Rika stared up at the massive woman, her mind ablaze with fear. She had been certain that being an unnoticed speck upon the ground was the most terrifying thing in the world. She had been certain that living as a piece of lint on another's sock was the most soul freezing experience of her life. Now that she was staring up into those unnatural golden eyes however, so bereft of human compassion she knew was real fear was. She whimpered as she was certain she felt moisture between her legs, a warmth she didn't need to look down to see it was urine.

She should have run like the others, should have gone inside of the city. It wouldn't have protected her but at least she wouldn't have been stuck under such constant scrutiny. She was alone here upon the vast open plain of green glassy stone. It looked like a normal human hand might but for the material used in it, Rika had never seen anything like it in her life. If the owner of the odd limb wasn't leering down at her so intently she might have been fascinated by it.

"Rika. Interesting name for an interesting young woman and you are indeed interesting."

There was the voice again, echoing in her skull though the massive woman's lips didn't move at all. Magic maybe? Was this woman a sorceress? Or had Asami been right? Was this golden eyed woman a goddess? Staring up at her from the palm of her hand, actually being under the scrutiny of one of these beings she could believe it. Having them unaware of her existence was nothing compared to this.

"I-Interesting?" She managed to project back.

A deep rumbling chuckle left the woman, thundering and echoing out across the land. "Oh yes, very much so. You cannot see it, though it's understandable. I could not see my own potential until shown myself."

The woman wasn't making any sense. Potential? What potential? She was small enough to take comfortable residence beneath one of the giant woman's smallest toenail. She had barely escaped a humiliating demise being scrubbed away like dirt from a sock. Even back home all she knew was how to make tea. What interest could a massive and frightening creature like her possible have in a tiny, insignificant speck like Rika?

Air rushed past Rika as she felt a heavy force push down upon her. She dropped to her knees and screamed as her stomach did flip flops. It took a moment to realize that the woman had just stood up. Such a simple motion was enough to force her to her knees. It was absurd how large the gulf in power between them was, a fact that sat bitterly in Rika's gut. She was tiny and weak while this sorceress was massive and therefore very strong. Strong enough to wipe out towns and cities beneath her feet.

More air rushed past her, blowing harshly against her and the ground beneath her shook continually. This feeling was familiar to her from her time spent on that other woman's tabi. Her captor was walking. Walking where though? She assumed away from the city, which in itself was frightening and a relief at the same time. Rika had seen more than enough crushed and ruined settlements to last a lifetime.

"Hey." She thought towards the massive woman weakly.

No response. "H-Hey! Where are you taking me? You aren't going to k-kill me are you?"

"I am taking you to my camp. As for whether I am going to kill you, it's fully possible what I am going to do to you might kill you."

That froze the blood in her veins and set her heartrate skyrocketing. This wasn't some situation where someone didn't know, this woman flat out stated she might kill her. It had left her mind so easily as well, like it was a casual thing to kill someone. Like it didn't matter to her really if Rika lived or died. She couldn't just die, not after Asami had given up her life to give her this chance to eke out a new life.

The tiny woman rose to her feet and ran for the edge, fighting against the wind pushing against her harshly. The expanse of the woman's glassy hand was vast and she ended up tripping over the creases and ridges of her rocky skin. Still she kept going... until she neared the edge and got an eyeful of just how high up she was. If Rika hadn't already pissed herself earlier she was certain her bladder would be empty now. She was so far above the ground it made her almost physically ill to look down. She fell to her knees and swallowed hard.

"A bit of a drop I imagine. I suggest you don't fall, I certainly won't catch you." The woman's voice sounded in her skull sounding vaguely amused.

"Wait! I don't want to die! Please, take me back to the city! I beg you, please, don't kill me!" Rika pleaded.

"I said it might kill you. Besides you do not possess much say in the matter."

Even in her thoughts she could hear the almost uncaring edge to her voice. Rika felt her heart sink. This was it then. This was how she was going to die, despite Asami's efforts and sacrifice. She was going to be killed. The woman didn't care about her or her life or anything she might have done. Any assurances that it only might kill her didn't matter. Finally she was noticed by one of these beings and it was clear she was nothing to her.

Each step was felt in Rika's very bones as the slightest twitch or tremor shook her form. She dropped to her hands and knees and just tried to keep from falling off. It was hard to reconcile that these might be her last moments. After everything she had survived she was now truly subjected to the whims of another. Tears formed in her eyes as she thought of Asami and the sad look upon her face as she released her grip around her wrist.

"I'm sorry Asami. I'm so sorry..." Rika whispered.

Eventually the thundering steps halted and Rika felt the invisible force that had brought her up to the woman's stone hand seize her again. She flailed her arms around, her sandals falling the unreal distance to the ground as she floated through the air. Slowly the ground rose to meet her and she saw herself placed upon a massive hill. Rika stumbled and fell onto her backside as she landed, staring up into the golden eyes leering down on her from on high. She felt more insignificant now than ever before. Any attempts to ready her mind for the end fled as fear lanced through her once more.

"Don't move. If you do this will most certainly kill you." The woman's voice thundered in her skull, freezing Rika immediately.

The titanic figure stepped back and raised up her jade arm, her stone fingers curled inward. Her other hand was held against her chest, two fingers held up as her eyes closed. Her real voice rumbled incoherently across the land, forcing Rika to cover her ears. It felt like her eardrums were about to burst at first however as the ringing subsided something else started to set in. Though she couldn't understand the words she felt a feeling of describable wrongness about them. There was an other-earthly quality about them, a foulness that twisted and stabbed at her very psyche.

A tingling was felt upon Rika's skin and the hairs upon the back of her neck stand on end. Her bones started to vibrate and her muscles started to spasm at random. Pain lanced through her whole body forcing Rika to her knees as she started to scream. Her eyes bulged and she screamed and screamed until her throat felt raw and her vocal cords felt like they might snap. Her fingers clawed at her skin, trying to dig beneath her flesh to physically pull the pain from her body. It didn't matter if it didn't make sense she just wanted it to end.

Her kimono tightened around her body and her tabi squeezed at her feet. She felt like they were going to crush her, to break her bones and squish her organs to mush. Rika tore her clothes off of her, fingers scrabbling and tearing at fabric and throwing it away. Her nudity didn't matter to her at this point, nothing mattered but the pain. It felt like her skin was about to split open from the burning and inescapable pain.

Green energy snaked out from the jade hand above and coiled around her. The energy slipped inside of her, shoving into each and every opening and pore upon her form. It seeped into her eyes, into her nose, into her mouth. The pain from before was dwarfed as her screams became silent as her jaw felt like it was about to unhinge. It couldn't possibly open wide enough for her to convey the agony lancing through her. Rika was actually hoping to either pass out or die from the pain.

Of course the foul words were always there, pounding at her sanity and fraying it. Rika wished she was still lint on the other woman's tabi, at least there she could hold onto Asami. She wished she had been washed away with the dirt and filth, her spirit twisting and twining with Asami's for eternity. Anything was better than this. Anything was better than the torture that had her convulsing and writhing in agony.

The spots dancing before her eyes started to widen and darken her vision. As everything started to darken and the pain started to die away she noted curiously that the woman above actually looked... closer.

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As consciousness slowly returned there was no pain, instead only a dull ache that throbbed through her body and skull. A groan managed to leave Rika's throat, sounding more like a croak from how raw it felt. She winced from the discomfort at her throat. Her head lolled from side to side, soft fabric caressing bare flesh as she shifted. Rika snuggled beneath the futon, wishing to remain asleep for a while.

"Daughter. Daughter, wake up."

Rika's eyes shot open as she looked to the source of the soft voice. Her mother was kneeling next to her, dark hair curling gently around her soft and smiling face. The woman shot out from behind her covers and wrapped her arms around her mother, tears forming in her eyes. She buried her face in her soft blue kimono and wept into the older woman's bosom, holding the woman as close as possible. She smelled like fresh tea, just like she always had and that only made her sob all the more.

Her mother rubbed her arms in slow circles around her back, gently shushing at her crying daughter. She squeezed her reassuringly, kissing lightly at the frightened young woman's cheek. Rika felt drunk on her presence, supping on the closeness of her mother. Her eyes looked around to see the tiny room that was her own. It was barren as it always had been but it was wonderful to look upon.

"Shhh... Rika-chan, what's wrong? You're shaking like a leaf."

"Oh, Mama, it... it was such a terrible nightmare. There were these- these giant women. They destroyed the town and killed everyone, and then I was stuck on one of their tabi and they killed Asami-san, and then this other woman with a stone arm found me and tortured me and- and I... I..." Rika stuttered, blubbering and tripping over her words.

"Shhh, it's alright. It was all a nightmare. I'm here. Everyone is here." Her mother said, soothing at her.

Rika's sobs died off and she sniffled miserably. It had seemed so real and lasted so long. She could still see those horrible golden eyes when she closed her eyes. It was all melting away as she held her mother in her arms however. She felt safe and loved in the arms of the older woman and placed her head against the crook of her neck. Rika felt warm and her heart slowed its beat as she focused upon her mother.

Eventually she broke away and wiped at her eyes, her cheeks puffy and red from her fearful sobbing. The gentle smile upon her mother's lips was enough to reassure her and melt away all of her fear. Her hand ran through her dark hair, pulling gently at the knots that had formed. Rika held onto her mother's hand, pressing it against her cheek to remind her that she was here and alive.

"I think I know just what you need. A nice warm cup of tea before work." The woman said, rising and shuffling out of the room.

Rika slid the door shut and slowly rose, setting her kimono loosely on her body. She slipped on her tabi though she paused as she looked at them on her feet. She leaned in and looked over the surface of the sock, shaking her head when she saw nothing but lint. It was ridiculous to worry about such silly nightmares. She wriggled her toes slightly and stood, walking out of the room and entering the living room.

She knelt down at the table, noting the lack of her father or brother around the house. They were no doubt out and about at their own work. Her mother was currently steeping a brew over the hearth, humming under her breath. Rika smiled and closed her eyes, letting out a sigh through her nose. Maybe that cute samurai would be visiting the shop today. She looked forward to another round of flirting if he was, his cheeks reddened so nicely.

She opened her eyes and looked out on a vista of endless wood. The smooth plain stretched out endlessly, the occasional cracks here or there. Rika's eyes widened in fear and darted around as she gripped handfuls of her hair and found something that froze the blood in her veins. Towering in the distance was the form of her mother, her gentle hums rumbling across the floor. No. No, this wasn't real! This couldn't be happening! No, no, no!

Her mother finished with her tea and turned away from the hearth, her expression one of confusion as she looked over where Rika had once sat. Her speck of a daughter waved her arms up at the monolithic figure. This was the nightmare. Her mother couldn't see her. She wouldn't see her but Rika couldn't stop her body from moving as it did. It was like all control had been taken away from her.

Her tabi thudded against the wooden floor, shaking the ground beneath Rika. "Mama! Please, Mama!" She cried up at her.

The woman didn't hear her. Of course she didn't hear her. Rika was nothing now to her loving mother. She was just another speck of dirt on the floor, something she'd clean away if she ever saw it. Her foot rose and fell and her form approached her slowly. Eventually she saw something countless had seen before her. The clean underside of her mother's tabi, the fabric darkening her sky. Rika whimpered and fell on her knees as she stared at the underside of her mother's tabi.

As it lowered her could see everything. She could see her toes slightly curled in the air. She could see a stream of light beaming between the sections of her tabi where her big toe was separated from the rest. She could see the infinitesimally tiny bits of lint clinging to the bottom of the fabric. She could see the individual fabrics woven together. Her mother would never know. Never know that her daughter was squished out under her step. Rika's world was darkened as she finally was able to scream as her mother's sole compressed her into a red stain upon the bottom of her tabi.

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Rika screamed as she awoke, cold sweat having formed upon her brow. Her eyes shot open as she thrashed and pushed the covers off of her. She sat bolt upright in a rather uncomfortable futon, looking around. Dark stone was illuminated in a gentle blue glow, stalagmites having formed through the chamber. A cave. She was in a cave from the looks of it. She wasn't dead, she wasn't crushed beneath her mother's foot.

"Must have been some nightmare."

The voice, that once so loud voice now slipped in her ears like smooth and sweet honey. Her eyes darted to the side and saw the jade armed woman sitting across from her against the cavern wall. Rika stood and pressed herself against the wall, whimpering as she looked into those golden eyes. She was back. This was real. That had been the nightmare, what she had just experienced. The dull ache was still there upon her body but fear overrode that as she stared at the massive woman.

It took a moment to realize... the woman was not so massive. Indeed, she looked like she normally might if she were Rika's size. The tiny woman swallowed, finding it hard to believe that the massive force of nature was now upon her level. The goddess looked like a mortal now. Not a normal mortal by any means but certainly a little more... human. She was inspecting her straight sword, running her stone finger along the edge of the blade. A movement Rika took as rather meaningful.

Rika found her voice, raw and strained from her screaming and spoke. "How... how are you so small now?" She asked.

The woman chuckled, pointing her weapon towards her. "The better question is, how are you so big now?"

Big? She remembered her clothes growing tight, almost unbearably so. Had she been growing? Remembering her discarding her clothes Rika looked down at her body and saw her form, freshly cleaned and bare. Her hair had been set in a short braid behind her head as well. She twisted her body with a squeak, trying to keep from her captor from seeing anything. A chuckle escaped the woman's throat.

"I've seen and touched everything. Who do you think scrubbed your body down and set your hair up? If you have need of modesty, my dear, I have some of your barbarian clothes." She said, pointing to a pile of clothes nearby.

Rika slowly inched towards them, never taking her eyes off of the amused looking woman. She reached out and took up the rather plain grey kimono, setting the obi tightly around her waist. Next she set the clean pair of black tabi on her feet, finding them just her size surprisingly. After setting the straw sandals on she pressed herself back up to the wall, drawing a roll of the other woman's eyes.

"If I was intending to kill you, girl, I would have squished you when you were a tiny speck." The woman said, pinching her fingers together to demonstrate her meaning unnecessarily.

"Who are you?" Rika asked.

"Daiyo. Daiyo of the Jade Court." Daiyo said, setting her blade back in its sheath.

The younger woman let her shoulder's relax ever so as the blade was placed aside. Slowly she knelt down upon the futon, eyes darting towards the entrance subtly. Daiyo's golden eyes never wavered from Rika and she snorted as she saw the movement of her eyes. The young woman tossed out ideas of escape at the moment. After having experienced such pain at her hands Rika figured displeasing the sorceress was rather unwise.

The young woman felt her stomach growl and hunger spike through her. It was then that she realized how thirsty she was. Daiyo must have heard the slight grumbling as she stood and filed around inside of a basket, producing a few rice cakes and a gourd of water. She offered the cakes to Rika, who stared warily at them for a moment before starting to tear into them with relish. After days of twigs and berries and nothing else they tasted absolutely divine. Daiyo smirked at the reaction, not resisting as the water was snatched from her grasp.

"So pleased you like my cooking, Rika." She commented as she sat down across from Rika once more.

Between bites, Rika spoke. "What did you do to me?"

Daiyo rolled her eyes. "I already told you. I made you like me. Rather surprised you survived honestly, never tried size magic before. Can be rather disastrous if you get things wrong. You were only out for half a day. Its evening now."

Rika paused between bites, pondering this. She tried to imagine herself being as big as this Daiyo had been. It was incomprehensible to her. That something so big could exist was impressive enough but being so massive herself was impossible. She had been so tiny, so insignificant compared to Daiyo but now she was eating rice cakes she had apparently made. She looked down at the half eaten one in her hands. Rika imagined a speck upon it, something so tiny it could be mistaken for dirty or dust. If she was truly like Daiyo that would be what people were compared to her.

Rika turned her gaze up to Daiyo, finishing her cake. "Why?"

Daiyo smiled. "You have potential. The hate you harbor is very strong, Rika. It burns deeply, festering at your spirit. You want revenge. Revenge against one who serves my enemy."

With start she realized what she was talking about. The woman. The woman who had scrubbed away Asami like a piece of filth upon her tabi. Rika's fingers tightened around the gourd of water before taking a deep draught. Was that woman now Rika's size? Could they see each other on equal terms now? Her knuckles whitened as anger and rage boiled below the surface. Her teeth gritted.

"The woman." Rika said simply.

Daiyo nodded. "Her name is Momo. I saw what you endured when I looked in your mind. It was pathetic really. Almost makes me want to vomit, how your tiny friend sacrificed herself."

"Don't say that! Don't you dare fucking belittle her! She saved my life!" Rika shouted, tossing the gourd aside.

Her nostrils flared and her eyes narrowed. Daiyo merely laughed at the anger thrown his way. "Indeed. Had you actually been strong enough to free her yourself she wouldn't have died."

That slammed into Rika like a punch to the gut, stealing all the anger from her sails. A stricken look crossed her face as she lowered her head in shame. This woman was right. If she had been a little faster and stronger then Asami would still be with her. Momo might have actually killed her but Rika's weakness had doomed her all the same. Now, learning that she was so big Rika wasn't sure what to think. It felt so... cheap. Like she didn't deserve it.

"Stand up and walk with me. I have something I want to show you, Rika." Daiyo said, rising.

Rika thought about it for a moment before opting to follow the sorceress. She didn't exactly know what she was supposed to do. Really she hadn't known what to do after surviving her near death experience. What was she supposed to do after... that? She would be surprised if she could ever sleep without nightmares again.

Daiyo led her further into the cave, blue crystals glowing brightly around her. At the very back of the cave was a small underground lake with an odd little mound in the middle. Daiyo removed her slippers and stepped into the ankle high waters, looking back at Rika. Rika hesitated before removing her sandals and peeling off her tabi. She gingerly placed her foot into the waters, lifting the hem of her kimono. The cool waters washed over her bare toes and she shuffled along after the jade armed woman.

Within the shallow waters along their path were tiny little boats. The fishermen frantically scrambled out of the path of both of the titanic women, the movement of their feet through the water kicking up massive waves. Rika felt uneasy as she walked after Daiyo, unaware that as her foot lifted out of the water a trio of boats got a good look at the bottom of her foot. The soft, peachy sole dripped fat droplets of water upon the fishermen, capsizing two of the boats. The last could only watch in on horror as their doom descended from above.

The wrinkly sole of her foot lowered down upon the water, splashing slightly. Those caught below the wet expanse of flesh were dragged down under the crushing weight of a mountain to the bottom. They were crushed beneath her step, buried against the rocky bottom. One managed to survive by ending up between her titanic toes, however his good fortune was ended as the foot rose up again. He clawed and scrabbled at the webbing between her toes, desperate for purchase between Rika's toes. The slick sent him sliding down and his fingers slipped from his purchase, sending him screaming to the water below.

Rika, unaware that the same destruction she had once endured was being inflicted upon others by her continued to follow Daiyo. She swallowed as she stopped at the mound. "Look down. Tell me what you see." The woman said, gesturing to the mound.

Rika swallowed, almost not wishing to look down. She did however. Upon the mound were dust sized buildings, almost imperceptible to the naked eye. There was movement, and as she leaned in her breath caught in her throat. People, running about the large town set upon the mound. She swallowed hard as she looked to Daiyo, who only smirked at her. Rika realized at the moment that it was no lie that had been fed to her. She was looking at what she had once been. She was looking down at her own tiny people.