The path the Giants were following led them close to the mountains before it began to slope upwards, going around shoulders with huge cliffs jutting out above them. Trees grew near the mountain edges, some bore fruit, which they ate, while freshwater streams allowed the party to have a healthy supply of water. Numerous animals scuttled between the trees and rocks, some of which were large enough to provide the Giants with a sizeable meal, yet they longed for a dragon to feast on. The path wound its way upwards, heading in and out of gullies and over mountain passes. Rain began to fall as they were traversing a loose rocky slope, known as a scree slope, before they quickly re-joined the well-trodden path as thunder boomed overhead. They sheltered under a few trees growing on the cliff, not daring to go into a cave as lightning is known to jump from the roof a cave to the floor. The thunderstorm passed over them and headed South, allowing them to shelter from the rain in a large cave cut into the cliff. A passage at the back of the cave continued deep into the rock and they took turns being on guard as the others slept.
Twulai was awake, watching for any signs of danger as the others slept. He couldn't tell whether it was night or day any more only that it was dark and they were tired. The pitter, patter of the rain was hypnotic and relaxing, yet the distant thunder kept Twulai alert. It was in this alert yet subdued state that Twulai failed to notice the faint sound of carefully placed feet at the back of the cave. Creatures came out from the dark, watching Twulai's outline in the front of the cave. They came quietly, scuttling and hungry. The hoard was quiet and they emerged into the open cave. It was now that Twulai felt the hairs on the back of his neck begin to rise. He turned to see the creatures that awaited him. The swarm of figures were all short, stumped and crawling on all fours racing towards him, the other Giants and the humans like a tidal wave. Twulai could not even begin to count numbers as more poured out of the passageway, swarming across the floor, walls and the roof of the cave.
“Wake up!” Twulai screamed, so much that he almost roared. The others woke up immediately, crying out in horror at the sight with awaited them. They scrambled to their feet but the creatures were on them too fast. Pacha and Elizabeth screamed as they were instantly engulfed by the creatures, causing them to disappear into the horde.
“Pacha!” Asil cried out.
“Elizabeth!” Achala shouted. The creatures began to titter and shriek and the Giants tried to fight them off as they retreated out of the cave. The creatures began to crawl up the Giants’ bodies like ants, the endless stream of them began to overrun the Giants, pushing them nearer to the cliffs’ edge. Asil screamed as she was pulled down and into the horde, inundated by the creatures.
“No!” Twulai cried out weakly as the creatures swarming caused him to choke.
“Asil!” Achala yelled as she struggled to hold back the creatures. Asil vanished into the cave passageway. The screeching and whooping of the creatures couldn't be held back as they pushed the remaining four Giants off the edge of the cliff. However, their deafening shrieks were cut short by a clap of thunder sounded above them. Their joy became fear and they fled back into the back of the cave as quickly as they had come from it. The Giants they would come back for, as they had a feast already awaiting them.
The passageway twisted and turned heading deep into the mountain and shouts could be heard from Pacha, Elizabeth and Asil being swept along by the swarm. The swarm persisted down the tunnel at an alarming rate before entering a large chamber. The mass of the creatures parted, leaving Pacha, Elizabeth and Asil laying on the rocky floor. They hastened to their feet and looked around at their surroundings. They were in a cavern, almost 100ft high and easily a kilometre in width. Lining the walls and ceiling lay hundreds of lizards. The reptiles were luminescent with a bright blue colour, lighting up the cavern. Asil made out the yellow bands on the lizards and she knew immediately that they were venomous. In the dim blue light, Asil made out the creatures which had brought them here. They were smaller than Pacha and Elizabeth, their lumpy skin was as repulsive as the noise which came from their diseased vocal cords. All of them were disfigured in some way, some had bent hands, fingers and toes which on the end lay claws rather than fingernails. The most horrifying part about the army of goblins was not their hideous looks or their nature, but their numbers. There were easily thousands of them here, if not more. They stood staring at Asil and the humans a few paces away yet Asil didn’t want to experience the power of their sheer numbers once more. Therefore she, like Pacha and Elizabeth stayed put. The goblins were skittish like they were awaiting something.
Soon enough a rumbling came from within the cavern and something came towards Asil and the humans. The ground, walls and ceiling of the chamber shook, and a being larger than Asil and wider than the thickest tree trunk lumbered into view. Its exact shape was hard to make out as it’s stone body meant it blended in perfectly with the cave around it. Only by its movements could she make out its body.
“Rum ma ne ra du ca say,” Came a sound that was loud, deep and echoed around the walls. “Ra redu. Bu ruf, wama ca sa,” The sound came again. It was coming from the creature that stood before them. The creature leaned down and inspected them as it spoke. Pacha thought that the smoke rising up around the creature was fire or gas however, as it drew near to her she could see that the plumes of vapour were rising from the places where its mouth and eyes should be. “Ri ca so, ba bum re mai?” The voice was clear and the creature moved as any other living creature would, despite being entirely made of stone. The goblins, which had been silent while this creature had been speaking, began to snigger as if they understood what it was saying. Asil, Pacha and Elizabeth didn’t know what to do, so stayed silent.
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“Ric a ma ru!” The creature bellowed, the sound reverberating loudly off the chamber walls and caused Pacha and Elizabeth to cover their ears. “Gruca rimorti, ca ka per ou,” After the creature spoke the goblins swarmed towards Asil and the humans once more. They called out at the sudden movement but were unable to control to sea of hands which now lifted all three of them up. The goblins themselves were laughing and muttering.
“Ki Quitay.” They called out, thousands of them drawn to the same two words. They threw Asil and the humans high into the air and ripped their clothing with their claws each time they got hold of them. The stone creature watched them and laughed in a deep tone.
“Bri bra um,” The stone creature said after a while and after its amusement had faded. The goblins placed Asil and the humans down gently onto the floor.
They watched the stone creature reach over to one of the walls, where it took hold of one of the lizards and brought it close to its body. Pacha and Asil stared at the lizard, fascinated at its luminescence, whereas Elizabeth was warier. The stone creature threw the lizard at Pacha and Asil’s feet before reaching down and picking Elizabeth up. “Bum ma pu ic quqa,” the voice bellowed, holding Elizabeth close to what should have been its face. Then with surety and great force, it began to crush Elizabeth in its hand. Elizabeth gasped for air, unable to do anything else.
“Elizabeth!” Pacha cried out and she began to run towards Elizabeth. Quickly the goblins jumped into action, they stopped her movement and held her still, leaving her to watch Elizabeth.
Shrieking erupted behind them, amongst the crowd of goblins and they turned to see what the sudden outcry was about. A massive boulder flew over their heads, which Asil had to duck for, and hit the stone creature directly in the chest. Elizabeth fell from the creature’s grip and Asil managed to catch her before she hit the floor. Asil turned back to see where the boulder had come from, and the figures of their friends were clearly made out in the blue light. More boulders flew around the chamber crashing into the goblins. The Giants were swarmed by the goblins and without any hesitation they threw their bodies against the stone walls, killing most of the goblins that clung to them. Quickly, Asil quickly picked up Pacha and Elizabeth and told them to hold on tight to the leather of her shoulder straps. She then picked up a nearby boulder and launched it straight at the goblins that were racing towards her. All the Giants sprinted towards the passageway, while Ilioc and Torbjørn covered their backs repeatedly lifting and hurling boulders at the oncoming multitude of goblins. Their days in the arena had provided Ilioc and Torbjørn with enough stamina, strength and endurance to deal with this situation. Darting to the exit as fast as they could, adrenaline forced them on. Minutes into the chase the Giants emerged out of the cave and back into the thunderstorm.
Most of the goblins stopped at the edge of the cave, strongly fearful of the storm, but a few moved onwards; driven out of the cave by their hunger which overcame their instinctive fear of the storm. They neared the Giants, squealing and drooling as they went. One of the goblins sprinted forwards and, in a burst of energy, leapt up high into the air heading straight for Pacha’s neck. Elizabeth turned around just a moment before the goblin’s long claws found Pacha’s neck, and without a second thought, she leapt and intercepted the goblin’s attack. What happened next took only a matter of seconds, but to Pacha, it lasted a lifetime. As soon as Elizabeth and the goblin made contact they plummeted over the edge of the cliff.
The Giants ran onwards knowing that there was nothing they could do, but Pacha’s world stood still. She wanted to go back in order to see if Elizabeth was alive and if she could save her, but in her heart, she knew that Elizabeth was dead and there was nothing more that she could do. The Giants kept running down the mountain path, knocking rocks down the cliffs below them. Thunder rumbled above them and lightning lit up the sky as it struck nearby. They took the first path down towards the wasteland which now had lakes dotted around its landscape. As they came to rest Asil placed Pacha down before joining the other Giants. Pacha sat down where she had been placed, in shock from Elizabeth’s fall and her brain reeling away from what had just happened. The Giants gathered in a circle, weary and unsure of what to make of Pacha and the loss of Elizabeth. They decided to leave Pacha alone for a while, as they feared that, as Giants, they would not be much use.
“You’re still alive then?” Asil said in a surprised tone to the other Giants.
“Yes,” Achala replied. “It turns out that the cliffs have good friction and we’re all competent climbers.”
“What was that thing inside the cave?” Twulai asked.
“I don’t know,” Asil answered. “But it seemed to be controlling the goblins. Ki Quitay. That’s what the goblins were chanting.”
“A Quitay?” Torbjørn asked with surprise and intrigue.
“You know it?” Twulai questioned in return.
“It is a legend that is hundreds, if not thousands of years old. They are said to be the Kings of the Tukamani, a species made of fire and rock. They normally drift through the molten lava of Kunaya below the surface but long ago the Quitay became cut off from returning underground and so they live on the surface. Their fire fading with every year that they remain separated from their lifeblood of molten lava.”
“As interesting as the old tales are,” Asil interrupted. “where did you two learn to fight like that?” Asil asked directing her question to Ilioc and Torbjørn.
“The arena,” Ilioc answered. “As soon as we began to attack the goblins, my muscle memory kicked in and I fought as I had done in the arena. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the moves that I learnt in there.”
“Could you be able to teach us some of those moves?” Twulai asked him.
“Of course,” Ilioc replied. Ilioc and Torbjørn then demonstrated the techniques they had picked up in the arena to the other Giants. Achala, Twulai and Asil then attempted to replicate the moves.