Sylvie slept surprisingly well being out in the open, something she wasn’t sure would work. Luckily, it hadn’t rained or snowed, so she was mostly dry, save for her cloak which had been her makeshift bedding. The poor thing would be muddy too, so it was probably time to wash it and change clothes while she was at it. Rising from her position, which was on her back since she had rolled a bit in her sleep, she was glad to see Roth hadn’t run off; in fact, he was still sound asleep despite the noise she inevitably made while moving about. Part of her desperately wanted to jolt him awake, or do something to him while he was unaware of it, but she ultimately decided to build on the tenuous peace they made the night before. She figured it would make the rest of her time with him bearable.
Stretching, she stood to her full height and surveyed her surroundings. Not a soul in sight and no sign of civilization as far as she could see. If Roth knew where a settlement was, that would make things easier, but for now she was left roaming the land until she came across anything. It was times like these where she missed the smaller comforts of home, like having maps and traversing charted territories. How easy it would have been to plot a course and head there; now she was reduced to using clues picked up from her environment to find signs of life. Despite it being difficult, she was getting quite good at it. She knew to stick to water sources, such as lakes and rivers, and if that didn’t help, she would search for abandoned campsites where people may have bunkered down during their travels.
Leaving Roth behind for a moment, Sylvie went off to gather her bearings and decide what to do. Finding a spot that gave her the greatest elevation, she decided to sit down and think. The massive lake she had been hugging the shoreline of hadn’t been doing any good. The river she had crossed a day before might prove useful if she followed it. Either way, she had to get rid of Roth before she could even think of going home.
“Thought you could get rid of me?” Sylvie was pulled out of her thoughts and she jumped a bit, thrown off by the voice coming from behind her. She peeked behind her and sighed. Somehow, the little troublemaker had snuck up on her.
“I wish. No, just trying to figure out where to go next.” Roth walked in front of her, gazing out past the forest and towards the great lake.
“Eris. You can take me to Eris.”
“What’s that? Capital city?”
“No. It’s the largest one here though. Most trade goes on there. I haven’t been in ages, but I’m sure they’ll be quite eager to toss me in their dungeons anyways…if that is still your plan?” Sylvie eyed him curiously.
“I thought you had accepted my decision…”
“More like I realized you’re too stubborn to help me out.” She huffed at his accusation.
“Talk about stubborn, you would have starved yourself yesterday.”
“Well yeah, you try getting dragged along unwillingly by a person 10 times bigger than you, see how you like it! You can’t just exert your will on everyone because you’re big.”
“Yeah, well you can’t exert your will on people by stealing from them.”
“There you go again…as if this is all black and white! It’s not, princess! Maybe in your homeland, things are good and bad, but out here it’s about survival. The pirates offered that, and I accepted. Morality is gone when you don’t know if you’ll wake up the next morning.” Silence fell as the two simply seethed in their own anger towards the other. Sylvie had to admit, maybe she was ignorant to how other people worked in this world, but she still felt like there was good and evil in the world, and she couldn’t imagine compromising her nature just to live. It’s how her ancestors acted, according to her mother and the books she read in her history lessons. Exploiting smaller, weaker people just did not sit well with her.
“Well, it’s still a fact that you’re my captive, you committed evil acts, and you have to pay for that. So, put up with it.” She stood once again, not waiting for Roth to respond. “Where’s Eris?” She watched the smaller man point to the west, so she nodded, stooping to pinch him between two fingers before she dropped him in a side pouch once more; ensuring it was closed, a small gap left for breathing, she set off in the direction of Eris.
*
A blizzard began a few hours into their journey, so Sylvie did her best to find shelter in a small alcove of rock, barely deep enough for her to squeeze into. She kept her cloak wrapped around her tightly, the only part of her that was exposed being her boots and part of her face. Being so large, the cold took a longer time to affect her body heat, but it didn’t mean she was invincible. She had dealt with cold nights throughout her trip, but it felt like this blizzard was much more brutal.
Outside, visibility was nigh impossible. Even with the improved eyesight of her kind, she could barely see what was directly ahead of her, the snow blowing so quickly and heavily. If it didn’t let up soon, she wasn’t sure what would be done. All that was left to do was wait.
Meanwhile, Roth had been moved to her shoulder, a spot he’d be able to keep warm quite easily; with her body heat emanating from her neck and shoulder, he’d be perfectly fine, that is unless she died from the cold.
“Why don’t you get a fire going?” Sylvie nearly chuckled at this, but she was too chilled to really do so.
“How? I can’t even see a forest from where we’re at. Not like I could start one with the wind anyways.”
“Right…I just figured you had something in your bag of magic stuff…conjure up a fire or something…”
“I’m not a witch. I’d also hardly call my little potion magic. It’s simply a mix of ingredients that someone discovered.”
“Dunno, sounds like something a witch would say.”
“Do you always ask stupid questions?”
“Geez! Sorry for trying to make conversation.”
“You’re not…nevermind. Just shut up so I can save my energy…”
*
After two hours, the blizzard let up, which Sylvie was extremely grateful for as she felt her feet going numb despite her thick boots. Much to her dismay, the time spent waiting out the storm killed most of the day, so with haste she made her way to the nearest forest she could find with the waning daylight. She found one with just enough daylight to gather dead wood and get a fire going back at the alcove. It took a few minutes to get it started, no thanks to the continuing snowfall, but she was able to succeed. With light and warmth achieved, Sylvie opened her cloak and kept her boots almost dangerously close to the flames to warm them. Roth took his chance to be separated from her as he sat at a distance, his back to her while he watched the flames dance in the night.
She ignored him as she opened her sack of food, sad to see her provisions were getting low: a few loaves of bread, two apples, and an orange that was looking a bit old. She chose the bread, using her potion to make it giant-sized. She didn’t feel like making it into a special meal like she’d done with the soup before. Anything would do for her right now, at least until she could find another town who might be willing to resupply her. With her light dinner before her, she broke a small piece off between her thumb and forefinger and poked Roth in the back with it.
“Here.” He looked back at it, then took it with both hands without saying a word. “You’re welcome…” she muttered under her breath. Why couldn’t she land on a feeling for the little guy?
Before, she felt bad for him, but today she couldn’t stand him anymore. She couldn’t deny he had a rough life growing up, something she felt sympathy for, but she couldn’t get past his actions and association with the pirates; on top of all that, he just seemed to take every chance to poke and prod her. She was ashamed to admit to herself that it reminded her of, well, herself. Stubborn, standoffish, and know-it-all.
“What was it like to live in luxury?” His question caught her off guard, pulling her from her moment of reflection.
“What’s that?”
“Your life at home. What’s it like to not worry?” Sylvie shrugged as he turned about, his back now to the fire.
“It’s hard to answer that, I guess. It’s warm. Always good food made by my family or by the kitchen. Peaceful. Well, most of the time.”
“And you wonder why I just…get annoyed with you?”
“What, can’t stand other people having a good life?”
“No, I can’t stand when those kinds of people have no sympathy for people like me! I grew up with many cold nights, sickness, and not knowing when my meal would come. It wasn’t pirates then, but it was always someone who took advantage of people like my family. Someone who wanted the position you have. So, tell me, can you blame me for choosing to side with people who promised all of that to me?”
“Sure I can. You just made other people poor for your own gain.”
“I’m not the one who made them poor! Yeah, the pirates can be extreme, but you have no clue how corrupt the leaders of this region are. They’re the true evil. The pirates are extreme and bloodthirsty, but the royalty around here need to get the message somehow.”
“There’s always an alternative! You can’t just go with the easy way out!”
“You think it was easy to join them? It wasn’t! But I made my choices, good or not.”
“Yeah, well now there’s an alternative, okay?”
“And what would that be?” Roth said, throwing his arms in the air.
“Me. Just you watch. With the right amount of pressure, things can change.”
“Oh, perfect. The giant princess with a savior complex coming to rescue the impoverished lands! I can’t wait…” Sylvie brushed it off as she lay on her side to rest for the night.
“Oh, forget you. You’re still getting dropped in a cell first chance I get. Then I’ll deal with your friends at sea.” Closing her eyes, she anticipated a witty response, but it seemed like he had finally shut his mouth for the night. Better for her, she figured. Maybe a good night’s rest would get her in a better mood.
*
The journey continued early the next morning, Roth still tired and probably asleep once more in her pouch as Sylvie trudged across the snow-covered fields. While the depth of the snow never reached an amount that could bother Sylvie, she was still surprised to see just how deep it was in relation to her boots. To her it seemed to be around three inches deep, which meant it had to be taller than even some of the tallest men she’d met. Well, tall for humans that is.
Once she was a few hours into the journey, she felt Roth moving about in her pouch, so she stopped for a moment to let him out in order to get a bearing on the remaining distance to Eris. She waited for a moment, watching him struggle to pull himself out of the pouch and step into her waiting palm, but he managed.
“You know, I could just grab you. Would make your life a lot easier.”
“I can handle this all just fine. Didn’t know you cared so much about my will anyways.”
“You know, you’re right. I’ll just pluck you out next time. How far until Eris?” Roth shook his head while he peered at the horizon; after a moment, he pointed towards the lake.
“Ah! Just that way! We should see it soon!” Her excitement to be rid of Roth, to start helping the people around here, and to restock supplies made her forget to stash her traveling companion away, so off she moved with him falling back from his standing position, his back flat against her palm which was lowered to be level with her breasts.
“Warn me next time!” It didn’t take long until she crested a hill that overlooked a large valley, and there, on the horizon, was a city with a grand tower set directly in its center. From her point of view, she could spy a large dock with a few ships probably meant for trading tied to it. Eager to get a closer look at things, Sylvie finally stored Roth in the pouch for a safer trip, and off she went, her pace now quicker as she made her way to Eris.
*
“Sire! Sire!” A small, weaselly man who sported a purple robe with a matching cap burst into the bedroom of Radigan, the self-appointed King of Eris. Radigan had only just woken up, still in his white trousers, his potbelly bare for the underling to see. His black hair, with some gray spots appearing due to his age, was a mess from his long time in bed, and his eyes were squinting as the light in the bedroom was dim compared to the hall just outside. “She’s approaching! The giantess”
“Good lord, don’t you knock?! I could have been naked, Nevil!”
“Yes, sorry sir!” Nevil said as he turned away from Radigan.
“Wait…the giantess is coming?! Already?! You should have told me sooner!” The king suddenly rushed to his wardrobe and began hastily putting on whatever he could to prepare himself for such a guest.
“Yes, well, I tried sir, but you were clear last time that if I woke you before noon again I’d see the chopping block.”
“Oh, really, you believed me? Please, it was only in jest!” he countered as he pulled his pants up, huffing as he struggled to get them on right.
“If you say so, sir…” Nevil didn’t bother to mention the last three servants who had been killed for minor mistakes. After a few more minutes of silence, Radigan finally finished; he sported a red tunic, and on top of that a white robe with gold embroidery, all topped with a black hat that had a red feather sticking out of it. Looking himself over in the mirror, he tried to make his beard and mustache look presentable, but when he realized it would be to no avail, he simply nodded and pushed past Nevil to grab a quick breakfast. “Sir, if I may ask, why is this giantess so important?”
“Don’t you see, Nevil?” Radigan said as he grabbed a bunch of grapes off a nearby table, “She is the answer to two of our problems! Not only will she repel those awful pirates, she will finally stop these pestering townsfolk from trying to break down my door for food.”
“But-”
“No buts! This giantess has proven herself capable of stopping those ruffians, so I don’t see how this could go poorly for us! We might even get a share of the spoils if we play the cards right! Imagine, me, King of Eris, the man who beat the pirates with his own giantess! Oh yes, Nevil, we will be legends!” With his short breakfast done, Radigan straightened his attire and stepped into the afternoon sun.