus on Thurg’s head. With a weird squeaky grunt he fumbled for his weapon and looked up at his alert partner who slowly shook his head one time. With that the overzealous guard slowly found his feet and simply waited while glancing nervously from me to the head over and over.
A minute later, a trio of giants filed out with Hygnar at the lead. Behind him was an equally massive giant clearly in the later years of his life but no less imposing. Instead of a steel crown, he wore one of elegant golden ivy. At his side was a regal giant woman in a flowing blue dress. She wore golden bands around her toned biceps, and a simple golden circlet on her head.
“Honored Father, Honored Mother. This stranger has come bearing the head of one of the clan’s greatest foes. It is unmistakable.” Hygnar bowed as he spoke.
“Thurg. The great beast rages no more.” The king marveled and his voice stuttered with emotion. “Mighty stranger, you have avenged many of our kin. A feast for the ages will be held this day. What is your name?”
“It’s Gray.” I replied, glad to finally be getting somewhere. “Don’t get too excited yet, this is just the beginning.”
“What do you...” King Thrym began but trailed off as I focused my thoughts at the end of the courtyard and connected my mind to the location of my spilled blood in the dead jungle.
“Blood Gate.” I spoke the words and a blood red portal appeared. I could hear all five giants behind me suck in a sharp breath.
A few tense moments passed in silence. Then a giant female silhouette appeared in the portal, and then Ignea stepped through with wide eyes. Behind her, five hundred and ninety freed mountain giant slaves began to come through.
“Is that Ignea!?” The queen broke her silence for the first time, and she held her dress out to the sides as she rushed down the stone steps.
“Aunt Hilda!” Ignea choked on the words as she rushed into the queen’s embrace.
A chaotic and emotional few hours followed, but after that everything couldn’t have gone better. The mountain giants became sworn allies, and needless to say I never had to fight Hygnar.
Later that night I found the giant I saved, and he thanked me roundly, and said that the other giants had taken to shunning him rather than bullying him. I felt bad at first but he explained he actually liked it that way as he preferred to keep to himself. I understood the sentiment fully and wished him well. I didn’t know it then, but the giant named Bruni would one day become a really famous guy. You’ll learn all about that another day.