Kassius woke up and felt as if he were in a marketplace; the voices and languages around him were too familiar. He opened his eyes and immediately shielded them from the light with his pillow. His body seemed to rest on the clouds, and that strange sensation of sleeping somewhere other than the hard forest soil troubled him. Was he in the Elysian Fields? He forced himself to open his eyes. He was surrounded by half-broken walls, like the ruins of ancient Hellenian cities. Voices, sunlight, and a fresh breeze filtered through them. A canopy hung over his head, nailed to the trees and the walls, and next to him, women and soldiers whom he had never seen – some of them in Itruschian armor – were sleeping or lying down with defeat and frustration in their eyes. Was it the medical tent of the Itruschian army? His eyes drifted down and noticed the reddened bandages around the man next to him... He had no legs.

The one next to him, too, had lost a foot and an arm.

Where was he?

He tried to move to the side, but a sharp pain overcame his body. He groaned and clenched his right fist. His left did not respond. He blinked, getting used to the light, and caught a glance of himself. Red and brown painted the bandages around him, especially around the area where the pain was the greatest. But something he saw made him pale.

He tried to lift his shoulder; his arm responded in pain.

But half of his arm was missing.

A scream surged from the bottom of his lungs, piercing the entire world around him.

"You're finally awake!" said a female voice that crossed through the curtains.

Kassius was panting, his right hand tensed around his blanket.

Kassara opened the curtains, with the light behind her black hair drawing her like an apparition. Her presence was comforting. She walked in and sat by his side.

"You smell like hell, by the way," she said with a smile, and her fingers drifted up and covered her nose.

"What... What happened?" Kassius asked.

"You saved us all. You're a hero. They think you are the god Mercury. Silly them."

"What... Is..."

"Don't you remember?"

He shook his head. Yes, he knew it, he felt it, but going there felt horrible – felt worse than the pain.

"You..."

"I... I think I know," he said, but he glanced away, as if looking beyond the canopy, beyond the trees, beyond the forest. "What happened to them? Where is everybody?"

"Try to get some rest, in your body and your mind. We need you to get better before we make any move."

"But what about the village?"

"Many died, but you saved hundreds. The Itruschian army is also here."

"But..."

"It's all good," she winked an eye. "Alana's friends too."

"What friends?"

"A bunch of mounted weirdos. They fled when the Giant appeared and camped nearby. Later they came back to see what happened. They're helping us with their provisions."

Kassius sighed and let his head down.

"How many days..."

"You've been asleep for six days."

Somebody pulled the curtain again.Tor stepped in, with a wide smile on his face. He rushed to Kassius' side.

"Tor, you made it too," Kassius said.

The curtain remained open, and a young woman with dark blonde hair entered, followed by an older woman with streaks of white hair, a thick body and an embroidered white tunic with flowery patterns. They were Irema and her mother, Zita.

"Kasha!" Irema said with a wide smile on her face. She was holding a clay bowl on a silver tray, white steam escaping from above. "Here, I heard that you love stew. We have been making this every week, hoping that you'd wake up from the smell."

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"Thanks, Irema," he said. She stepped in and rested the tray on his lap. The smell of vegetables and meat made his stomach and tongue yearn for a taste. He grabbed the silver spoon on the side and sunk it to grab a piece of pumpkin.

"Hey! Give something to us!" cried one of the soldiers on his side.

"Keep quiet!" Kassara hissed, fixing the man with a freezing glance. "You'll have your rations. If this man hadn't done what he did, you wouldn't even be alive."

Kassius kept his eyes open wide, his stomach was empty. He opened his mouth and felt the soft savory flavor of the stew, tasting bites of soaked carrots and cabbages. Another spoonful and he chewed on soft lamb meat.

"Thanks," he said. "Well, thank you. Has Alana come back?"

"Not yet," Kassara said, then pursed her lips.

Kassius closed his mouth and sighed. He moved the tray forward with his only hand and placed it on the bed.

"I will keep fasting, I need to know how she is."

"Eat your food," Kassara said, pointing at the bowl. "You need it."

Kassius sighed. Where was Alana? He concentrated on the center of his soul and asked to see where she was.

But there was no vision, not even a glance.

"Kassius, relax, it will all be fine," Kassara said.

And then, the memory of what had occurred to them crossed his mind like lightning. It caused him to shake in his bed. That creature. The walls trampled underfoot like mere ant hills, his grandfather shielding the Sanctuary with his life. Hundreds dead before his eyes.

"What if they come back?" he said, and started to pant.

The people around him remained silent. Only the chirping birds in the trees above continued to sing. His friends paled.

"Good boy," Kassara said, running her fingers through his hair. "You did well. Do not worry about that, no one knew what was happening, and what you did was very brave."

"We've never doubted you're sent by the gods," Mother Zita declared.

The Itruschians moved their glances away, as if overcome by shame.

"Did we lose anyone?" Kassius asked.

"Raxana died guiding people to the shrine," Kassara said with a solemn tone.

Kassius pursed his lips and sighed.

"Kassara," he looked up. "I need you to do something for me."

"What?"

"You know how to tattoo the skin, don't you?"

"I do, Kassius," she raised an eyebrow. "What do you need?"

"I need you to tattoo the sigil on my chest.""Well," she ran her hand through her dark hair. "I can do that. Just tell me when you want me to."

"And I have another question. What about the commander who caught us? Where is he?"

***

The tattoo did not hurt much, as he procured the best numbing herbs, but the process was really bloody. Anyway, even without the herbs, it would not have hurt as much as his missing arm.

After a day of rest, Ira took him to see the commander. The new prisoners were held at the lowest level of the new administrative building, among them, the Centurion Julius, who had been there when the attack started, and a few more who the women of the village denounced as the worst.

The other two were in their own cells, the ones that Kassius and his friends had occupied before the battle. But Florianus was at the very end, and instead of sitting with shame in his eyes, he was chained by the hands and legs to the wall.

"He's been trying to kill himself," Kassara said, leaning on the wall. "I was waiting for you to see."

"Let me go, let me end it all!" Florianus ordered. "I cannot bear to live like this. I… I did not torture you, I do not believe in torture… Please grant me my own wish… Please grant me death."

"And yet you threatened to sell us to a circus to be eaten by lions, you took my friend's baby girl and wanted to destroy the child's identity." Kassara crossed her arms.

"Please have mercy on my soul, there is no greater torture for me than to live as a captive."

Kassara advanced and looked down at the man, clenching her teeth.

"We will not let you die."

The man's blue eyes sparkled with rage.

"Do it! I've had enough of this life." He breathed heavily. Kassius could see tears forming in his eyes, but the man turned his face to hide them. "Enough! I lost everything, I lived my life for this very struggle, and now there's nothing left to fight for."

"Stop it," Kassius said. "I have come to ask you about that book. That book saved you and all of us. What is it about?"

"What do you care?"

"I care about this world. What you saw was one of the first attacks. There is not only one giant, there could be hundreds. This world, even your beloved empire, is at risk. There's a way to stop it."

"It's the same as your book, but written in the East, it's just… prophecies and legends."

"What you did was very brave," Kassius said. "We may not agree with you, many of my people have a good reason to hate you, but we cannot afford to think that way anymore. There are horrible monsters roaming around and the least we can do is unite to fight them."

The man looked up at him, attentive.

"You have a chance to save this world," Kassius said. "But I need your help. We are putting away our enmity. Our hatred. For this. You know the language in that book, and I'm sure you know many things we don't. Things that can save us."

The man lowered his head and took a deep breath. He did not yet speak."Are you willing to help us?" Kassius said. "I issued an order; no one will touch you, and your soldiers are still loyal to you. I can promise to let you out if you play by the rules. The Hunatians are still with us and outnumber you."

"Don't let my men see me. No, I can't face them. Let me die, for the love of Jupiter!"

"What are you fearing? They see you as a hero. We have heard them call out for your freedom, for us to forgive you. We all saw you charge against the Giants, while you could have come with me to hide. You are a warrior, so now, this is the battle you have been waiting for. So stop lamenting and show that you're a true Itruschian."

The man's glance distilled with fear.

"You are just a traitor," the man said.

Kassius chuckled.

"But I want to fix things," Kassius answered. "You can save your world, but instead, you're willing to let it rot in order not to lose your pride."

"Alright, alright," Florianus growled. "What do you want me to do?"

"Tell me about your book and teach me how to read the Elder Script."