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.