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Upon the death of his father, King Mildar of Elgon, twenty-five year old Alban inherited his throne. Though he never expected to return to his homeland, he was welcomed back by his countrymen, most of whom had had little admiration for his father. Mildar, according to many, had been king for far too long, and towards the end of his reign, he had grown increasingly unreasonable and, finally, tyrannical. He had even banished his only son and heir and, in a fit of rage, had revoked Alban’s royal status. So for Alban to find himself wearing the crown he’d never thought he’d get was almost too much for him to take.

He grieved but little for his late father; most of his happy memories involving the two of them were from his earliest childhood days. Mostly he was just overjoyed to be with his old friends again, and to finally be reunited with his mother, Marica, who had been but one of Mildar’s many wives. They had been apart for so long that they were almost strangers to each other, but Alban promised himself that he would spend as much time with her as he could. The Elgonians were also happy, to have a young, courageous, yet sensible man as their leader. Still, many of them were unsure how to feel about his wife, who had been one of the main reasons Mildar had banished him in the first place. This was probably because she stood 165 feet tall.

She was Valerie, Queen of Vandan, and the last known member of her giant race. For five hundred years she had been sleeping under the curse of a giant sorcerer, but Alban had managed to revive her, and, against all reason, the two of them had fallen in love. She had taken him with her to Vandan after his father refused to accept her, and they went to live in her castle. Not having anyone else for company, they decided to make the best of their lives as they could, and Valerie began to gradually restore the castle’s rooms and surroundings to their former splendour.

It was not long, however, before other humans came to her, mostly poor folk seeking shelter and food. They found her to be a kind and gentle giantess, quite the opposite of the monsters in their old stories, and before long a new village, called Rismark, had emerged, just outside the castle’s walls. More and more people came, and by the time Alban became king of the neighbouring land of Elgon, several thousand men, women and children had settled in Vandan, and Valerie could rightfully call herself their queen.

Now that husband and wife each had their own domain to rule, they decided that the two lands should unite under their common leadership, and that the same laws should apply to all inhabitants. Only a few objected to this unification; they were mostly supporters of the old king, and having a giant for a queen simply wasn’t an option. In the end, they decided to simply leave the land, knowing that they wouldn’t be able to face both Valerie and the hundreds of soldiers who were loyal to her. Peace settled over the kingdoms at last, and Valerie and her miniature husband could find some time for themselves, and hopefully begin to raise a family.

Their first child came when Valerie was twenty-three, two years after the unification of the lands. It was a baby girl, and they named her Belena. Not surprisingly, she was of a colossal size like her mother, even though she was only half giant. Valerie had to raise her all by herself for a few years, until the girl was old enough to realize that the tiny little creature she was clutching in her hand was her father, and not some sort of toy. But she managed it, and Princess Belena, upon the age of five, received the title of heir to the two thrones. (Though both kingdoms traditionally recognized only the monarch’s eldest son as his heir, Valerie decided that her eldest child, male or female, should receive this honour. No-one could come up with a good argument against her decision, and it was soon acknowledged as law.)

Just over a year after Belena came into the world, the queen gave birth again, this time to a son. Unlike his sister, however, little Prince Valdan was merely of normal human size. Valerie didn’t even know she was pregnant with him, until a week before his birth. She’d felt a faint tickling sensation in her belly, which grew stronger daily, and she realized that she was carrying a baby not a moment too soon. The birth was an extraordinarily delicate procedure, since she could easily have crushed her newborn son to death between her legs, without realizing it. Help was at hand, thankfully, and the pair of midwifes, overwhelmed by the whole experience though they were, presented the little boy to his overjoyed, relieved parents. At the time of his birth, Valdan was small enough to fit on his mother’s thumbnail, and she had to exercise the utmost restraint whenever she held him, for fear of hurting him. But she quickly learnt how to take care of him properly, and she was glad that Alban was able to help this time, as well.

Three more years passed before the royal couple had their third child. It was another girl, and once again she turned out to be giant-sized. She received the name Isylvine, though everyone soon began calling her Sylvie. Now that Valerie had two gigantic girls to look after, she decided to leave more and more of her country’s management to Alban, and to the men whom she had appointed to governmental roles. To the people of Vandan, however, she was still their leader, their protector and benefactor, and she always kept the good relationship she had with her subjects.

Apart from these concerns, Valerie still had a castle to maintain, as well as orchards and vegetable gardens (her only inexhaustible food sources), in addition to protecting her townsfolk from attacks by marauding bands of ogres, bandits, other assorted enemies, and the occasional giant bird or animal. Alban was able to help with some of these tasks, as were her servants and attendants, and her army, so that, in the end, she managed to cope reasonably well with the demands of her position. She was beginning to tire of the responsibilities of being a monarch, however, and she looked forward to the day when Belena was old enough to succeed her as Queen.

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