The ship had sailed for days without the crew seeing either land or sunlight. These waters weren’t on any maps, and the thick fog made navigating by the sun or stars nearly impossible. It was only thanks to the memories of an old man who had escaped from the terrible island many decades ago that they were able to find it. It loomed out of the fog like a tower of stone. At first they could see only one, but soon other islands and cliffs could be seen all around them. All were of the same grey stone, as grey as the fog and the sky and the ocean itself. After sailing along the base of an immense cliff for quite some time, the ship found a place to anchor, next to a rocky beach. Behind the beach lay a boulder covered slope, stretching up as far as could be seen in these conditions. Once the ship was at anchor, the leader of the company of soldiers commanded them to disembark, but no-one dared.

“Come on! You useless cowards!” Prince Argo shouted at his men. “What are you waiting for? You knew what lay at the end of this voyage, so why did you volunteer in the first place?”

“”Well, sire, we thought…” one of the commanders of the soldiers said. “You see, we didn’t actually think the island existed. I mean, it sounded so far-fetched, just like some of your other…”
“What?” Argo yelled, advancing towards the man. “My other what?”

The soldier gulped nervously, regretting his words. None of them really liked the prince, but they still had to show the proper respect. Argo gripped the commander’s shoulder: he was easily a foot taller and much stronger than his subordinate. Without saying another word, the heir to the thrones of Solis and Rheir pulled out his sword and impaled the soldier with it, lifting him clean off the ship’s deck. Seconds later his lifeless body fell on the deck with a thud.

“Anyone still left on this ship a minute from now shall share that man’s fate,” Argo announced.

His men didn’t need to be told twice. They grabbed their weapons and shields and streamed down the planks to the shore. The old man, Gligo, who had guided them here got to his feet and made to join the soldiers, but Argo held him back.

“Not you,” the prince said. “You’ll stay here. We need you to get back to Solis once we’re done here. Besides, these ‘monsters’ of yours can’t be hard to find – if they’re as huge as you say they are.”

“Oh, they’re huge all right! I reckon even you will feel like a mouse next to one of the ogres of Uqlum, my prince. Don’t know how you’ll keep them from eating you…”

“That’s not your concern! Just stay here and wait for us, and you’ll be rewarded once we’re home. Now, just point me in the direction of the ogres’…cave, I guess? You said they live in caves, didn’t you?”

Argo leapt off the ship, ordered his troops to form a double-file formation, then told them to march in the direction Gligo had pointed. He followed behind with the remaining two commanders, all of them keeping their eyes and ears open for anything lurking in the fog. After climbing up the immense slope – no easy task – the men found themselves on a desolate plain, littered with boulders. The only signs of life were a multitude of enormous trees, most of which appeared to be dead. Many of them had giant marks on them that looked like they were made by claws or teeth. Argo felt a thrill as he saw these marks, left no doubt by the islands’ inhabitants – but he wondered if they were not still a bit too small.

Many hours later, the tired soldiers came to the base of another cliff, but this one was far from monotonous. It featured the entrances of several immense caves, more than a hundred feet high. The plain at the cliffs’ base was littered with bones, some human or animal, but most belonging to some kind of immense beast. The soldiers were wondering just what kind of beast it was, when they suddenly got to see several living specimens up close.

One of the large boulders which surrounded them came to life. It rose up on a pair of stubby legs, and immense arms appeared on its sides. Standing before the petrified soldiers was a living ogre, something none of them had seen before. Soon the other boulders in the area rose up as well, and yet more ogres came shambling out of the caves, making a tremendous racket. Soon the men were surrounded by a ring of the stone-grey giants. The smallest ogre stood at least sixty feet tall, and some of the larger ones over a hundred feet. They were jostling with each other to get to the front of the crowd, their long arms reaching for the tiny soldiers, who were waving their weapons in front of them to ward off the monsters. Argo knew he had to do something quickly, before they were all killed – or eaten alive.

Unlike previous visitors to the island of the ogres, Prince Argo had come prepared. He’d learnt from ancient records that the city-state of Solis had been attacked by ogres several times in the distant past, and that each time the beasts had been driven off. Eventually he found out why: an ancient sorcerer had crafted an orb that could repel these creatures and could even be used to control them, since ogres had very simple minds, even though they did show occasional flashes of cunning every now and then. After scouring the city and its surroundings for months, the prince’s men finally discovered something in a crumbling tomb that matched the orb’s description. Of course, there could be no way of knowing whether it was the same orb, so coming here had still been a tremendous risk…but Argo was determined to get his revenge, and if his plan failed he could always make his escape while ordering his men to stay behind (and get eaten).

“I am the Emperor of Solis and Rheir!” he exclaimed, pulling out the orb from beneath his cloak. “I command you to obey my words! Back away and obey me, you giant brutes!”

A roar of fury was heard from all around them, but not one of the ogres tried to attack them. Instead they all took a few steps back, forming a wider circle around the relieved soldiers. None of the men had been privy to Argo’s plan, and they now waited anxiously to see what would happen.

“I am the Emperor!” Argo repeated, though that title still belonged to his father, Malmo. “I possess the orb of Adaruat, your ancient conqueror. You know what power it holds. If I wanted to, I could make you turn on each other right now and devour each other. But I have a better use for you. I need you to take care of some giants for me.”

He began to explain to them what he wished them to do. Less than an hour later, Argo and his soldiers were on their way back to their ship, while behind them the island’s inhabitants had begun uprooting the dead trees and carving out canoes from the logs using their teeth and claws. The ogres had at first objected to Argo’s plan, but of course they couldn’t withstand the power of the orb. And once the man had explained to them how, in return for their help, he would give them entire cities full of humans to devour, or otherwise use as they wish, they began to listen eagerly. Vast new supplies of food awaited them, much more than they had to eat on this desolate island, and all they had to do was kill three giants – female ones at that.

Argo was enormously pleased with himself. Everything had gone perfectly. Not only had not one of his men lost their lives (except for the fool who had had the nerve to mock him earlier), but he was now in command of a large group of vicious man-eating beasts. He could finally have his revenge on Princess Belena of Vandan, and make her pay for the insolent way she had treated him. He would take care of her giant mother, Queen Valerie, her father, King Alban, and anyone else who stood in his way. Then nothing would stop him from becoming the sole ruler of Vandan, something he would never have become if he had married the giant princess. Of course, he first intended to depose his father and become emperor of Solis and Rheir, so that he could have full command over its armies as well – but that shouldn’t prove difficult, not when he already had an army of giant ogres obeying him.

The big day had finally come. Princess Belena, the heir to the throne of Vandan, was getting married to the man she loved. Although, since he was only seventeen, Lorek didn’t consider himself a man yet – not completely, at least. Still, he was old enough to become married under the laws of the land, and he was definitely in love with the princess, that much he was certain of. But knowing he loved her wasn’t enough to prevent him from having second thoughts just before the big moment.

The wedding would take place in the queen’s throne room. A large table had been placed on one side of the room, just left of the carpet that ran from the throne to the great doorway. On this table Lorek waited for his bride to enter the room, his heart pounding like a hammer. Behind him sat the two most important men in the kingdom: King Alban and his son, Prince Valdan. Valdan was a year older than Lorek, and in the short time that they’d known each other the two had become good friends. Despite Belena being the only heir as of yet, the kingdom of Vandan had grown so large over the twenty years of its existence that the princess didn’t feel she could adequately rule it on her own once she became queen. She had therefore asked her brother Valdan and sister, Princess Sylvie, to be her co-rulers when the time came.

Besides the king and Valdan, a couple of dozen other people were seated on the giant table. Most of them were high-ranking officials, nobles and military commanders, but there were also many friends of Lorek and his family as well. Behind them were several more rows of tables, on which were seated guests from all over the kingdom. There must have been several thousand people in the room and every one of them had their eyes on Lorek. One person who was absent was his father, Orlak, who was greatly upset that his son was getting married to a giant. He had moved to his home city of Elgon and repeated attempts to persuade him to attend the wedding had failed. Lorek wasn’t too bothered: his father had never been kind to him, despite having raised his son by himself, and he considered Belena and her family to be his own family now as well.

Towering high over the table with all the guests was the giant Queen Valerie. She would be presiding over her daughter’s wedding, at Belena’s request. The queen had been supportive of Belena’s relationship with Lorek from the start, despite the fact that the boy came from the poorest section of the town of Rismark. Lorek also didn’t appear to have any desire to become a king or a prince (or any other noble title). He just wanted to be by his sweetheart’s side (or on her shoulder in this case), and the fact that he made Belena happy pleased Valerie as well. Once the word got out that the princess was marrying a commoner, she immediately gained a lot of popularity in her subjects’ eyes.

Lorek looked up at the queen’s magnificent figure. She was wearing a beautiful blue dress and on her head was a silver coronet which could have encircled Lorek’s old house. Standing by her side was her youngest daughter, Sylvie, who looked just as stunning dressed in red. The pretty blonde princess was fifteen years old and had surpassed the height of her mother, and now stood just a few feet shy of her older sister’s 175-foot stature. Sylvie didn’t spend a lot of time with Lorek; unlike Belena, who was always spending time with the townsfolk and helping them out in various ways, Sylvie preferred to travel around the kingdom or outside it, sometimes taking Valdan with her. Valdan especially seemed to enjoy going on travels – or adventures, as he called them – and Lorek was rather envious of him. He wouldn’t mind going on an adventure of his own – but only if he could convince Belena to come along. Perhaps they could go on a honeymoon to some fabulous distant place?

As the guests on the table in front of her were talking in hushed whispers, and Lorek waited anxiously for his bride to make her appearance, Valerie drew Sylvie aside and told her to see if Belena was nearly ready yet.

“I think she may be a bit nervous, now that the moment has finally come,” Valerie said. “But really, she can’t keep us all waiting like this! Go and tell her that if she doesn’t come down soon, I’m carrying this table up to her room, and we’ll have the wedding in there.”

Sylvie rolled her eyes.

“It’s not my fault she’s being a wimp! Why do I have to…”

“Because I said so, that’s why! She’s your sister and she needs your support. This is the most important moment of her life and we should all be happy for her.”

“I…I am happy for her.”

“Then go. Tell her that she couldn’t look more beautiful, that her fiancé is dying to get married already, and that there is literally nothing to be afraid of. Everyone here wishes her the best.”

Sylvie muttered an acknowledgement and left the room. Even though they’d been whispering, Lorek had managed to catch most of their conversation. He hadn’t seen Belena since yesterday morning. He wondered what her wedding dress looked like, and whether he would say all his words perfectly, or forget something and make a fool of himself. It helped a bit to know that it wasn’t just he who was nervous. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and jumped.

“Hey, easy there!” Alban said, putting an arm across his shoulders. The king was half a foot taller than Lorek, which made the young man feel even more ill at ease.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty, I…I guess I’m just tense or something.”

“Yes, I can see that – but really, you need to relax. No-one’s going to make fun of you, no-one is here to sabotage your big day. I’m sure once Belena is standing at your side you’ll feel a lot better. Oh, look, here they are now!”

Alban hurriedly took his seat again, and Lorek turned round to see. The two princesses were walking down the carpet towards them, arm-in-arm. Once they were close Sylvie let go, and nineteen-year-old Belena came and stood next to her tiny bridegroom. She was wearing a magnificent white gown, whose fabric could have covered several town squares, as well as white silk gloves, a circle of flowers on her head and a giant white rose pinned to her breast. Her red hair flowed behind her like a waterfall. To Lorek, standing on the table at her hip-level, she was a vision: a tower clothed in white, a goddess who had come to Earth. Her beautiful eyes looked down on him with adoration and he looked up at her in the same way, but with awe and a tiny bit of fear as well. He was not afraid of her, merely at the thought of what his life will be like once he marries a woman whose thumb was bigger than he was.

“You look lovely, dear,” the queen said to Belena. “Shall we begin, or would you like a moment to gather your thoughts first?”

“I…I’m ready,” Belena said, and Lorek nodded as well. Valerie smiled at both of them and began the ceremony.

“Citizens of Vandan, I am delighted to welcome all of you to this happy occasion, the marriage of our daughter, Crown Princess Belena, to Lorek son of Orlak, the man she loves. Since this is only the second time in all of history that a giant and a human are wed, it might be safe to say that for many of you this must seem an odd, or even a bizarre event. But, as I myself am the first giant to lose her heart to a, ha-ha, a ‘tiny’ man, I can say from the bottom of my heart that such a difference in size is no obstacle to a true bond of love and a joyful shared life. True, there have been times when Alban and I have had our difficulties or our disagreements, but such are the risks of any relationship, and just like any couple who truly love each other we have overcome them. In the short span of time Belena and Lorek have known each other, I have not seen any signs of discord between them, only the unbridled love of two young people for one another, different though they may be. I believe the two of you have the necessary strength of character and honesty of emotion to make your marriage a successful and happy one. Of course, if either one of you, or anyone else present, does not wish this marriage to come to pass, please raise your voice now. If there are no objections, we shall carry on.”

No-one objected. Belena was looking down at the floor, blushing brightly. She was glad she wasn’t facing the crowd behind her. Getting married would have been so much easier if it had been just her family in the room with her, but she supposed the people had a right to see the wedding of their future sovereign.

“Very well,” Valerie said, after a moment of silence. “Let us proceed with tying the bands. I think, Lorek, you should go first.”

Instead of placing rings on each other’s fingers, which would have been impossible for Lorek and Belena, the couple had decided on an older marriage custom: tying a string or piece of cloth around each other’s fingers or wrists. Alban handed Lorek a blue sash, seven feet long, and Belena lowered her hand and stuck out her little finger. The princess smiled at her tiny groom as he ran from one side of her five-foot finger to another, looping the fabric around and tying it fast with a knot. When he was done he looked up at her smiling face and said his vows of marriage.

“Belena…my beautiful princess…you are the most magnificent being on this Earth in my eyes…but you are also the humblest person I know, and for that I am so grateful. Despite being greater than me in every possible way, you…you never once make me feel like the unworthy soul I sometimes think I am. There is no way I will ever be able to repay you for all the love, affection and compassion you have shown me…but I will do my best, as your husband, to support you, to comfort you and to protect you however I can. Your strength, beauty and kindness are beyond comparison, and I would be honoured to make you…make you my wife, you who are the light of my life and the queen…of my heart.”

Even though she’d known more-or-less what he would say, Belena couldn’t help but cry a few tears. She knew he meant every word he said, and she wanted desperately to pick him up right then, hold him to her breast and smother him with kisses. But first it was her turn. She drew out a tiny red sash from a pocket of her gown, just like the one he’d tied on her finger. Lorek stretched out his arms and, being very careful not to hurt him, Belena tied the piece of cloth around his waist. She thought he looked like a little birthday present with the cloth bound around him.

“Lorek…my little sweetheart…I have told you so many times how much I loved you, but I can never tell you enough. You have given me hope and joy even in the saddest parts of my life. Every time I hold you in my hands you remind me that all of what I have is of no importance next to you. If I could only shrink down to your size so that you could hold me in your arms I would do it, but I can’t, and I am so glad that you have chosen to love me despite my size. You are not inferior to me in any way, darling. You need never feel insignificant next to me. In my hands there is nothing for you to be afraid of: I will never let any harm come to you, I promise. Please give me a chance to make you happy, to be a good wife, a mother to our children one day, and your protector and guardian. You are the most important part of my life and without you I can never feel whole and content.”

There were cheers and clapping from the large gathering of people, but Valerie silenced them with her hand. She then spoke to Lorek and Belena.

“As Queen of Vandan, I hereby declare the two of you to be bonded in marriage, and I trust that the words you just spoke reflect your true feelings towards each other. May your new life together be long and blissful, and may the love that you have for each other never diminish but grow stronger every day. Now, I know you can’t wait a second longer, Belena dearest, so feel free to give your husband a kiss!”

Belena smiled, half from joy and half from embarrassment. She turned towards Lorek and tried to stoop down to kiss him, but it wasn’t easy with the flowing dress she was wearing. So she folded her fingers around his minuscule body and lifted him up to her face, where she immediately pressed him to her mouth. Lorek watched her vivid red lips as they came closer and closer, until nothing else was visible. Despite getting smeared by her lipstick he didn’t want the kiss to end. It felt so wonderful, to be held and kissed by the most lovely girl in the universe. And now that she was his wife he could spend every moment of his life with her. He was vaguely aware that the people were cheering and applauding, but really all he could think about was how amazing her lips felt against his body. When she was done she held him beneath her eyes and told him how much she loved him. Then she put him on top of the flower on her breast, where he sank into the soft petals. Then Valerie stepped up to hug her daughter, and for a moment Lorek thought he would be squashed between the bodies of the two titanic women, but of course he wasn’t. Valerie lowered her head and gave him a little kiss, before Sylvie did the same. After that he wanted nothing more than to be carried up to his wife’s room and spend some time with her alone, but that would have to wait. A myriad of people still had to congratulate the young couple, and Lorek braced himself for what will be a very long day.

Much later, long after night had fallen, the people of Vandan were still celebrating. Fires were lit in the castle’s courtyard, fireworks went off every now and then, and the dancing and merrymaking didn’t seem like coming to an end soon. Belena, though, had had enough. She was never a girl who cared much for partying and, after saying goodnight to her family and everyone else, she took Lorek and decided to retire to her bedroom. She set him down on her bed, then went to the window and gazed out at the scene below. She could vaguely hear the voices of the tiny humans, but, since she was a giant, she knew they could probably see her silhouetted against the candlelight in her room. So she drew the curtains closed, kicked off her shoes and threw herself down on her bed, exhausted.

“I can’t wait to take off this dress!” she sighed, as Lorek came and stood next to her face.

“I think it’s a beautiful dress…”

“Oh, it is, it’s marvellous…but it’s such an inconvenience to wear. Still, it is my wedding dress, and Mom spent weeks making it for me, so I’m never going to throw it away. Maybe Sylvie can wear it on her wedding day, whenever that may be. Wait for me here, baby, and I’ll be back in a flash.”

She got up and went into the adjacent bathroom, and came out about twenty minutes later, wearing nothing but her underwear. Lorek’s heart began to beat faster as she lay down on the bed again: she looked unbelievably sexy in her brassiere and panties, and he wondered if she’d let him climb around on her body. Then he realized that she was his wife now, and that she probably wanted him to do more than just climb her. The thought gave him chills.

“Something wrong?” Belena asked. “You just froze all of a sudden.”

“I…you…you’re beautiful.”

She giggled: he was still the shy boy she’d met that day in the forest, when he accidentally fell into her bosom. She had been shy around him as well at first, but not any longer. Of course the fact that she could do anything with him, while he was completely powerless against her, gave her a huge advantage when it came to confidence levels. She decided to try and get him to feel more at ease: a husband shouldn’t be afraid of his loving wife, not for any reason. She picked him up and set him down on the exposed upper slope of her breast.

“So…here we are,” she said, giving him a seductive smile. “Just the two of us…alone…in my bed...”

“Yeah…”

“We could do anything we wanted to…”

“Uh…yeah…yeah, we could…”

“So…what do you want to do, my little sweetie pie?”

Lorek wasn’t an idiot. He knew exactly what she wanted to do…and if she had been a normal-sized girl he would have had sex with her without waiting another second. But she was a colossal giantess, capable of crushing him with the least amount of effort on her part. There was only a little bit of fear in him, but it was enough to make him hesitant.

“Look, Belena…”

“Not another word!” She put her fingertip on his face and silenced him. She had seen his fear and hesitation and had immediately realized how he felt about the situation.

“I know how feel, Lorek, and I don’t blame you. You can’t help but be scared of me, I know that. No matter how many times I promise you that I would never hurt you, you still feel that I have it in me to break that promise.”

“No, baby, I would never…I would never think that!”

How could he have been so stupid? Would she really suggest to him that they make love if she wasn’t absolutely sure that he wouldn’t be harmed? What kind of a wife would that make her? If he really and truly loved her, why couldn’t he trust her?

“Look,” she said, affectionately squeezing his body between her hands. “This is a new experience for both of us. We should take it slow, make every second of it special. This is love…it shouldn’t feel like a job that has to be completed, or like a task that has to be done to perfection! However, that being said…if you really don’t want to make love to me…well, that’s your choice. I would never force you to do that. You are the most important person in my life, Lorek, and your happiness the most important thing – I mean it!”

He sat and thought about what she’d said. It still wasn’t an easy choice to make – but sooner or later he’ll need to face the reality of the situation. Belena, meanwhile, had already given the matter a lot of thought. It had been a difficult thing to do, but a few weeks before her marriage she had approached her mother and asked her how to make love to a tiny human. Valerie had planned to talk to her daughter about sex, but had never managed to find the time, so she was glad Belena had taken the initiative and asked her. Over the next few weeks she and Belena had many forthright conversations about the topic, about what to do and what not to do and, most importantly, how to ensure that Lorek doesn’t get injured or killed during the act. She had told no-one about these discussions.

“I’ve got an idea,” Belena suggested to Lorek. “Let’s go one step at a time, all right? I’ll begin, and then we’ll see how far we get.”

“Oh…what do you mean?”

She lifted him off her breast and placed him on her exposed abdomen. Then she took off her bra and returned him to his previous spot. He was now just a few feet away from her giant nipple, and he felt his face growing warmer and a stirring between his legs.

“Can...can this really be happening?” he thought, watching her nipple rise and fall along with the rest of her breast.

He climbed up a little bit more and laid his hands on her nipple. It felt harder than he’d expected. Pressing down on it with all his strength, he could feel it grow even harder. She laughed at how excited he was becoming, but she was surprised to find herself enjoying it as well.

“Wow, that does feel good! You’ve got quite the touch, my little hubby! Don’t overdo it now, you hear? You’re gonna need your strength for later…”

“Oh, Belena…this…this is happening so quickly…”

“You think so? You wanna stop for now, leave the rest for another night?”

“Another night? No way! I…I want to have you now!”

She burst out with laughter.

“Gosh, you are so precious! My teeny-tiny man wants to ‘have me now’, does he? Hmm…I’ll consider it. But first, let’s see what little Lorek looks like without all those fancy clothes! Come here, let’s take these off.”

She undressed him as if he were a doll, tossing all his clothes to the floor. When he had only his underpants still on him she hesitated. Having never seen him naked, she hoped she wouldn’t be disappointed…but how could she be? He was so small, she didn’t think she’d able to spot any imperfections, and even if she did, would it really matter? He was hers now and she couldn’t wait to get him inside her. She finished undressing him and put his naked form in the palm of her hand. He was blushing most conspicuously and his cock was pointing straight up at her face. She touched him lightly between his legs with the tip of her finger. He gasped and grabbed onto her finger, and she felt his penis stiffening and his body begin to tremble.

She looked at him in wonder. Here was this tiny being, no bigger than her thumb, and yet she loved him with all her soul. She could take his small body and squeeze him to death in an instant – or she could squeeze him a lot more gently and make him the happiest guy on Earth. She took his arms between her fingers and moved them up and down, amazed at how delicate they were. Then she took his buttocks and clasped them together, his soft skin feeling like liquid beneath her fingertips.

“You are so amazing,” she whispered to him. “So small…and yet there’s so much I can do with you…”

“You can do whatever you want, my beautiful princess. I just want you to be happy.”

“Then you’re no longer scared…not even a little bit?”

“Not even a little bit. I love you so much. I want to be with you tonight…every night.”

She kissed him all over his body.

“I…I want to do it, Lorek. I want to make love to you! If you’ll give me a chance…”

“Belena…my love, I am yours. I will always be yours. And I want to do it just as badly as you do.”

This was it, Belena thought. The night on which she loses her innocence. It had been a perfect day, a culmination to a wonderful relationship, and she was ready to take the next step. She slipped off her panties and kicked them to the floor. Then she gave her love another kiss, just to show her appreciation.

“You’re so brave,” she smiled at him. “I think you should be rewarded. Just hold your breath, darling, and let me do the rest.”

She put him in feet-first. Just before she let go she felt him kiss the tip of her finger. Then he was gone, swallowed up by her womanhood. She could feel him inside her, moving deeper and deeper. It was an indescribable sensation; all she could think of was that this was the most thrilling and satisfying physical feeling she’d ever felt. She gave a few shrieks of pleasure and pushed him in even further. But no matter how much she enjoyed it, she never lost control. At the back of her mind she was aware of how important it was to keep Lorek from harm. She wanted this to be the first of many, many more intimate nights.

The next morning a tired-looking Belena came walking into the kitchen, long after the rest of her family had finished breakfast. Alban and Sylvie had left to visit the town, leaving Valerie to do the washing up, and to tidy up the castle after the events of yesterday. When she saw her daughter, Valerie gave her a hug and a kiss, and then asked if she had a good night’s sleep.

“Um…yeah…yes, it was very good,” Belena said, smiling with reminiscence. But she immediately stopped when she saw her mother watching her, and blushed a little.

“So…uh…where is everyone?” she asked.

“Oh, you know, out and about. Shall I make you some breakfast, dear? You look a little…a little dazed, if I may say so.”

“Huh? Oh, no thanks. I just came to get some water…yes, some water, to drink. I…oh, hey Valdan. I didn’t see you down there.”

Valdan waved up to his gigantic sister from where he was standing on the floor, wondering why she was acting so strangely. Before he could ask her what was going on, she had already filled a glass of water and was hurrying back to her room, nearly tripping over her robe.

“What’s going on with her?” Valdan asked his mother. “Do you think…she and Lorek…”

“I don’t think that’s any of our business, Valdan,” Valerie said, chuckling. “But, if you ask me, I think Belena’s life is going to change a lot in the next few weeks.”

She bent down, picked him up, and placed him on her shoulder, then carried on with her work.

Back in her room, Belena shut the door behind her, then went into the adjacent bathroom. She’d made herself a hot, soapy bath, to freshen up after all the events of yesterday. Lorek was waiting for her on the rim of the bathtub, watching her disrobe with wide eyes. She stepped over him and sank into the warm water, while he continued to stare at her in wonder.

“So…why aren’t you in the water yet, hmm?” she asked him. “I did make this bath for the both of us.”

“Oh…well, I thought…I mean, I was waiting for you. I didn’t want to start without you.”

“Such a gentleman! Come on, let’s get you fresh and clean again. In you go!”

She gave him a punt with her finger and he fell into the vast tub. The water was warm and relaxing, and when he came up for air he could see nothing but mountains of soap bubbles all around him. To Lorek, who had rarely had a bath in his life before, let alone a hot bubblebath, this was pure bliss. He began to swim forward, wondering if he’d be able to reach Belena. But he didn’t need to: her great hand came up beneath him and scooped him up, and soon he was flying above the water and landing on her chest, right between her enchanting breasts. She then pressed him firmly against her smooth skin and started rubbing herself with him. When she was done she set him upon her nipple. He clamped his legs around it and hugged her breast, while she stroked him with her tender fingers. Lorek was in heaven; life couldn’t get any more perfect than this, he thought.

In the courtyard of the giant castle were several human-sized structures, built around the time that Valerie became queen. Many of the first settlers were soldiers from Elgon and other human cities, and they decided that they should form an army for their new queen. They built barracks and military training facilities in the castle's courtyard, at the foot of one of its great walls. As it turned out, an army wasn't really necessary, since the queen herself was more than capable of dealing with any threats to her realm. The military structures were eventually more or less abandoned, and the only threats the remaining human soldiers were concerned with were internal ones – criminals, bandits, those kind of things. Still, a number of men continued to use the buildings for training and the making of weapons, since there was always the chance that one day the kingdom will be attacked while the queen was absent, or somehow incapable of retaliating.

It was mid-autumn, several weeks after his wedding, and Lorek was practicing fighting with a sword in one of the buildings in the courtyard. He was being instructed by a man called Ansur, a commander in the army of Vandan. There was no real reason for Lorek to be doing this, but he knew there would be times when Belena wasn't around to protect him, and if he ever found himself in any danger during such a time he needed to be able to take care of himself. He'd tried learning archery first, but felt he wasn't making any progress, so he turned to learning sword-fighting instead. Valdan was busy training as well, along with several other young men from the town. They all got along well, except for Lorek, who felt a bit like an outsider. His background was different than theirs – they grew up living this life and he didn't – and then there was the fact that he was already married while they were spending each night with a different girl they met in town. Valdan himself didn't have a girlfriend yet, or if he did he hadn't told anyone about her. But he was the only one of the group whom Lorek felt comfortable spending time with, and he considered him a good friend.

"Not bad," Ansur said, after Lorek had taken a short break from practicing. "You've still got a lot to learn, Lorek, but your progress is remarkable. I think you can start practicing against some of my other men here soon...next week, I should say."

"Oh...that's good," Lorek said, not really feeling like sparring with guys who were both more experienced and stronger than he was. But he guessed it was necessary if he really wanted to learn properly, which he did. Belena hadn't liked the idea at first, feeling that she could look after him much better than he could himself, but he'd managed to change her mind.

"Hey!" Valdan said, coming over and sitting by Lorek's side. "What's going on with you? You look like you could use a little cheering up."

"No...I'm fine...just wondering if this was a good idea, that's all."

"What do you mean? Of course it's a good idea, learning how to defend yourself. Dad first made me learn how to use a sword when I was twelve, and I've been grateful ever since. Of course I don't mind having a giant mom and sisters to protect me, but they're not all-powerful. I know Belena will do her best to keep you safe from harm too, but you never know..."

"Yes...I understand."

"Well, then...how about you and I begin the real training next week? What do you think, Commander Ansur? Can Lorek practice with me?"

"Certainly, your Highness. Like I said, he's making good progress."

"All right, then, let's head back to the castle. The sun is starting to set, so it's nearly suppertime, I'd say."

As they walked back across the courtyard they saw Sylvie making her way back to the castle as well, her vast shadow falling across them. She'd been visiting some friends of hers in Rismark, and she had spent the day wandering about the countryside. It must be nice, Lorek thought, to be both a powerful giantess and a royal princess at once. He wondered if Sylvie had begun a relationship with someone, but, like Valdan, she wasn't saying. Then again, she was only fifteen, though she already looked just as pretty as her older sister. He wondered if there were any other guys who, like him, found giant girls attractive. Sylvie spotted the two of them at her feet and sat herself down on the grass, blocking their path.

"Um...hello," Valdan said, stopping in front of her. "You got something to say, sis?"

She giggled, a sound which Valdan had always found annoying. There used to be a time, not so long ago, when he couldn't stand her company. She would give him all kinds of grief, all in the name of having some fun with him. But she had matured a lot over the last year or two – their first adventure in the wild having been an eye-opener for her – and she now treated him with much more respect and consideration. But Sylvie was still Sylvie, and she couldn't resist having a go at him every now and then.

"Not really, little bro...just thought the two of you looked really lonely down there. Been playing with swords again? How's that working out for you, Lorek?"

"Fine, I guess. I mean, I'm not gonna be a warrior anytime soon..."

"He's doing very well," Valdan added. "He'll be training with me next week at the military school in town."

"Uh-huh," Sylvie replied. "Pretty soon you'll both be the terror of thieves and bandits throughout the land. I'm sure Belena will feel a lot safer on the road when you're there to protect her, Lorek."

Valdan simply ignored her sarcasm. She offered them a lift and they climbed into her open hand. Lorek had only been carried by her a few times before. It didn't feel the same as being carried by Belena. He wondered what it must have been like for Valdan growing up with two giant sisters, one of whom was younger than him. Sylvie was still a growing young girl, but she was already larger and stronger than any of the monsters in the stories Lorek had heard as a child. He could see why some people might think the giantesses were monsters, especially those people whose ancestors had been victims of vicious giants long ago. But he himself was thankful to live in a land ruled over and defended by a giant queen, and to have found love and a new life with one of her daughters.

By now Lorek had become quite used to his new life at the castle, which included the unusual seating arrangement at mealtimes. The three giant women sat on one side of a small (for them) table, while the three men sat facing them at a much smaller table, which was placed on a box on the big table. The meals were always prepared by Valerie and her daughters (taking turns), since it would have taken a legion of cooks and servants to make a meal large enough for even one of the giantesses. Due to the scarcity of giant animals in the land, meat was rarely on the menu for the women, but they didn't mind too much. It didn't take long for Lorek to feel part of this unusual family.

After supper that night, Belena and Sylvie as usual cleaned the table. When they were done Valerie asked them to sit down again and said that she had an announcement to make. She took Alban up in her hands and placed him on her shoulder.

"All right, then," she said. "Now, I know this is rather sudden of me, but there is something important I need to say to you, my children. Your father and I will be leaving you for a while, and we want you to rule the kingdom while we are away."

"What?" Sylvie and Belena exclaimed together.

"Do you mean...do you mean that I...that I get to be queen?" Belena asked hesitantly.

"Hey, Mom was talking to all of us, not just you!" Valdan added.

"That's right, dear – I was talking to all of you. I want the three of you to rule together, and to help each other in all the duties that ruling this land requires."

"But...where are you going?" Sylvie asked. "And how long will you be gone?"

"Well, we won't leave right away," Alban said. "About two weeks from now, I reckon. As to how long we'll be gone...well, that'll depend on how far we need to go to find what we're looking for."

"Which is...?"

"There have been reports, from the forests beyond our northern borders...reports of a giant, or maybe several giants..."

"That's impossible!" Sylvie said. "We're the last giants...aren't we? I mean, there couldn't have been giants living by themselves for hundreds of years, without anyone discovering them until now, right?"

"Oh, it's not that impossible," Valerie said, smiling. "I was pretty well hidden for hundreds of years before your father rescued me. Perhaps another giant princess has been found and released from her spell by a brave warrior..."

She looked down fondly at the little 'brave warrior' on her shoulder. Even though things had been awkward between them at first, she still remembered the day Alban kissed her and released her from the sleeping spell she'd been under as one of the happiest days of her life.

"Oh please!" Valdan said, ruining the moment. "Another giant princess? Were there really that many giant princesses around back then?"

Sylvie began to giggle.

"What's the matter, little bro?" she said. "Too many of us giant girls for you to handle? Well, I hope it is another giant princess, then you can be her little play-doll, just like you were mine. I bet you miss being played with and having your hair brushed and..."

"All right, kids, that's enough," Alban interrupted, before an incensed Valdan could do something violent to his sister. "We don't even know if there really are other giants out there, but there have been too many reports coming in for us to ignore. So we will be heading out soon to discover the truth behind them, and we'll need you to look after the kingdom while we are away."

"That's right," Valerie added. "Which means no more squabbling and bickering and arguing between you, all right? I'm talking specifically to you, Sylvie."

"But I..."

"I don't want to hear anything from you except 'yes, mother' – is that clear?"

"Yes...Mom," Sylvie said, sighing. "Sorry about that, Valdan, it won't happen again."

Valdan rolled his eyes, but he accepted her apology. Before they headed off to bed, the king and queen gave their three children an overview of what their duties as rulers of Vandan would entail. Even though all three of them had wanted to become king or queen when they were younger, now that it was actually sort-of happening they didn't feel as eager anymore. Would it turn out to be too much of a responsibility for them to handle? Even though she was the eldest, Belena still felt that she was way too inexperienced to be a queen. But her parents were counting on her and she wasn't going to let them down.

Lorek woke up slowly and rubbed his eyes. He was usually the first to wake, but ever since she'd been tasked with being Vandan's temporary queen, Belena had made sure to always be up at first light. It had been two weeks since Valerie and Alban had left and there had still been no word of them. They must be outside the kingdom by now, somewhere in the great forests of Evear or Namaa, north of Vandan. Lorek hoped they were doing fine – he may have lost contact with his real father, but the king and queen had accepted him as part of their family and he viewed them as his 'parents' now.

He climbed out from underneath a hollow in the vast blankets which covered Belena's bed. The princess slept beneath two blankets for warmth, but even one was much too thick for Lorek to be comfortable under. He usually slept on top of the covers, with his own blanket and pillow, or between Belena's breasts – which he enjoyed a lot more. By now he was completely at ease in her bed and he no longer felt any fear of being intimate with a giantess. Climbing up the mountainous folds of the blankets around him, he reached a good vantage point and saw Belena getting dressed by the side of her bed. She was wearing a lovely red and yellow gown – very royal-looking – and was brushing the kinks out of her hair. The scent of her perfume entranced him, even from this distance. He wondered if there would ever come a time when he would no longer think himself unworthy of the love of this magnificent young lady.

"Good morning, my little sugar-sweet!" she said, noticing his tiny figure on her bed. "Another early day, huh? Gosh, being the queen is really tiring..." She sat down carefully next to him and lowered her hand, so that he could climb on.

"You mean...you don't enjoy it? Being a queen and all that? I thought that was what you wanted."

"I don't know...nah, I'm just being lazy. I'll need to grow used to it, that's all. It would be great if Sylvie helped me out a bit more, though. She's almost never in the throne room or with me when I'm visiting the town. I bet she's still sleeping quite comfortably."

"Well, she's only fifteen, so I guess she isn't ready...but in any case, you're the oldest, so it's really you alone who should be in charge. Isn't that how things should be?"

They argued a bit more about how a monarchy is supposed to work. Belena had never before realized how much weight and responsibility the role of a monarch carried. She was used to a life that was a lot more carefree. She had also wondered if it was really fair that she should become the next ruler of Vandan, simply because her parents were the current king and queen. What if there were people out there – ordinary people, not royals – who knew how to successfully govern a kingdom better than she did? She'd read countless stories about unworthy princes who succeeded their fathers to the throne, only to ruin the kingdom because of their greed, cruelty or incompetence. She definitely didn't fall into that category, but one day the eldest child of the monarch might. There had to be a better way of determining who the best person to rule the kingdom was.

But for now that job lay with her and her siblings – or one of them, at least. By the time Belena had finished her breakfast and took her seat on the great throne in the audience chamber, Valdan was already waiting for her. They usually set out together to visit Rismark and other nearby settlements, but on certain days they would receive people from more distant parts of Vandan in this room. Valdan had a chair located at Belena's feet and people usually approached him first instead of her. Belena, despite being well-known for her kindness and unassuming nature, was still an immense giantess, and people naturally felt a bit apprehensive around her. She didn't mind it too much: Valdan had better people-skills than she did in any case. If anyone did wish to approach her, they could climb up a long ramp which led to a small table that stood next to her throne, at a slightly higher level than her knees. Lorek didn't usually join her for these throne room sessions, but today he decided he would like to sit on her shoulder or in her lap and keep her company. He hadn't spent a lot of time among the common folk of Rismark since marrying her, except for when he was training with the soldiers.

The day turned out to be much like any other, with the exception being that Sylvie decided to join her siblings in the throne room. She'd put a second chair next to Belena's throne and sat down to listen to the citizens as they came and asked for help with their problems or wanted the royal family's opinion on some matter. It was an extremely boring task in Sylvie's opinion, and she had made up her mind long ago that being a queen was much less fun than being a princess. She also didn't feel that she wanted so much responsibility, making decisions that will affect the future of the kingdom. She'd rather be a carefree teenager for a few more years.

"Very well, I think that'll be enough for today," Belena said many hours later, as the day was drawing to a close. She had just promised to help one of the smaller villages in the kingdom's southern regions with a water shortage they were having, by altering the course of a nearby river. Sylvie had been made to promise her help as well, despite not looking forward to spending several days shovelling dirt. But it was for a good cause, so she couldn't simply say no.

"As you wish, Your Highness," replied Lord Henick, an old nobleman who essentially served as Alban and Valerie's chamberlain. He had held this position for over twenty years, since before Valerie became Queen, having served under Alban's father before that time.

Henick began to escort the remaining visitors out, asking them to return tomorrow if they still wished to see or speak to the royal family. As the last of the villagers were leaving the castle through its great front doors, a lone rider on horseback came charging in, dodging the guards who were busy escorting the people out. He made it all the way to the door of the throne room before being stopped, and when apprehended, he said that he had an urgent message for Princess Belena.

"Elgon is under attack!" he yelled out, hoping the princess would hear him. "An army is attacking the city...an army of men...and giant ogres! The people are being killed...please, let me go!...you must send help at once!"

"All right, all right, let the man go!" Lord Henick exclaimed, running as fast as he could towards the scene. "Come quickly, their Highnesses were just about to retire. Elgon is under attack, you say?"

"Yes, my lord! An army...at least twenty thousand men...carrying the banners of Solis, I believe. I couldn't get a good look at them, I only just escaped with my life to warn you. Our city's guards were no match, especially once the ogres began to climb over the walls. The size of those monsters...it was unbelievable...we stood no chance!"

The man, whose name was Sildar, was escorted to the throne, where Belena, Lorek, Valdan and Sylvie were still sitting and talking. Valdan met the messenger and led him up the ramp and onto the table at Belena's side, with Henick and several other advisors to the royal household following behind. Belena watched the group of tiny people with surprise. She could see that the messenger was still shaking from whatever events had befallen him.

"Princess Belena...your Highness...Elgon has been attacked!" he repeated, looking up at the seated giantess. "An army from Solis, under the command of their new emperor, Argo."

"Argo...really?" Belena gasped. She still remembered the young prince who had been her first suitor, how rude and unpleasant he had been to her, and how she had taken him to her room to teach him some much-needed good manners.

"Surely he...Argo, that is...can't be the emperor of Solis yet? Isn't his father still in good health?"

"I had assumed the same thing as well, my Princess," Lord Henick said. "But, as you know, we have not maintained relations with that empire for several years now, and news travels slowly from that region of the world."

"Nevertheless, it was definitely Argo who was leading the soldiers," Sildar said. He had more-or-less calmed down by now, and he explained what had happened at Elgon as best he could.

"It happened yesterday at noon. That was when we first saw them on the horizon...the ogres. They were not like the kind that used to live in these lands, but bigger...much bigger. Some of them must have been a hundred feet tall! The guards of the city were no match for them, and soon many were dead. Then the ogres went into Elgon itself, climbing over the walls, and capturing anyone they could find. Many people managed to escape from the city, but they were met by Argo and his army. I was on top of the south wall at the time and saw everything. I only escaped by jumping from the wall and landing in a cart filled with hay. In the confusion I managed to slip away – perhaps others did so as well, I don't know. In any case, I hurried here as quickly as I could."

Belena, Lorek and Valdan listened to his story, horrified. Sylvie, who had left the throne room as soon as the session was over, had come back to see what was happening. After Sildar had finished telling his tale, he was taken to the courtyard barracks for some food, since he hadn't eaten in his haste. Belena, meanwhile, was deliberating what to do next. She knew she had to do something, but what?

"We should go and help them," Valdan insisted. "There are still about a thousand soldiers in Rismark and its surroundings. If we catch them by surprise..."

"No!" Belena interrupted. "No, that won't be necessary. There wouldn't be anything you could do, anyway. One thousand soldiers against an army twenty times bigger? You would only get killed – not to mention the ogres. Who knows how many of them there could be? No, the only option is for me to go, alone. I'm the only one who could do anything to help."

"But what are you going to do?" Valdan asked. "You've never been in a battle, Belena."

"That's true...but what other choice do I have? Mom isn't here, and who knows when she'll be back? We can't wait for her, while Argo and his forces continue to attack other towns, perhaps even Rismark itself, killing who knows how many..."

"Um, excuse me!" Sylvie chimed in. "Are you forgetting there's two of us, sis? If you're going to fight some ogres, you'll need my help. I can fight just as well as you can, you know! Besides, I've already killed a wyvern once, so I have more experience than you too."

"I'm sorry, Sylvie, but you have to stay here. Someone has to protect Rismark and the castle while I'm away, in case they attack here by surprise."

"Oh, Valdan can do that! Can't you, little brother? You're always so eager to fight everything, aren't you?"

"That's not true! And I'm not staying here, either. We should all go, then we'll have the best chance of winning."

"Okay, enough!" Belena said. She wished her parents were here to take charge, to stop Valdan and Sylvie from arguing like they always do, and to take the all-important decision of who should go to Elgon's aid.

"Valdan, I know how eager you are to help, but I'm afraid you and the soldiers won't be much use against those monsters. It would be better to leave them to me and Sylvie. Yes, Sylvie, you can come with me...but you MUST promise to be careful and to not do anything foolish, all right?"

"I understand," Sylvie replied. She seemed to have realized how serious of a situation this was. "I'll make sure I'm up early tomorrow morning."

"I'm afraid we can't wait that long. We have to get going as soon as possible, otherwise more people may be killed before we get there. I'll go and make some supper, and get some food for the road as well. If we leave in an hour, we could reach Elgon sometime early tomorrow – if we walk quickly."

Sylvie looked shocked, but she didn't argue with her sister. If going without sleep for one night meant saving the lives of even one person, she wasn't going to complain. She might make a bit of a fuss after everything was over – but who even knew if they were going to make it out of this alive themselves?

As his giant sisters left the throne room to make prepare for their journey, Valdan couldn't help but feel underappreciated, as he often did in this household. He knew that there was little he or any other normal-sized humans could do against the ogre horde that had invaded their lands, but that didn't mean he was completely useless. He was left on the table, along with Lord Henick, several other attendants of the King and Queen, and Lorek, who was still trying to process what had just happened. Valdan turned towards the chamberlain.

"Lord Henick, could you please send a message to Commander Ansur? I'd like him to meet me in the courtyard in an hour, along with as many soldiers as he can muster."

"I will do so, my Prince...but didn't the Princess order you to remain behind and guard Rismark?"

"Yes, but she's not my queen, Henick. She's my sister, and I don't think she's thought her plan through that well. She and Sylvie might be able to defeat the ogres, as well as any enemy soldiers outside the city – but they won't be able to deal with any inside the walls of Elgon itself. Elgon wasn't built with giants in mind. It doesn't have wide streets like Rismark does. It'll be up to us – the little humans – to deal with that."

"Yes, what you say makes sense. Shall I also inform Princess Belena of your plan, then?"

"No, please don't!" Valdan insisted. "I know she'll just try and convince me to stay. And even if I can make her see my point-of-view, she'll just spend the whole time worrying about me. Belena has always put the needs of other people ahead of her own, but right now she has a job to do, and we shouldn't interfere. We'll leave just after she and Sylvie have left, and we'll take a different road to Elgon, so they won't know about us."

"Can I come too?" Lorek asked suddenly. "I know I don't have much skill in fighting, but I want to help. If Belena doesn't know you'll be there, she won't know I'm there either."

"I...I guess I can't stop you if you really want to come," Valdan said, after a moment's hesitation. "But, please, for Belena's sake...try not to get killed. If you don't make it, she'll never forgive me, and she'll never be the same."

"I know...she really loves me...and I love her as well. That's why I want to go...so that I don't have to sit here and worry if she's still all right, or if she's still alive at all. I promise I won't do anything reckless – I just want to be there for her, to see her."

Valdan couldn't argue with him, not while so much was at stake. He wondered if he would ever find someone with whom he fell in love, as deeply as Lorek had fallen in love with his sister. Perhaps it was time he began looking for someone...but not right now. Now it was time to go to war, and to do whatever was necessary to stop this evil invasion. If only his parents were here, they would know what to do. He hoped he made it through this to see them again.

It was the next morning, and in the main hall of Elgon's castle, Argo was enjoying his swift and supreme victory. The orb of Adaruat had given him the power to command the ogre horde, and he had ordered three dozen of the colossal brutes to break down the gate of the city and to slay anyone who resisted, which the ogres mostly did in one of two ways – stomping and eating. He hadn't allowed them to kill too many people, though – this was the first stage of an invasion, an attempt to subdue the realm of Vandan and bring it under his control, and he still wanted a large number of new subjects once he was lord of this land. So far, he couldn't believe how fortunate things had gone for him. It had all began that one morning when he managed to 'arrange' his father's death and make it look like a natural accident. And now, here he was, on the way to subduing the land he considered his greatest enemy and having his revenge on the giant princess who had humiliated him several years ago.

He had ordered his soldiers to raid the treasuries of Elgon and bring everything of great value to the castle, from where he would select everything he wanted for himself and have it sent back to Solis. The rest he would give to his men as a reward for their loyalty. The soldiers, indeed, had barely been necessary in the capture of Elgon, since the ogres had managed to make short work of any resistance. They were necessary now, however, in keeping everyone in order and making sure that the citizens of Elgon obeyed their new master. Anyone who didn't subdue to him would be jailed or executed. He would then leave behind one or two thousand of his best soldiers and move on to the next town, where he would command the ogres to do the same thing, until they reached Rismark.

Right now, however, he was still watching his men fill the great hall with chests of coin, weapons, artworks, and anything else found in the city that looked valuable. He had also ordered some of his soldiers to go out into the city and bring back any attractive young women they could find, for him to do with as he pleased – payback, he thought, for the way he had been treated by his supposed bride-to-be Princess Belena. He couldn't wait to see her again, but first he would let his ogres beat her up a bit, make her suffer. Then he would enjoy humiliating her in front of her own family and people, before hurting her in a gruesome way. Perhaps stabbing her eyes out and pulling out her nails would be the best thing to do...

"Supreme Lord Argo!"

He was roused from his daydreaming by the cry of a young captain of his bodyguards. The man came running from the door which led to the castle's highest tower. In his hand he held a spyglass, which he gave to Argo.

"Sire...they have come...the giants!"

"Giants? What giants? What are you talking about, Captain Rialt?"

"Please, come and see...they have come!"

They both ran up to the top of the tower, and the captain pointed Argo towards the east, where the forest lay. He gazed through the spyglass and realized at once that he would have to alter his plans. Standing at the edge of the trees were two gigantic figures, one of which he loathingly recognized as Princess Belena. He didn't recognize the blonde giant girl standing next to her, but he knew it could only be her sister, Princess Sylvie. They were both arrayed as if for battle, but they didn't look like they were advancing at the moment. Strangely, there was no sign of their mother, the queen, or of any additional soldiers or military forces.

"Well, well, well...it looks like I'll get to have my revenge sooner than I'd planned," he said to himself, smirking. "The stupid girl thinks she's come to save her people, no doubt. Well, she's in for quite a surprise!"

"Shall we evacuate the city, Sire?" Captain Rialt asked. He was clearly less excited about the prospect of facing two giantesses in battle than Argo was.

"Evacuate? When I have my own force of giant ogres to send against those girls? I never knew you were such a coward, Rialt!"

"I'm sorry, I..."

"Silence! Send someone to bring me the orb, at once! Then you can stay and watch – I'm sure you'll enjoy the spectacle as much as I will."

A couple of miles away, Belena and Sylvie stood at the edge of the forest, facing the grassy plain that lay between them and the city. They had walked through the night, as quickly as they could – but not too quickly, or they would be too tired to deal with whatever lay waiting for them at Elgon. They were both wearing steel plate armour and swords, and Belena had brought a bow as well. Despite being tired from the long walk and lack of sleep, she was actually feeling rather confident about winning back Elgon, since she couldn't see any enemies from here. Sylvie was less optimistic – unlike Belena, she had actually had to fight against a giant monster before, and she was not eager to do so again. She suddenly wished she hadn't volunteered to come along. Belena, meanwhile, was thinking mostly about her husband and her brother, to whom she had said goodbye to the previous night. It had been an emotional moment for all of them, but it now seemed so distant, and she now wished they had accompanied her, despite her telling them to stay behind. (Of course, she didn't know about Valdan's secret plan.)

"Come on, sis," Sylvie said, drawing her sword. "Let's get this over with. I'm sure it won't be that bad." Her tone was light and casual, but inside she was starting to feel very scared.

"Yes, let's go," Belena said. "Remember, try not to hurt any of the enemy soldiers. We only need to persuade them to surrender, and I would really, really prefer not to have to...kill anyone."

"Me neither...just thinking about it makes me feel bad. It's fine to kill the ogres though, right?"

"I...I don't know, and I don't really want to think about it now. I don't think the ogres will give up without a fight. I mean, I've only read stories about them, mostly, but they're always shown as these big, brutish, cruel monsters."

As soon as she had mentioned them, they both saw a large group of giant grey figures in the distance, coming slowly closer. Even though they were still pretty far, they could easily be recognized. It was them, the monstrosities that they had heard about, the giant ogres that the fiendish Argo had somehow managed to gain control of. There were at least thirty of them, and most of them were carrying wooden or bone clubs, which they swung above their heads aggressively. Belena fitted an arrow into her bow and drew the string back as far as she could. She fired, and though the arrow went the distance, it flew over the head of the ogre she'd aimed for. Without pausing, she drew the bow and fired again. This time she hit one of the beasts, but it wasn't dead. It just kept advancing, though more slowly than the others. The arrow must have wounded it only.

"Come on, come on! Shoot them again! Quick!" Sylvie yelled.

Belena did so, and her third shot hit its target. One of the creatures fell down, with her arrow still sticking from its chest. The other ogres halted, startled by the loss of one of their number, but they soon began advancing towards the girls again.

"Hooray! You got one!" Sylvie cried. "But...umm...Belena...they're getting really close now. What do we do?"

"Stand beside me, Sylvie, with your back facing mine. Then they won't be able to attack us from behind. We mustn't get separated, all right?"

"Uh-huh, I got it. Gosh, there are so many of them. We should've worn helmets, like I said we should. I mean, look at the claws on that one!"

Belena had decided against wearing helmets, since the armour was heavy enough already and she didn't like not being able to see clearly. But, then again, what would she know? She had never been on a battlefield before, and had only had some training with swords and bows. Sylvie wasn't much more experienced, either. The young princess loved to boast about how she had killed a wyvern once, but in fact she had almost been slain by that monster, and had only been fighting it because she'd thought it had killed her brother Valdan. This was an entirely different situation.

The crowd of ogres came closer and stopped at about 200 yards from the giantesses. They roared and growled and waved their clubs and stone axes in the direction of the girls. Clearly this was a new experience for them as well, as none of them had ever encountered an opponent who exceeded them in size before. One or two of them stepped forward, as if meaning to attack, but they quickly stepped back again. Sylvie laughed nervously.

"It looks like they're scared...of us," she said. Then she yelled at the horde of behemoths: "Come on, what are you freaks waiting for? Attack already!"

"Be quiet!" Belena said. "Don't provoke them. Maybe we can frighten them away if we..."

She didn't have time to complete her sentence. Four of the biggest ogres, about the height of the giantesses' waists, came rushing forward, making a fearful noise and brandishing their weapons. One threw its club at Belena, who only just managed to duck out of the way. Then two of them jumped at Sylvie and she screamed. She swung her sword around wildly, slicing one ogre across the chest, while the other grabbed hold of her arm and went for her neck with its teeth. It might have turned out badly for Sylvie, but her sister came to her rescue. Belena stabbed the ogre from behind in its stomach and it fell down, dead.

Then the girls turned to the two remaining ogres. The one who had thrown its club went for the smaller target (Sylvie, that is), but she still had her weapon and she swung it forcefully at the ogre's outstretched arms, cutting off both its hands. It howled in pain and rage, but its misery was short-lived, as Sylvie quickly proceeded to cut off its head. The last ogre attacked Belena with its axe and she tried to block it with her sword. However, the force of the ogre's blow knocked the sword out of her hand and caused her to stumble backwards. The monster raised its axe again and swung it down against her chest. It hit her breastplate and she cried out in pain, but the armour had saved her life. She shifted her hands around on the ground until she found her sword, then quickly grabbed it and lifted it, stabbing the ogre who stood above her before it could wield its axe again. It grunted and fell on top of her, and she struggled to get its corpse off of her.

"Sylvie...a little help, please!" she cried.

Sylvie, who had just finished her own duel with her opponent, ran over to her sister, and together they managed to free Belena. Both girls were feeling exhausted – but, at the same time, the fact that they had killed five ogres so far made them feel a lot braver than they had before. The rest of their enemies still stood where they were, until a dozen of them turned around and ran back to the city. The rest seemed rooted to the spot where they stood. In fact, it almost appeared to Belena as if the ogres were being controlled by someone else, since they behaved so unnaturally.

"It must be Argo's doing," she thought. "But how is he controlling them, and why is he sending half of them back?"

"What do we do now?" Sylvie asked. "Do we wait for them to attack again? Maybe they're scared of us now, after what we just did."

"I don't know. They don't look scared."

She was right. No sooner had she spoken, than they charged again – and this time and it wasn't just three or four of them. They all came at once, roaring loudly and waving their weapons around recklessly. Belena and Sylvie quickly stood back-to-back again and held their swords ready. They were outnumbered, but they were bigger and stronger than these ogres, and they would not go down without a fight.

At the edge of the great forest, Valdan and Ansur hid behind a low ridge and looked out over the field that lay before them. The city of Elgon lay a mile-and-a-half to the northeast. Valdan knew that his sisters were somewhere in that direction, hidden behind the city and quite possibly already battling the giant ogres. But he and the several hundred soldiers who had accompanied him were now facing an even greater challenge: the army of Solis. Commander Ansur estimated the number of soldiers who were encamped on the field at about fifteen thousand. They was little to no chance of defeating this gigantic force with their own few warriors. In any case, that wasn’t their primary objective. They needed to get into the city and defeat the soldiers who were occupying it, and possibly deal with Argo himself. Belena and Sylvie wouldn’t be able to fight the soldiers in Elgon’s narrow streets, not without damaging or destroying a lot of the buildings.

“If only there was a way we could get into Elgon without being seen,” Valdan said. “What if we head to the northwest of the city? Maybe we could climb over the walls on that side.”

“Only if that area is not being watched,” Ansur replied. “There are only open fields and farms in that direction, and we would be completely exposed if we tried to approach Elgon from there.”

“Still, we have to try something. Of course, if Belena and Sylvie were here, they could handle the army that lies between us and the city, and we could enter the main gate without any problems.”

“I hope nothing bad has happened to them,” Lorek said. He was lying on the ground next to Valdan, trying to see if he could spot his beloved princess.

“I hope so too. If only we knew…hey, maybe you can go and find out, Lorek.”

“What do you mean?”

“Ride back the way we came and head around the eastern side of the city. Stay beneath the trees of the forest so that no-one can see you. Then you can reach Belena and Sylvie, and see if they are unharmed.”

“But…that would mean leaving you behind. I can’t do that! What if there’s a battle and you need me to fight?”

“We will not be fighting against this army, believe me,” Ansur said. “There are far too many of them, and it would be nothing but suicide to attack. No, Valdan and I will look for a way into the city without being spotted. Once inside, we will try and take out Argo and end all of this. If more of us go, that increases our chances of being spotted.”

“What the commander means is, we’ll have to leave some men behind in any case,” Valdan explained. “And you won’t be much help in a fight if you’re worrying about Belena all the time. Please try and see if you can reach her and Sylvie. Maybe you can tell them about the army and get them to come and help us. If they’re not too busy themselves, that is.”

“All right, I’ll go,” Lorek said after a moment’s hesitation. “I can’t stand not knowing anymore if Belena is all right or not. Goodbye, Valdan…and good luck. I really hope your plan works.”

“It had better work – it might be our only chance of freeing the city. But everything depends on Belena and Sylvie being successful in their attempt to get rid of the ogres. Let us hope that they will be.”

At that very moment, the two giantesses were on the other side of the city of Elgon, doing their best to stay alive. Their greater size gave them a big advantage, but the ogres were tough and ruthless creatures and the girls had to fight like they had never done before. Brandishing their giant swords, they managed to defeat the dozen or so ogres that had attacked them simultaneously. But they themselves were not unharmed. Sylvie got a nasty bite on the back of her neck from one particularly agile ogre, which had jumped on to her back while she was momentarily kneeling on the ground. Another had managed to pull out a chunk of her hair, which hurt even more than the bite.

Fortunately, Belena had come to her aid both times. Despite her lack of experience in combat and the fact that she was frightened of being killed, the elder princess didn’t hold back in the fight at all. She wasn’t just doing this to stay alive: there were thousands of people at the mercy of these beasts, and she and Sylvie were the only chance the citizens of Elgon had for deliverance. Sylvie had fought a giant monster before, but that had only been one monster, one time – and yet she, like Belena, was giving it all she had. One after another, the huge ogres fell to the blades of the princesses’ swords, until their bodies were strewn all over the field. At this point, the ogres – the few that remained – changed tactics. No doubt, in the safety of his occupied castle stronghold, Argo had seen that his ogres weren’t up to the task of defeating two young giantesses, and had decided to defeat them via a much crueller method.

The ogres retreated momentarily, but soon came charging back, and this time they were wielding a very different sort of weapon. In their great arms they swung little iron cages on ropes, almost like some sort of flail weapons – except the cages were filled with prisoners. Men, women and children had been stuffed into the makeshift prisons, up to twenty in each ten-foot cage, and all of them terrified out of their wits. So, too, were the young princesses, who now had to find a way to both kill the remaining ogres and rescue the tiny human prisoners while making sure they didn’t come to any harm.

“Oh no!” Belena cried out when she saw what was waiting for them. “Oh, those poor people! How…how could Argo be so cruel? How could he be so inhuman?”

“Oh, just wait till I get my hands on him!” Sylvie said, and even Belena was shocked by the tone of her voice. “I’ll teach that little monster a thing or two. I’ll break every bone in his body – one for every person who died because of him!”

“No, Sylvie, don’t talk like that! We’re not letting any more people die, do you hear? Those prisoners the ogres are carrying…we have to try and save them! All of them!”

“But…how? I don’t want anyone to die either, but…what can we do?”

The ogres were approaching more quickly now, and Belena knew they had precious little time left to figure something out. But she did have one idea, and she hoped and prayed that it would work. She told her plan to Sylvie, who seemed very sceptical, but they both agreed that there was nothing better to do.

Luckily for the success of Belena’s plan, ogres weren’t the most intelligent of creatures. They were eager to attack the giant girls, who had already killed so many of their fellows, with their improvised weapons, but when they saw what was happening, they all stopped in their tracks. The two giantesses appeared to be fighting one another! They were swinging at each other with their blades, crying out loudly, and, for a moment, the ogres had no idea what to do next. But then the two princesses charged at one another and screamed, before seemingly each thrusting their swords into the other’s chest. They both fell down immediately.

The ogres, not having any idea what had just happened, were completely taken in. All of them except one dropped their cages filled with human prisoners and approached the motionless princesses, feeling certain they were dead. Even when they were practically standing on top of them, there was no hint of movement from either of the girls. Too late did any of them notice that the girls’ swords were stuck between their chests and their arms. Now that their foes were unarmed, Belena cried out as a signal, and the giantesses leapt to their feet, swords in hand, and began to hack away at their monstrous opponents.

Belena went first for the one ogre who still carried a cage in its hands. She swung her sword furiously at the creature’s wrists, slicing off both hands and making it howl in pain. Then she fell down and grabbed the falling cage before it hit the ground. The ogre almost instantly recovered and was about to lunge at her, before Sylvie’s sword came swinging from behind and lopped off its head. Belena put the cage full of frightened people down safely on the ground, then got back to her feet for the final fight. When they saw how few of the beasts remained, it gave the girls a much-needed boost of energy. A few minutes later, and the two worn-out princesses collapsed to their knees, having managed to kill every single opponent. The field around them was covered with enormous ogre corpses, already beginning to smell rotten. The girls themselves were a mess: their armour was dented and scratched and covered in ogre blood and they were covered in bruises and aching in every muscle. But they had won, the biggest threat was gone. However, the day was still a long way from being over for them.

Belena groaned and stood up again, then helped her little sister to her feet as well. She decided that the most important thing right now was to help the prisoners. She told Sylvie to collect all the cages the ogres had dropped earlier and bring them to her, then they could start freeing the helpless townsfolk. She herself picked up the one cage that she had managed to catch earlier. It was smaller than her open hand, but crammed full with over a dozen frightened men and women. When they saw the giant princess stooping down to pick them up, they were initially afraid, but they were soon reassured when they saw she had come to save them.

“Is everyone all right in there?” Belena asked, still out of breath from the fighting. “Don’t worry, I’ll have you out in no time. Please, everyone stand back against one side of the cage, and I’ll try and get it open.”

The iron bars of the cage were two inches thick, but for Belena that was only the same thickness as a thin wire. She inserted the tips of her thumbs into a gap between the bars and pulled them apart easily, creating an opening large enough for the prisoners to climb out of. Then she put the cage on the ground and stepped back, allowing the shaken and still terrified people to escape. Sylvie came back at that moment, her arms full of cages: she must have been carrying almost two hundred people. She saw what Belena had done and immediately started to do the same thing, with Belena coming to lend a hand. Soon, everyone was free again.

To the girls’ great relief, there had been no casualties among this group of people, although there were many injuries, wounds and broken bones, most from when the ogres had dropped the cages earlier. Still, everyone was thankful for the giant princesses’ help. Several young men who were among the imprisoned, and who had suffered the least injuries, offered to escort all of the people to safety, allowing the girls to get on with the task of saving Elgon. Belena didn’t agree, however: she felt she had a duty to make sure all of the people made it safely out of any possible harm’s way, so Sylvie offered to take care of the rest of Argo’s forces on her own.

“After what we just did, handling one little army of ankle-high soldiers shouldn’t be any trouble!” Sylvie reassured her sister. “Besides, I know what to do to make those tiny cowards run for their lives – hopefully without having to stomp on any of them! You stay here and help these people, then you can join me once you’re finished.”

“Very well…but, still, be careful,” Belena said. “They may not be as much of a threat as these ogres were, but we don’t know, maybe they still have some form of weaponry that can hurt you. Take care!”

Sylvie smiled and gave her a reassuring wave, then headed off on her own, leaving Belena to deal with the captives. But, as it turned out, she had someone to help her. Lorek, having watched his dear Belena emerge triumphant on the field of battle from a safe distance, had come running up to her as soon as the fighting was over. This wasn’t easy, with all the colossal ogre bodies piled up all over the fields, and he had even been forced to climb over the huge carcasses once or twice, which was far from being pleasant. But he finally made it to Belena’s location and, when she saw her tiny husband emerging from the ruin around her, the young princess fell to her knees and scooped him up in one hand.

“Lorek…what are you doing here?” she cried out. “You…Lorek, you can’t be here! I told you to remain at the castle, didn’t I? Darling, it isn’t safe here for you!”

“I…well, it looks pretty safe at the moment, doesn’t it? Thanks to you and Sylvie. Belena…wait, please listen to me! You know I can’t just wait back home for news of you! What if something happened to you? I needed to come! Please don’t be angry! I stayed far away from the battle until it was over, really! I’m not stupid, I know I would’ve been killed in two seconds if I’d tried to come and help you fight. But I’m here and I can help now. Please don’t send me back, my love…I really just wanted to know you were safe, that’s all!”

He didn’t say anything about Valdan or the other soldiers: he could see Belena was in a very bad state and, more than anything, he wanted to comfort her and tell her she’ll be all right. But now was not the time for that, there was more work that needed to be done. Belena gave him a brief, but loving, kiss and cradled him in her hands.

“I should be angry at you…but, well, maybe you’re right,” she acknowledged. “I always try to handle everything by myself, but maybe I could use a little help every now and then. All right, darling, you can stay and help. These people have been captured and hurt by Argo and his monsters, and we need to get them to a safe place. We can’t take them to Elgon until it’s been taken back from Argo, so the forest is the best option. I’ll carry them in groups of twenty – that’s about as much as I can hold in my hands safely. You stay here and help the ones who aren’t hurt defend the others. I see you’ve brought a sword with you…”

She smiled at Lorek and realized that him being here was actually a good thing. All this time she had seen him as a tiny, helpless thing, to be loved and protected from everything around him – but now she knew that perhaps that wasn’t the right way. He could be capable of a lot more if she let him do his own thing every now and then, and she knew he wouldn’t respect her any less for that. She also greatly appreciated his help, now when she could use all the help she can get.

Meanwhile, Valdan and his small band of troops had managed to sneak around to the other edge of the city. There were a lot fewer enemy soldiers here, but getting into the city unseen still seemed like a long shot. But luck, it seemed, was on their side. Watching from their cover among the trees, they saw a troop of soldiers on horseback arrive in the midst of the encampment. They were too distant to be heard, but it seemed they were giving orders to the men on foot, and soon afterwards the whole company of soldiers gathered up their weapons and began to march off, around the city. Valdan couldn’t believe it, but there wasn’t any time to waste. He turned to the men behind him and motioned towards the city, which was now mostly unguarded.

“They must have gone off to fight Belena and Sylvie,” he thought, hoping that it was the case. If his sisters had managed to defeat a force composed of giant ogres, he was sure they wouldn’t have any problems dealing with this army of human soldiers. But that was just speculation, which he didn’t have time to do right now. He had a city to protect – his father’s city – and he would do his best to rid it of these evil invaders. As for Argo himself, Valdan didn’t know what to do about him – but he would see to it that he didn’t escape justice, no matter what.

After the huge fight she’d just been through, not to mention the all-night long hike to get here, Sylvie was almost completely worn out – but the fact that she and her sister had just overcome a supposedly invincible opposing force gave her a lot of confidence, and she felt more than ready to deal with an army of human soldiers, no matter how many of them there were. She strode towards the city of Elgon, looking determined and aggressive, which she hoped would scare any enemies in her path into submission. When she saw the army that lay in wait for her, though, she couldn’t help but give a little gasp. There were truly thousands and thousands of them, and she also saw rows and rows of siege weapons – catapults, huge crossbow-like contraptions and siege towers – among the mass of troops. Still, the soldiers were no taller than her ankles and, apart from her head, she was completely clad in armour several inches thick, so she didn’t slow down. When she was just a few of her giant strides away from the nearest enemy forces, she saw a dark cloud rise up from several thousand of the soldiers and sail towards her. Just in time she realized that it was a swarm of arrows and she hastily covered her face with her hands. The great majority of the arrows impacted her body and limbs, causing her no harm at all. A couple managed to hit her ears or get stuck in her hair, which, though irritating, didn’t bother her all that much either. She lowered her hands, only to see another cloud of arrows heading her way, so she simply hid her face again.

Despite being unharmed, Sylvie didn’t want this to continue on indefinitely, so she decided to act. She took two steps forward, stomping her feet down on the ground with maximum force, which actually caused quite a few enemy troops to wobble and stumble. Now the nearest ranks were just a foot (from her perspective) away from her feet. She lifted up her gigantic left steel boot and held it above the closest soldiers.

“I don’t want to squish anyone!” she cried out, trying to sound as fierce as possible. “But if you bunch of little pipsqueaks don’t surrender right now, I’m just going to walk forward – and if anyone gets in my way…well, I guess I’ll just have to scrape you off my boot soles later!”

Sylvie, of course, had no intention of actually crushing anyone to death under her boots. Killing violent, voracious, murderous ogres was one thing, but stomping helpless soldiers to death, many of whom probably didn’t even want to be here and were just made to follow Argo’s orders, didn’t feel right to her. But she hoped that most of the enemy soldiers didn’t know this and that they believed her to be a merciless warrior giantess, capable of squishing humans as easily as most humans would step on insects. To her delight, her strategy seemed to work…at first. Many of the enemy, especially those who were standing right in front of her and over whom she towered like a Titaness, did throw down their weapons and run away. A couple dozen braver – or perhaps more foolhardy – warriors charged forward and attacked her right foot with swords, pikes and spears, all to no avail. There were still occasional bursts of arrows fired at her, but she just swatted them away. She also began waving the tip of her sword, from which ogre blood was still dripping, over the frightened soldiers’ heads, which scared even more of them into retreat. The noise from thousands of voices, all clamouring and screaming and yelling orders, just sounded like an incomprehensible roar to Sylvie. The enemy was on the retreat, but they hadn’t given up yet.

The huge siege engines were being loaded and aimed in her direction, and for a moment Sylvie felt a touch of fear, but she decided to stand her ground. The largest catapults launched huge boulders over the heads of the soldiers, but to the young princess they were just pebble-sized and they bounced off her armoured body without hurting her. The same thing happened with the great ballista bolts that came flying at her, none of which managed to hit higher than her waist. She even caught one of the boulders that was aimed at her and threw it back, hitting the largest siege tower and instantly causing it to collapse in on itself.

This was the moment when the enemy seemed to realize they weren’t going to win. A mass retreat began to happen, with most of the men, ignoring the desperate commands of their officers, dropping their weapons and running off, away from their giant foe. But Sylvie wasn’t about to let them escape just like that. She strode around the main mass of troops, occasionally knocking a score or so of them over with the tips of her boots (though she was careful not to step on anyone), and blocked their retreat.

“Running away, are we?” she said mockingly. “I don’t think so, you bunch of insects! You’ll all stay right where you are, throw down all your weapons and surrender, and I’ll consider sparing your lives! Otherwise…”

She stamped her foot down as hard as she could, causing a miniature earthquake to the frightened soldiers below. Her commands were, for the most part, instantly obeyed by most of the enemy, although a few of the commanding officers were still riding around through the fray, trying to get their troops to continue the fight. Sylvie directed her gaze at one of them, an important-looking man in a plumed helmet, carrying a rather tattered flag, who seemed to be in charge of most of the troops. She bent down on one knee and reached out with her long arm, then plucked the tiny general off his horse with two fingers. The terrified man now lay helpless in her hand and began pleading for his life. Sylvie had at first thought it might have been Prince Argo himself, but she saw from his greying hair that he was much older than she knew Argo to be. Also, from the way her sister had described him, she didn’t think Argo would be the type who’d lead his men from the front lines.

“Stop squirming, you little worm!” she said to her tiny captive. She was actually enjoying this feeling of being able to intimidate and frighten humans for a change. “I’m guessing you’re not Argo himself, are you? You’re one of his underlings, am I right? Tell me where I can find your boss, then I’ll let you return to your men.”

“I’m…not…telling you anything!” the man cried. Sylvie had expected him to be uncooperative, so she decided to persuade him a little bit. She deftly took hold of one of his legs and began to twist it slowly, and he began to scream in pain.

“I’m not letting go until you tell me where I can find Argo!” she said firmly, increasing the pressure on his leg. “Tell me now, or else you’ll be going to jail with one leg instead of two!”

“All right, all right…but please let go!” the enemy commander yelled. Sylvie released him and he fell back in her palm, gasping for breath.

“My lord Argo is up there, in the castle,” the man said, pointing up towards Elgon’s hill. “At least, he was there when he ordered us to attack earlier. Please, I can’t tell you anymore!”

“All right, that’s good enough, I guess,” she said. She knelt down and dumped him unceremoniously on the ground. He tried to stand up, but his leg was still in great pain and he instantly fell down. As he yelled for some of his soldiers to come and help him, Sylvie turned towards the city. She wanted nothing more than to rush up to the castle and catch Argo himself, before he had a chance to escape, but she didn’t know if that would be possible for her. Elgon’s labyrinthine streets were much too narrow for her to pass safely through, unless she walked extremely carefully – but she didn’t have that much time to spare either. She guessed Argo would try and flee to safety as soon as he saw that the battle wasn’t going his way, which he probably already had.

She was about to try and enter the city when she saw another, much smaller group of soldiers emerging from one of the gates. Sylvie was amused at the thought that there were still some humans who thought they could attempt to defeat her in battle. But then she saw that one of the soldiers was carrying the flag of the Kingdom of Vandan. These weren’t enemy troops at all, but citizens and soldiers of the city that had come out to meet her. The small group – no more than a hundred or so – came all the way up to her feet. She recognized one of soldiers at the front: it was Commander Ansur, whom Valdan and Lorek were always busy training with. She thought that Belena had told him and the other troops to remain behind at the castle, but they were here now. Sylvie stooped down and extended her hand to the commander, who climbed in.

“Congratulations, Your Highness!” he said to her. “You’ve saved us a lot of trouble in dealing with this army. We’re all very grateful.”

“Thanks…but aren’t you supposed to be back in Rismark? Does Belena know you’re here?”

“No, she does not…and, with all due respect to the Royal Princess, but she has never been in a battle like this before. I know she just wants to protect everyone all of the time, and we all appreciate her bravery, but she needs us humans more than she thinks. My men and I have just managed to expel most of the few remaining troops in the city, and the last few remnants are being dealt with by your brother as we speak…”

“What!? Valdan is here too? Oh boy, if Belena finds out, she’s going to murder him! Where is he? I’m going to have some words with him…”

“Actually…we’d prefer it if you stayed right here, Princess Sylvie. We need your help in disarming and detaining all of these enemy troops outside the city. They are far too many for my men to handle by themselves. But they seem to be scared stiff of you and wouldn’t dare do anything to us while you’re here. Please, Your Highness, we need you here! Valdan is a capable and well-trained soldier – I should know – and he has the makings of a good commander as well. Don’t worry, he’ll find and catch Argo, and then we’ll bring that bastard to justice. He won’t escape from what he’s done here, mark my words.”

Sylvie had half a mind to ignore the tiny commander and head off into the city again – but she realized that what he said made sense. Besides, she knew the people of Elgon were all watching her, and she decided that it might be wiser to act like an adult for once. She agreed with Ansur and placed him on the ground again. This foreign army, though defeated, still had to be decisively dealt with. Ansur told her that the plan was to relieve all the enemy soldiers of their weapons and armour, then escort them to the borders of Vandan with an armed guard and release them. Only the commanders would be taken prisoner, and they too might be released if it turns out they were merely pawns in Argo’s vile scheme. Sylvie didn’t have any better ideas, so she agreed to stay and help. She couldn’t help worrying about her older brother, however. She hoped he would succeed in capturing Argo, without getting killed in the process. She also wondered how Belena was doing at the moment.

“I’m so glad this day is almost over,” she thought to herself. “The worst part is done with – or at least, I hope it is.”

Valdan had always sort-of looked forward to the day when he would get to fight in a real battle, rather than simply spending his time training with weapons and mock fighting. Now that such a day had actually arrived, however, he realized how foolish his wish had been. He had always known that being in combat would involve killing, but to actually have to resort to this method of ending a fight was repugnant to him. But, as he soon realized when they encountered the first group of enemy soldiers in the city, often it was necessary to take the enemy’s life in order to preserve your own. Valdan, surrounded by his own band of soldiers, always gave the enemies they encountered a chance to surrender first, but it was rarely the case that things went that smoothly.

As he and the men who followed him moved through the city of Elgon, going from house to house and looking for enemy soldiers, he was constantly dreading that each minute would be his last. Most of the time they met little resistance – most of the soldiers seemed to have fled already, no doubt due to the fact that his sister Sylvie was busy taking on the main army just outside the city walls. Every now and then he’d catch a glimpse of her head, towering above the surrounding buildings, and, despite their almost lifelong dislike for one another, Valdan was glad she was here. She certainly made his own task a lot easier. Despite that, there were still troops loyal to Argo hiding in the city, and Valdan had ample opportunities to see if his combat training had paid off. Almost every soldier he encountered was older and more experienced than he was, but most of them, no matter how loyal to their overlord they might be had little desire to be here, while Valdan had the greatest desire in the world to save this city, the city of his father, from being ruined. His own troops were just as passionate about defending their homeland, so the young prince had every intention of winning this battle.

As they neared the castle on top of the hill, the enemy forces  they encountered grew steadily less and less. Valdan even began feeling more confident in getting all of this horrid business over with soon. With only the uppermost terraces of the city left to clear, he ordered Commander Ansur to head back downhill, taking with him a portion of his men, to help Sylvie with her own battle outside the gate. Not that Sylvie needed any help dealing with an army of thumb-sized soldiers, he knew that. But he also knew that his little sister was as inexperienced in battle as he was, and she might have no idea what to do once she’d convinced Argo’s army to surrender to her, which Valdan knew she’d be able to accomplish. In the meantime, he’d make sure that the city itself was free from any and all invaders.

He and the others with him split up and went from one home to the next, making sure all the inhabitants were safe. Thus it happened that Valdan, upon entering a small house by himself just outside the castle gates, found himself confronted by four of Argo’s soldiers. Two of them were in the act of assaulting a young woman, who was screaming and trying to fight back against the men tearing at her clothes. On the floor lay the bodies of an older couple, no doubt the girl’s parents. Valdan was shocked by what he saw, but he had no time to think about it as the two other soldiers came rushing at him simultaneously. He sidestepped behind a chair and kicked it at one of the men, causing him to trip and fall. His companion’s sword came down on him, but again Valdan managed to step aside just in time and counterattack. He stabbed the second soldier in the leg, disabling him for the moment, and leapt onto and quickly dispatched the one who had fallen down as well. Then the remaining two let go of the girl they were struggling with, but, rather than attack Valdan as well, they ran into an adjoining room, trying to escape. Valdan ran after them without a second thought.

Left alone for the moment, the young woman the soldiers had attempted to violate slowly got to her feet. She was still in an extreme state of shock, but she knew she had to escape. She was about to make a run for it when Valdan returned from the other room, his sword covered in blood and his face looking very pale. He immediately came to the girl’s aid, catching her just as it looked as if she was about to collapse, and helped her sit down on a chair.

“You’re safe now, don’t worry,” he told her, trying to sound optimistic, while realising he had no idea how to console a woman who had just lost her parents, and had been almost viciously attacked herself. The one soldier he’d spared was still groaning and crawling towards the door. He was met by three of Valdan’s own soldiers, however, and didn’t make it any farther than that. Two of the soldiers then began to remove the bodies from the house, while the third checked on the bodies of the man and woman.

“Prince Valdan, this woman is still breathing!” the soldier said, and Valdan looked over at him. “She’s barely clinging to life, but I think she can still be saved.”

“Then we have to get her to safety at once,” Valdan said. “I should come with you…but I can’t leave this lady here by herself. She’s in a terrible state as well.”

“We’ll take her with us as well,” the man replied. “You should head on up to the castle and make sure Argo is captured. Letting him get away would be a great blow for us.”

Valdan wanted to argue, but he could see that what the man said made sense. Usually he wouldn’t be happy about taking advice from a common soldier, but he knew he was a novice when it came to situations like this, so he agreed. He helped the young woman to her feet and assured her that everything would be all right, then handed her over to the soldier, who helped her out of the house. The other two, once they had finished clearing the house of corpses, placed the unmoving body of the girl’s mother on an upturned table and carried it off. Valdan was left to himself again, but he could see other soldiers still rushing up towards the castle, so he decided to join them and end this once and for all.

It was not to be. Valdan and his soldiers swept through the castle without encountering anything more than a token resistance. They found plenty of people locked up in the dungeons or strapped into cruel torture-machines that must have been brought here by the enemy, since Valdan knew his father would never approve of such devices in his castle. There were also the bodies of victims, several dozen of them, attesting to the cruelty of Argo and his minions. It made Valdan feel ill, each time he entered a room of the castle he had spent much of his childhood in, only to discover it had been used as a room of torture and other unspeakable crimes. His only consolation was that they had arrived in time to prevent even more bloodshed. Even so, he felt it still wasn’t enough, and he wished he could’ve arrived even sooner and prevented more death; he also knew his sisters would share that feeling. But, despite having proven victorious, there was no sign of Argo himself anywhere; the evil instigator of all of this had made his escape. Several of his soldiers who were captured were asked whereto he might’ve fled, but none of them could answer, and Valdan felt sure they didn’t know either. Argo seemed to have deserted his own troops without a word of warning, once he’d seen he was on the losing side.

After all of the fighting was over, Valdan felt he needed some time to himself. Some of his soldiers were still searching the castle and the city beyond for signs of Argo, but he himself had had enough for one day. He longed for his mother and father’s return and wished they were here to sort all of this out, as they usually did. As he sat on his father’s throne in the empty throne-room, wishing he knew what to do next, he heard his name being called from outside. He walked over to the window, which looked over the fields outside from atop a high cliff, and found himself looking down at his gigantic little sister. Sylvie was standing at the bottom of the cliff, just outside the city walls, and her head still rose nearly to the level of the castle’s lowest floor. She looked up at Valdan and he was shocked by her appearance: blotches of blood on her face and armour, scratch marks on her neck, arrows stuck in her cheeks, ears and hair. She had clearly had just as rough a day as he had, despite her obvious advantages in battle. But he knew she had had to face a much more formidable field of opponents. She lifted up her arm and held her hand just beneath the windowsill, and he hopped into it. For once, the two of them were overjoyed to see one another. Sylvie held her tiny brother close against her chest and he pressed himself against it, even though from his perspective he was hugging an enormous steel wall.

“I’m so happy you’re all right,” Sylvie said. “I was so worried you wouldn’t come back out of that city alive!”

“No, I’m still alive, don’t worry! I’m happy to see you too – even though you look just terrible.”

“I feel terrible…” she replied. “I just want to lie down and sleep…but first I need a bath and a meal and…and to get rid of these horrible things…” She scratched at a handful of arrows stuck in her cheek, but they remained stuck in her skin and she winced in pain.

“Hey, let me help with that!” Valdan chimed in. “Lie down so I can reach your face, Sylvie. It’ll be easier for me to do it than for you.”

Sylvie agreed and lay down on her back, placing her big brother by the side of her head. Valdan immediately began to work on getting the arrows out of her skin. It would be a long and tiresome process and he doubted that he’d be able to get every single one of them, but at least he’d spare his sister the ordeal of having to it all herself. As he began to remove each arrow, as carefully and deliberately as he could, the two of them spoke about their ordeals that day. It had been a terrible day and a terrible battle, but they both knew it could’ve gone a lot worse, and it was only Belena’s quick decision to come to Elgon’s aid that had spared the town from an even more terrible predicament. Argo might’ve escaped, but his return seemed unlikely at the moment, now that he knew what Vandan’s royals were capable of doing to defend their land. All that the two of them wanted to do now was to reunite with their older sister and head home – before the work of rebuilding and cleaning up after the battle, which still lay ahead for them.

Having successfully snuck out of the castle, found a horse and slipped out of the city, Argo rode through the encircling woods as speedily as he could. He was almost overcome with rage, after having witnessed how those infernal giant princesses had managed to slay his entire horde of ogres and subdue his mighty army. That last feat had been accomplished single-handedly by the younger princess, without any help from her older sister, which made it even more humiliating for Argo. His one consolation was that he had managed to rough up the city of Elgon quite a bit, having executed dozens of its citizens for fun and ordering his soldiers to pretty much do as they pleased in the town. From what he'd learnt of Princess Belena after their brief interaction, he knew she was a very soft-hearted person. The knowledge that her delayed response to his invasion had led to so many deaths ought to be quite upsetting to her girlish mind, Argo thought, trying desperately to cheer himself up.

His hasty escape through the forest, however, came to an abrupt end soon enough. Finding himself in an especially dense part of the woods, he simply urged his horse forward, beating it to make it run faster, and thinking that he'd worry about the direction home later, once he was a safe distance from the city. Because the trees were so thick, and because he was wrapped in his own thoughts, he didn't hear the giantess catching up with him from behind, nor see anything of her until she planted a colossal steel boot right in front of him. His horse immediately reared up and threw him from the saddle, and he fell with a thud in the undergrowth.

Belena let the frightened horse go and sighed with relief upon realizing who it was she'd intercepted. She had been busy helping the wounded prisoners on the battlefield, and trying to clear away some of the dead ogres, when she'd caught a tiny movement in the corner of her eye. It might have been nothing, simply a frightened citizen of Elgon fleeing from the scene of battle - but, then again, running away from a battle he knew he couldn't win was exactly the kind of thing Argo would do. So she set off in pursuit, her walking speed easily matching that of the galloping horse, and simply broke through any trees that stood in her way, until she'd caught up to the fleeing rider. Now he was at her mercy - and she was not feeling in a mood to be merciful at all.

She crouched down and grabbed the tiny human in her fist, then stood up and opened her hand to make sure it was indeed Prince Argo whom she'd captured. He lay helpless in her palm, his tall, handsome, powerfully-built figure giving little indication of the evil that lay inside. But the look on his face was another matter. He sprang to his feet and drew his sword, then began waving it wildly back-and-forth above his head.

"You giant bitch, I'll kill you for this!" he screamed. "I'll make you pay for everything you did, you hear me? I'll make you pay!"

He swung his sword down and struck her steel-clad hand, but the blade just bounced back ineffectively. Belena let him carry on like this for a few seconds, then pinched his sword between her fingertips. She crushed the sharp blade flat as though it were a blade of grass, then pulled the sword from his grasp and flung it away.

"You're the only one who's going to pay for something today, you little monster," she said. "I'm taking you back to Elgon, where you'll be put into the lowest, darkest, smelliest dungeon - one year for every person who died due to your wickedness. And don't bother screaming at me or insulting me or begging for forgiveness. I'm done listening to you!"

She sat down and slowly and with difficulty removed one of her immense steel boots. She couldn't wait to be rid of this armour and take a bath and eat a hot meal and go to bed with Lorek - but now she knew what being a queen required of her. It would be her responsibility to protect her lands, once she ascended to the throne, and she knew there would be many more days like this in the future. She hoped she would find the strength within herself to deal with it when it comes, the same strength she knew her parents had always had. But first, Argo had to be dealt with. She shoved him deep into her boot, where his screams and curses were barely audible, then slipped her foot back in, pushing him forward with her toes, until he was trapped in a tiny space. She knew it had to be unbearably hot, stuffy and uncomfortable in there, but did he really deserve any better? Belena thought of herself as a gentle, good-hearted person - but even she had her limits.

She arrived back at Elgon to find everyone waiting for her. Sylvie was standing there, the defeated forces of Argo's army arranged at her feet, guarded by the soldiers Valdan had brought over. Valdan and Lorek were there as well, helping the wounded townsfolk along with many other volunteers. Others were busy setting fire to the colossal ogre carcasses - a thankless job if ever there was one, but it seemed the best way to dispose of the unpleasant things. Then there were those engaged in digging graves for the deceased, both those killed by Argo's doing and those who had fallen in the battle within the city walls, both friend and enemy soldier alike.

Lorek and Valdan, when they saw Belena arrive, ran to greet her, but they were both intercepted by Sylvie, who scooped them up in her hand before hurrying to meet her sister. the two princesses embraced, and Belena gave her brother and her husband each a kiss, before taking Lorek and putting him on her shoulder. She began to cry, the bottled-up emotion and exhaustion of the last night and day finally overcoming her.

The giant princess fell to her knees, making the ground sink beneath her, her tears raining down from her face. Lorek rubbed behind her ear while holding on to her hair for balance, embracing her as best as he could while Valdan and Sylvie watched as she let it all out. After a few minutes of silence she stopped, clearing her throat as she wiped off her face. She surveyed the battlefield outside of the castle. The graves. The smoke rising from fires now dying within the walls. The enemy soldiers surrounded by soldiers of Vandan. "I...I failed..." she managed to say.

"Belena, no..." Lorek tried to say, but she ignored him.

"I should have been quicker! I should have known before to make sure Elgon was safe..."

"Belena!" shouted Sylvie. The others all looked at her in shock, and Valdan rubbed his ears as he was so close to her mouth. "Don't blame yourself. There's nothing we could have done!"

"It is my fault Sylvie! If it weren't for me, Argo would never have attacked anyways! Because I was childish and short-tempered when he visited Vandan, he retaliated. This was brought on by me!"

"You couldn't have known he was as sick as he was! You had every right to treat him like you did, and you would have every right now to pop him like a grape!"

"I could have been a better ruler Sylvie! I could have been responsible. I could have respected him despite how he treated me. So many people....dead because I failed to be the ruler mom and dad wanted me to be."

"Sweetheart, there's nothing more you could've done!" said Lorek. "You saved hundreds if not thousands of lives because of your quick response! Not only that, you and Sylvie came alone and managed to subdue all of the ogres and Argo's entire army without any help from us! You're a hero, Belena!"

Before she could argue back, the group noticed a dozen or more people from Elgon approaching, and Lorek shouted when he saw one. "Father!"

Indeed, as Belena turned her gaze to the approaching citizens she could see Orlak in the lead, stopping just short of her knees. He began speaking, but Belena quickly swept her hand behind him, causing him to yelp and cling to her hand as he was raised up to her face. After a moment of trembling, he managed to compose himself as he stood, stumbling a bit as he struggled to find his footing on the steel of her gauntlet. He coughed a bit, tugging at his collar as he looked into her building-sized face and spoke.

"P-princess Belena," he said bowing. "I-I am deeply sorry for how I had t-treated you before. I-I was foolish t-to treat you like a m-monster before. Y-you saved my life today. Those ogres...t-they had me in their cage. I-if it were not for you...I'd be dead."

Belena felt tears forming in her eyes again. From her shoulder, Lorek ran down the length of her arm, stumbling as he crossed her wrist into her palm. But he got up at once and ran up to Orlak to embrace him.

"Father, I knew you would come around to her! I knew it!" Orlak hugged his son back, his eyes tearing up as well, but kept his composure as best he could. Belena smiled down at the pair, tearing up at the sight of the reunion. Once Orlak and Lorek were done, he addressed Belena once more, clearing his throat.

"I...I was horrible when I first met you....and when Lorek professed his love towards you. I....I still do not see how he could make a relationship like this....work...but I will approve. You...you seem very good for him, Your Majesty."

"You can call me Belena, sir. We're family, right?" Orlak chuckled, though somewhat nervously.

"Yes, well you are of course, uh, Belena." He smiled at her awkwardly. Belena also smiled through her tears, then looked to Sylvie and Valdan who had kept silent for the exchange.

"Uh, Belena? Could I go talk to my father...uh...privately?" Lorek asked.

"Oh! Of course, dear. I have some people to attend to anyways." She gave Lorek a kiss, noting how uncomfortable Orlak felt with her giant face mere inches away from him, and then she let them go, placing her hand on the ground so they could exit.

"What did I tell you?" said Sylvie, putting a hand on her hip. "People see you as a hero. Because you are Belena. Argo was a monster before he met you. Now, he just knows to never come again."

"That reminds me!" Belena shifted to a sitting position, bringing her feet forward and removing her boot once more, dumping Argo out, the defeated prince rolling onto the ground before Sylvie. "I...he deserved it."

"He deserves worse," Sylvie said, nudging him with the tip of her boot. The prince squirmed, curling into a foetal position.

"Sylvie, let me handle him," Valdan said. "Maybe he does deserve death. But not like this. He will be locked up for the rest of his life." Sylvie sighed, then moved her foot back.

"Fine. Just make sure he's as miserable as possible, Valdan." The tiny prince nodded, Sylvie placing him down and Ansur approached with a few guards to provide more protection. Valdan grabbed Argo by the arm and dragged him to his feet, letting the guards drag him with as Valdan made his way into the city. He waved to his sisters as they began addressing the people of Elgon. Argo didn't speak a word as they dragged him through the deserted streets, save for some who had returned to see what was left after seeing the danger had passed. They reached the castle, making a descent in the northwest tower, going as deep as the castle would allow them, to the lowest, darkest dungeon that had been built for prisoners who were never meant to be released. The soldiers threw him into the cell, throwing the door shut, and the prince stood to his full height after a moment, laughing quietly. He turned around, coming closer to the bars and peering down at Valdan. He was tall, and inside Valdan felt some fear from him. It was nothing compared to being near his sisters though, so he stood there, glaring back at him.

"You're a foolish boy, Prince Valdan. Allowing those monsters to rule with you."

"And you're a sick and twisted man, Argo. Not only have you unfairly judged my family, but you've also brought war to our peaceful lands! You could have left with what little dignity you had left, but you had to come back for revenge. And it failed horribly."

"Did it? That sister of yours...she seemed distraught knowing this was her fault."

"You know this is all of your doing."

"She was the monster in this, you fool! Your family rules with an iron fist, and soon the people of Vandan, the people of Elgon, and soon the world will see what you people really are."

"Well, good luck making people buy into your beliefs down here."

"I will not be here, fool. I will not allow for that beast to have the final laugh here." Before anyone could stop him, Argo drew a dagger from his boot and stuck it into his neck. He toppled over, the corrupt prince dead before he had even started to fall. Everyone looked at the bleeding body without saying a word, until Valdan spoke up.    

"Leave his body to rot here. Don't tell Belena or Sylvie." Ansur nodded, and the men exited, leaving the dead prince alone in his cell.

Outside, Sylvie had taken to escorting the soldiers of Solis and Rheir to the border of Elgon, a few of her own soldiers following her though she had no need for them. The commanders had been taken captive, left with Belena and the rest of Vandan's army, their fates to be decided. The other soldiers were going to be set free, nearly all of them losing hope now that Argo was defeated. Many were relieved to be rid of the tyrant, happy to be following the giant princess as she thundered along in her steel boots. After nearly an hour they reached the border, and Sylvie turned around to address the enemy army. "You were all pawns of a madman, so you will be set free. Go back with good news, that Vandan will not blame Solis or Rheir for what was done. Only Argo was the true enemy. We will be at peace from here on out." She eyed the soldiers, trying to see if anyone would argue with her. No one moved, save for a few who nodded. Content with herself, Sylvie smiled and stepped aside, the soldiers walking off.

"Well done, milady," said a commanding officer. "Sounds like something the queen herself would say."

"I know," she replied, grinning. "Belena taught me all of it. Now, let's go back, we have a city to rebuild."

During that time, Belena and Lorek had attended to the wounded and listened to some of the praise the people had. Hundreds came to thank Belena personally for her heroic actions, each one wishing to be picked up to speak directly to her. By the time she was done, she could see Sylvie and the few soldiers returning. Lorek attempted to climb her so he could get back to her shoulder, but after nearly falling when he was at her waist, Belena cupped him in her hand and placed him upon his perch. "You did great," he said to her.

"Thanks. You did too."

"I hardly did anything. I was just here for emotional support." Belena giggled and turned her face to kiss him. Lorek did his best to kiss her back, but he not only almost fell, he was also practically drowned in her lips. Belena smiled, seeing him cleaning his face off, though it didn't help that his shirt was wet too.

"I can't wait till we're home," she said to him.

"I know. I think we've had enough adventures for one day." Sylvie and Valdan showed up at the same time, both reporting what had happened, Valdan not mentioning Argo's death to keep Belena from feeling any worse.

"So what now?" Sylvie asked.

"We'll go home for tonight, then we can return to rebuild once we've had some rest. I think we all need time to get our strength back."

"I'll second that," said Valdan. Sylvie picked her brother up and Belena told the people about their plans, and then the siblings set off for Rismark.

They walked throughout the night, only reaching Rismark at dawn. Once back at their castle, the two giant princesses couldn't wait to shed the cumbersome suits of armour they'd been wearing. Each of them assigned a squad of soldiers to clean their armour for them, as they were too exhausted to do it themselves. They ate a hasty meal, after which all of them headed straight for bed, and the fastest sleep any of them could remember having in a long time.

An entire day later, after lots of rest and long baths, the princesses returned to Elgon, with Lorek and Valdan sitting on their shoulders, ready to begin the arduous task of rebuilding Elgon. Without the heavy armour and weapons they had to bring on their previous visit, the journey went a lot quicker. As they walked, they saw that they were not alone. Behind them, crowds of people from Rismark and other, smaller towns were following them, keeping a respectful distance. News of the princesses' heroic actions had spread quickly throughout the land, and many were eager to help them now in this new task. If there had been any doubts about Belena's ability to rule once she succeeded to the throne in the future, they were quickly disappearing.

"Well, we're back," Belena said, as they cleared the last batch of forest before coming in sight of Elgon. "It looks like they've begun already."

She could see the smoke from all of the charred ogre carcasses, some of which still littered the battlefield, while others were in the process of being buried. Many trees had been cut down for the task, but Belena hoped that, once all traces of this evil were gone, that they'd grow again, even bigger than before.

"Even after all that's happened, they still find a way to carry on and rebuild their lives," she said in admiration.

"Well, this is the city where Dad came from," Valdan said. "And I've never known Dad to give up, no matter how hopeless the situation. I guess it's a common value of the city."

The mention of their father made Belena's heart ache anew for their parents, of whom they still haven't heard any news. But this really wasn't the time for such emotions, as an interjection by Sylvie soon reminded her.

"Come on, let's start helping them already!" the younger princess said eagerly. "Unless you want to stick around until winter's here..."

With that, the four of them headed straight for the city, and the rebuilding of Elgon began in earnest. The work process was simple, and a routine was found soon. Valdan made quick work of finding groups of people who were ready to help, both natives of Elgon and volunteers from near and far. Sylvie set about gathering trees from the forest, dropping them off for the citizens to cut down and use as timber for rebuilding. Seeing as she was big and strong enough to carry fifty tree trunks in her arms at once, the work could progress at a rapid pace.

Meanwhile, Belena worked on tearing down structures that were so damaged as to be rendered unfixable, grinding them up and piling the wood and stone up for use in the building process. As for the damaged walls and parapets of the castle and the wall surrounding the city, Belena was able to make short work of repairs there, helping to chisel boulders to replace the chunks missing. Lorek helped Belena as much as possible, making sure the houses were truly empty before she crushed them and working alongside many others on the smaller pieces of rock that Belena couldn't chisel without breaking them. Though the process was still long, the time flew by thanks to the help of the giantess princesses, their size and strength proving to be a much needed asset.

Once evening came, the weary heroes stopped to see a great feast had been prepared in the field in front of the city. Of course the work was far from done, but they had done plenty for the first day, and there would be many others. Belena smiled, joining Sylvie as they sat at the edge of the tables that had been set up, the entire city joining them for a celebration that rivalled any they had ever seen. There was dancing, singing, food and drinks that were enough to even satisfy the princesses. Lorek and Belena shared a dance at one point, the princess's hand proving to be a spacious dance floor for her husband. Even though it was difficult, Lorek was able to keep up with her, and she couldn't stop laughing as he bounced along her hand, doing a twirl at one point and kissing her fingertip once he was done. Valdan watched the two, smiling, and he felt a tap on his head. He turned around and saw Sylvie's hand stretched out to him. "Well? Do you want to dance?"

"I won't kiss your fingertip Sylvie." She snorted, getting her fingers closer. "Fine. May I have this dance?" he asked, standing up.

"Why thank you, dear prince!" she said, giggling. Valdan sighed, dancing around, though not nearly as graceful as Lorek, and many times he tripped over her fingers, landing face first in her hand.

"I thought you said you wouldn't kiss me!" Sylvie chuckled.

"I'm not kissing you, your big fingers are getting in my way!" Frustrated, Valdan eventually gave up and fell into her palm, letting out a long breath. "Lorek must have a lot of energy. That's it. Lots of energy."

When night fell, the group lay back, Lorek resting on Belena's stomach while Valdan rested on Sylvie's knee, which she had stuck up, her feet pulled in. The princesses had removed their boots, resting in front of the city in order to catch some sleep before returning to the rebuilding process the next morning.

"Do you think Mom and Dad are okay?" asked Sylvie.

"I'm sure they are," said Belena. "Besides, Mom can take care of herself and Dad without a problem. They'll be back in no time." Sylvie smiled, looking up at the stars, imagining her parents seeing the same sky miles and miles away.