Saving Autumn

 

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1 :: The Helpless

    There was fear in his eyes; probably the only time fear had ever been in his eyes. Must have been nice to have such a luxury.

    ‘It’s only a reaction,’ Faolán told himself, ‘Giants can’t feel anything anyway.’

    This is what he had to tell himself to make his job easier, whether it was true or not, well he still awaited to see proof.

    The giant’s eyes followed the tip of Faolán’s sword as he swung it lowly in front of him, calculating the best place to strike. He had already been shot in the chest several times with arrows tipped with harpoon-like arrow heads and pulling them out only caused more damage. The quick loss of blood caused the giant to stumble and fall and realising his fate was now powerless to stop it. His breaths were hoarse and gurgled with blood that had filled his throat. At this point Faolán was just toying with him at this point.

    “Had enough, troll?” He asked.

    The giant’s breathing became more staggered now and his eyes began to roll back in their sockets.

    “No you don’t,” Faolán lifted his sword and quickly plunged it down into the left side of the giant’s neck. Blood spurted from the severed artery, soaking the grass beneath them. After the giant became still Faolán took a step back, admiring his job as he wiped the blood from his sword on the sleeve of his shirt.

    The field was silent now. Nearby birds were free to sing again and a passing breeze whistled through the grass. The giant’s shaggy black hair blew idly across his face. His eyes and mouth were still open and stricken with fear; a stark contrast to the sunny meadow that was now free from his torment. Faolán slid his sword back into his belt and softly sighed.

    Just another afternoon in the life of a giant slayer.

 

***

    “Treasach is dead.” Faolán had finally returned to the Lord’s hall in the town of Arwel. He rested one arm on the pommel of his sword and in his free hand, a large fleshy disk. He held the disk up for the Earl of Arwel to inspect, a thick, jelly like fluid dripped down into a puddle at his feet.

    The Earl, at first seemed pleased with the news until he saw the proof that accompanied it.

    “What... what is that, my boy?”

    “His eye,” Faolán answered flatly, “well, the blue part anyway.” Any slayer can take a giant’s ear or finger without actually doing the deed of killing them. It was an easy way for people to cash in on head money, but the only way to cut the iris out of a giant’s eye is for them to be dead and therefore this was Faolán’s preferred favour.

    “And how did you come upon this?”

    “Giant’s don’t fight back when they’re dead, my Lord.” There was a light flick of sarcasm in Faolán’s answer but it was the truth.

    The Earl seemed impressed with Faolán’s accomplishment; he knew he had hired the right person. Giants had been a common problem across all of Anglesea and with giants, came giant slayers. Some were better than others. Many were retired knights who just enjoyed the thrill and excitement of armouring up and mounting their steed one more time into battle. Some were also dragon slayers who appreciated the different fighting style when taking on a giant. Many dragons were fiercely cunning while it ranged with giants. Some were smarter than others and ranged from dangerously intelligent to comically stupid. For a time it even became a trend for giant slayers to kill their prey in ways more amusing than the next. Everything from dropping anvils on their heads to driving them off a high cliff with bundles of twigs alight with fire.

    Faolán was an exception. At just 19 he was one of the youngest giant slayers in the land and oddly enough, one of the best. Not dictated by years of training and chivalry, Faolán kept his kills quick and easy. His arrows were tipped with large, swallowtail heads that made removal next to impossible without causing lethal damage. Once the giant was down it was just a quick nick of the throat and it was over. Sometimes Faolán could take out his prey in a single afternoon while other time he would track them for days, waiting to catch them off guard. Either way, Faolán was successful at what he did; he was successful because he was still alive.

    As one would imagine, giants won’t go down without a fight and many slayers have been killed while tracking. Some were experienced and well educated warriors while others were simply peasants who jumped in at the opportunity without realising what they were getting themselves into.

 

    Not Faolán; he didn’t choose to be a slayer, more like the life chose him. He heard the money was good and not really having any place to go and certainly nothing to lose he took up an assignment and excelled better than anyone would have imagined. He was 16 when he made his first kill. Over the years his reputation spread and whenever a village was having a particularly hard time with ridding themselves of a giant, Faolán was their first choice to send for. As a wanderer himself, he was often hard to catch and many villages offered him lodging in return for being their protector, but Faolán would kindly refuse, instead choosing to wander off on his own again for people to come find him. It was the only thing that made him feel wanted.

 

    Despite the Earl’s own efforts for Faolán to stay, even if just for the night, Faolán kindly declined, stating that his job was finished and he must continue on his way. Before he turned to leave he held out his hand,

    “I believe I’m owed something, sir?”

    “Ah yes, can’t let you leave without this,” The Earl handed him a leather pouch filled with coins, “Fifty helms sound right?”

    Faolán shook the pouch, there was definitely more than fifty helms in there. A lot more. “Sounds about right to me. A pleasure, Earl Kane.”

    “And with all due respect, Faolán, I hope I never have to see you again.”

    “Well, if I’m ever needed, just send for me.” Faolán smiled and turned to take his leave.

 

***

    Outside a young woman was waiting by the lord’s hall. She stood up from the front step when she heard the door swing open and saw Faolán trotting out.

    “Well,” she said, “what ya got?”

    “Fifty helms.” Faolán tossed the pouch down onto the step in front of the girl. It made a heavy thud as it hit the stone steps; heavy enough for them both to know there wasn’t fifty helms in there. A slow smile started to spread across Faolán’s face, especially when he saw how surprise his friend look.

    “That’s not fifty helms,” she said.

    “I know.”

    “What is it?”

    “Open it.”

    She knelt down, looked inside the bag and gasped, “These are florins.”

    “I know...”

    “Faolán... these are florins!”

    “I know!”

    She could have let out a scream. “Faolán, we’ll be good for two fortnights with this! Maybe longer!”

    “I know!” Faolán jumped from the steps and threw his arms around the girl, “We lucked out on this one Fae, really lucked out. This, on top of what else we could pull in...”

    “What else? Faolán, I thought we’d be taking a break from this.” She pulled away.

    “Take a break? We can’t take a break now. I want to hold on to this and build it. I don’t want to go until there’s nothing left and then pray for another call. We’re gonna keep going. We can’t afford to take a break.”

    “I just...” Fae sighed, “It scares me when you go off like this.”

    “You think it doesn’t scare me too?”

    “I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”

    “It won’t. If it hasn’t happened yet, it won’t happen at all. I have yet to meet a giant I couldn’t kill.”

    “And let us hope you never meet that giant.”

    Faolán shrugged, “I appreciate a challenge.” He smirked when he noticed Fae’s glance at him. “Alright, may we never meet that one... any time soon...”

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2 :: Out from the Forest

    ' You ruin everything. It’s all you do.’

    His father’s words echoed through his head. Destroying lives. Faolán had made a living off of it. The last few days of travel were a blur to Faolán. He tried to stay positive, mostly to provide decent company for Fae but every now and then he found painful memories of home resurfacing in his mind and shaking them off wasn’t always easy.

    Before they had left Arwel, Fae made mention about going to see Faolán’s last kill but he urged against it. He never stuck around after a giant was killed; there was always an odd sadness in the air that would linger and in his current state, he just wished to get as far away from Arwel, as well as Treasach.

 

    It was early evening and the forest seemed relatively awake for being so late in the season. They could hear the shifting of creatures through leaves and bushes. Rabbits and squirrels still scurried about, keeping their distance while fairies would curiously buzz close by. They knew who the local humans were in these parts and Faolán and Fae were certainly new faces.

    Fae pointed out a small break in the trees, thinking it was a clearing but they discovered it was actually a dirt trail.

    “So now what? Want to follow it?” Faolán asked. “I know we came from back that way...” Faolán shrugged, “Couldn’t hurt.”

    The well maintained trail was a welcoming sign that they didn’t have much further to go to get to the next town. A roof over their heads, a warm bed and proper meal were closer than they realised.

    “I don’t see why not, it’s already going in the direction we want anyway.” A gust of wind whipped by and Fae pulled her cloak closed around her, “And I’d rather not spend another night out...”

    Fae didn’t have the chance to finish her thought. There was a loud swish of leaves as several deer dashed and bounced between the trees, straight towards Faolán and Fae, rushing pasting them in a fury. A soft rumble in the forest disrupted had her and she and Faolán both froze in place. There were several more distinct booms accompanied by a rustle and snap of tree branches and leaves. The two looked back at each other.

    “So,” Fae huffed, “Giant or dragon?” The guessing game was a light-hearted inside joke that developed between them after working together over the years. As whimsical as it was, knowing the difference was still critical.

    “Giant,” Faolán said. His guess was confident but his face showed his anxiety. Judging by the slow pace between the steps, it had to be giant.

    A very big giant.

    The thundering footfalls faded away and an eerie silence fell through the forest.

    “So, Faolán...” Fae grabbed at Faolán’s wrist and pulled him down the path. The two broke out into a run down the dirt road unaware that they were being watched from high above by a pair of curious copper eyes through the blazing red and orange leaves of the tree tops.

***

 

    It didn’t take long for the trees to thin out and light to pour in through the foliage as they came closer to the edge of the forest. They no longer felt in danger from whatever creature they heard stomping around in the forest but it was now their excitement that propelled them down the path. Suddenly the trees opened up to an expansive green valley below them and nestled in the centre of all was a village. The centre of the town seemed quite tightly packed together while farms with wide pastures speckled the outlying countryside. Faolán and Fae still had quite a walk to get into the village proper, but the fact that they were looking at it was enough to lift their spirits and put their minds at ease.

    “Wow... Where did we end up,” Fae said, giving a soft laugh, “I never knew this place existed.”

    “Neither did I.”

    The two wondered with no map, no directions, nothing but just luck and chance that they’ll find something; it was how they found Arwel last week.

    Faolán looked out over the hill, it wasn’t a dangerous slope but it certainly wasn’t a gentle one either. A smile spread across his face and he nudged Fae,

    “Wanna race?”

    Fae smiled back. Her quick dart down the hill side was enough of an answer for Faolán and the two dashed down together, enjoying the crisp breeze on an unusually warm autumn day.

 

    It took about an hour for them to finally reach the village and its neat cobblestone streets and half timbre houses and shops. They stopped at the village limits and Fae smacked her hand on a wooden sign that was staked into the ground next to the main road.

    “I win!” Fae cheered. She leaned against the sign and gave Faolán and cheeky grin, looks like you’re buying dinner tonight, Sir Fifty Florins!”

    “I never said I wouldn’t treat.”

    “Well now you have more of a reason to.” Fae lightly smacked Faolán on the shoulder and stepped away from the sign to examine further.

    “Forwyn? Never heard of it.”

    “Neither have I...” Faolán noticed that the streets were fairly empty. Actually they were completely empty except for a single lose chicken clucking about and pecking at the ground. “Wonder if anyone still lives here.”

    “There has to be people here, look at the fruit carts, they’re all fresh.” Fae led the way into the town, both of them keeping their hands on their swords.

    Faolán noticed that some of the cobble stones in the street were crunched into the ground. Rain and traffic had smoothed the sides of some of the stones while others were still sharp and jagged from a fresh break. Whatever it was that passed through here was not only huge but has been a frequent visitor to the village over the years. An odd detailed caught Faolán’s attention and he raised an eyebrow,

    “Interesting...” he muttered.

    “What is it?”

    “Look at the buildings,” he pointed out. “None of them are damaged. No broken windows or sign hinges. Nothing. And whatever broke these stones here, isn’t exactly tiny either.” He looked over at Fae, “whatever likes to come through here, does so very carefully.”

    Fae huffed a short laugh, “What giant have we known to be careful? Any creature for that matter.”

    “Exactly.”

    Fae’s smile faded, “What do you think it was we heard in the woods?”

    “I dunno...”

 

    The sun was setting quickly and the once refreshing breeze began to whip and bite as it coursed its way through the half timber houses. Fae pulled her hook tight around her neck to keep it warm but she still gave a tight shiver,

    “I’m fine with stopping anywhere for the night Faolán. I’m just tired to walking, it’s all we’ve been doing for the last few days and if we’re in a village let’s take advantage of it.”

    Faolán noticed a sign hanging above a doorway a few houses down the road and picked up his pace to a trot, “The Twist and Turn Tavern,” He grinned over his shoulder back at Fae, “I like it.”

    “I like it too!”

    The sign was entangled by a winding green stalk and unlike some of the other houses and shops on the street, there was actually light and voices spilling from the stain glass windows. It was the only place that seemed to be harbouring any life in Forwyn. The two shrugged and Faolán opened the door and followed Fae inside.

    It was a small and cozy tavern, banners and deer skulls decorated the brick walls, iron chandeliers hung from the ceiling beams and a roaring fireplace in the back cast a golden orange glow throughout the entire room. Every barstool and table was occupied, but despite the crowd, it was oddly quiet. In fact, no one really seemed to notice Faolán and Fae even walk in.

    “This doesn’t seem like such a bad place to stay,” Faolán was more thinking out loud than talking to anyone in particular, but Fae responded anyway,

    “I agree. I wouldn’t mind spending a few nights here actually, Faolán. With the money we made from killing Treasach, we should be able to take care of ourselves quite comfortably for a while.”

    “I don’t want to stay in one place for too long though.”

    “I know, and we don’t have to. I just want to get a proper rest, eat a proper meal and just take a few days to not worry about where I’m gonna sleep or if I’m gonna get eaten...”

    A loud laugh cut Fae off and the two looked over at the centre table where four older men were sitting. They were large men, most likely field labourers, judging by their dirty hair and sunburned skin.

    “Not worry about gettin’ eaten, huh?” one of them said, “You’ve come to the wrong place for that, young miss. That’s a common occurrence around here.”

    “Here?” Fae glanced over at Faolán who simply shrugged back, “What you have crawling around here that’s eating people? Let me guess, giants?”

    She was able to get a quiet snicker out of Faolán but no one else seemed amused.

    “A giant,” the man answered. “A giant that has been plaguing Forwyn for several generations now.

    “Ooh, I’m so frightened! Faolán, hold me!” She playfully bumped into Faolán’s side they both laughed.

    Every village they had ever passed through all had their own stories of their local giants or dragons. So far, Fae had never once encountered a giant that was anywhere as fierce as the stories led on to believe. They were all heavily embellished beyond belief. How disappointing it was for Fae to be enticed by magnificent tales of such creatures only to come time to slay them and they’re nothing more than a sniveling mess; too stupid to understand what was going on or too scared to fight back. If she was going to kill something, she didn’t want to kill a coward, she wanted to kill a legend.

    “Don’t mock what you don’t understand, girl,” The man sneered. This was a serious manner and all these children did was joke about it.

    “I could say the same to you, old man.”

    Suddenly the tension rose in the room and all eyes fell on Fae and Faolán.

    “You think being terrorized by a giant is something to laugh about?”

    “No, but sitting back and allowing it to all happen because no one has the courage to go and fight back is certainly something to laugh at.”

    “We have sent knight after knight, slayer after slayer after this monster but not one has come back. Not one!”

    A second man at the table chimed in, “Speaking of which, Grady just went up two days ago and hasn’t returned yet.”

    “He’s probably dead too, no doubt,” the first man responded.

    “See,” Fae continued on, “Look at this fine example, you can’t get one person in this town to go after this giant, you hire out other people and they can’t even do it...” She nudged Faolán on the arm, “Tell them, Faolán.”

    “Tell them what?”

    “You know what.”

    Fae gave Faolán a few seconds to answer, however when he didn’t, she stepped in for him, “My partner, Faolán and I have been slaying giants for the last four years now. In those four years, we’ve been all over Anglesey, slaying all sorts of beasts in a number of different villages and provinces. In fact, we’re just coming from Arwel, where Faolán here slew the giant named Treasach. No one could do it until we arrived. We have been doing what no one else has done for years. Us! Just us. No magic, no tricks, no back ups. Just us. If you want your giant killed, we can do that for you.”

    Fae folded her arms in front of her and huffed, “Well...” she said to Faolán, “So much for a few relaxing days to ourselves...”

    “Had to go there, did you Fae?”

    “I was in the moment...”

    “You killed Treasach?” The first man asked. The entire tavern was focused on the two young slayers now.

    “I did, sir.”

    “May I ask, how?”

    Faolán shrugged a shoulder, “A well placed arrow to the neck, sir. That’s all it takes.”

    “And you think that’s all it’ll take to kill this giant?”

    “I see no reason why it shouldn’t.”

 

    Some of the people were still skeptical while others began to take interest and fall in favour with Faolán and Fae. Sure they were barely adults but they both spoke with such confidence. For some people, they were a long awaited answer to their prayers, while for others they were just as foolish as the other slayers that have passed through Forwyn.

 

    “Well then,” the old man said, “I feel that I speak for everyone when I say I should like to see you kill this monster...”

    “In a week,” Faolán cut in.

    “What?” Fae’s excitement suddenly dropped and she nudged Faolán on the arm,

    “He’ll be dead by the end of the week.”

    “Faolán!”

    “And if he’s not, we’ll move on and you’ll owe us nothing. However, if we do slay your giant in the given time... Eighty florins.”

    Gasps and whispers floated around the tavern again,

    “We’d all gladly pay any price to be rid of him.” The desperation in his voice and the desperate looks to match suddenly caught Faolán’s attention.

    “What has this giant done to you? Why is he wanted?”

    At this, tavern owner, an old but stoutly built man swung himself out from behind the back bar and pushed his way into the crowd.

    “He’s destroying our town! He’s stealing our food, stealing our livestock, even going as far as to steal away our family members to satisfy his insatiable appetite. For generations this has been going on, generations! Our fathers and our fathers’ fathers even have tales of this monster....” The tavern owner stopped when he noticed Faolán’s smirk. It was a smirk that often got him in trouble.

    “You think this is a joke, boy?”

    “No, not really. In fact I’m sure you’re quite serious about all of this. I just don’t care.” This remark spurred several audible gasps and whispers from the patrons. “The whole ‘monster destroying our home’ sob story is nothing to me and nothing new to Fae. We’ve heard it all before, in every combination, scenario, flavour, whatever you want to call it. We know. We get it. You have a problem. But our job isn’t to sit here and listen to your stories, I’m sure you have plenty of them and that they’re very nice and exciting, but that’s not my job. We find your beast, giant, dragon, griffin, troll, what ever, we kill it and we move on. I know that giants destroy things, I know they eat people, and cows, and deer, and essentially everything. I know what they do. I want to know how big they are and where I can find them. That’s it. That’s all I care about.”

    “Big? You want to know how big he is? Boy, you’d barely reach his knee. He could pick you up and have you in his belly in one gulp. This isn’t some troll or hill ogre that I’m sure you’re used to dealing with.”

    “I’ve taken down giants, 10, 15 feet tall!”

    “No...” the tavern owner shook his head, “that’s a hill ogre. Think twice that, boy. That’s a giant.”

    Faolán glanced back over at Fae, if she was having second thoughts her face certainly wasn’t showing it and if she wasn’t backing down, neither was he. Faolán crossed is arms in front of him and gave the tavern owner his famous smirk, “I stand by what I said. I will kill your giant.”

***

 

    Faolán and Fae had secured at room up on the second floor of the tavern for the evening. The owner made them pay their stay early, believing that they’d both be killed before the week was out. The more people talked amongst one another, the more they started to think of these two new-comers; they were brave, but there’s a fine line between brave and foolish. One man even mentioned,

    ‘If the giant dies, we’re all the better, if those kids die, we’re none the worse.’

 

    In their tiny bedroom Faolán and Fae were absent from these conversations about them. They weren’t blissfully unaware of the situation though, as they had their worries as well.

    Fae laid sprawled out across the bed, her head hanging off the bottom and watching Faolán pace across the room.

    “Can you stop doing that, you’re making me dizzy.”

    “You’re the one looking at everything upside-down.”

    Fae rolled over onto her front and rested her chin on her arms,

    “So,” she said, “What’s you plan now.”

    “You’re the one that threw me into this mess, if anything, I think you should think of the plan for this one.”

    “You know how I get Faolán, I couldn’t help it! You made a nice catch though, everyone’s on your side.”

“    They’re on my side but they don’t have much faith in me.” Faolán collapsed into an arm chair across the room, a concerned look etched across his young face.

    “What’s wrong?” Fae asked.

    “I’m just wondering what makes this giant so different.”

    “What makes you think he’s any different? Every village we’ve been to has acted like their situation is unique and special and ‘oh no, the world is ending you need to help us!’ Don’t let yourself worry over nothing, Faolán.”

    “I can’t help it this time,” he lifted his head and looked back at her “I just can’t shake the feeling this one might be different.”

    “ ‘Might’, Faolán. The key word is ‘might’. Let’s not get ourselves worked up until we know exactly what we’re dealing with.”

    Faolán didn’t respond right away. He knew what was on his mind but finding the words to piece it all together wasn’t coming to him as easily as he would have liked.

    “Fae,” he finally said, his voice soft and still unsure, “remember a while back, in Arwel... when we talked about that giant.”

    Fae raised a brow, “You’re not scared are you?”

    “No! Cautious, yes, but not scared.”

    Now Fae gave him a smirk.

    “Apprehensive.”

    “Faolán...”

    “Alright, so I’m a little nervous about this one.”

    Fae smiled and gave a soft sigh, “Want me to take this one?”

    “I never said I couldn’t do it.”

    “I never said you couldn’t do it either. I’m asking if you want to do it. Because if not,” Fae rolled over onto her back again and spread her arms out across the bed, “I so wanna kill something!”

    “Alright. I’ll go out and scout tomorrow and let you know what I find, then I’ll turn you loose.”

    Fae gasped, “Really?”

    “Really. I got Treasach, you can get this one.”

    “YES!” Fae kicked her legs until she righted herself on the bed and sat up, “I can’t wait to have a real challenge. Remember Ivor?”

    She was finally able to get a smile out of Faolán, “Yes, I do...”

    “What an idiot! I almost didn’t want to kill him, he was so much fun to play with. I ran him into at least four trees and he never once took a hint. Poor bastard. It was that last one that got him in the end. Knocked him over and...” she mimicked shooting off an arrow, “right in the neck.”

    “All it takes!”

    “Ooh, and remember Mághnus and Manus? Proof two heads aren’t better than one!”

Faolán squinted his eyes and leaned back in his chair, “I couldn’t forget him, what a mess!”

    “Havin’ to cut our way through that bastard to get out of that cave he cornered us in.”

    “...and he was still alive!”

    The two laughed; finally they were both able to put their minds at ease, even if it was brief.

    “You can’t over think these things, Faolán. Remember, they’re just giants. Basically vermin at this point. Nothing special about them. Now dragons, majestic. Griffins, beautiful. Giants... eh.” She shrugged her shoulder, “Stupid. If anything. I have yet to meet one that’s made me think otherwise. Or even think about thinkin’ otherwise. Hey...” Fae held her fist out for Faolán, “May we never meet that giant.”

    Faolán reached out and touched his fist to Fae’s, “and if we do, make him wish he never met us.”

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3 :: The Giant of Forwyn

    It was the memory of his mother passing away and his father becoming more violent. The guilt, fear and anger he felt in his home that was brought upon by nothing but twisted lies and pointless arguments. All the times his father had told him to just run away. And the one time that he finally did. At 16, Faolán Miron left his home with nothing more than his bow, some hand carved arrows and just enough food and money to maybe last him a day or two.

    Growing up he was familiar with giant slayers and what they did, though he never saw himself as one. Many of the slayers he knew were well seasoned knights or woodsmen, who knew their way around many weapons and battle tactics. Faolán however, taught himself how to kill. His methods were always simple, yet effective. That’s all they needed to be.

    It amazed him how far he was able to come; how high he was able to rise from his harsh upbringing. Sometimes he wondered if it was some deep set anger that allowed him to proceed with the killings.

    Maybe it wasn’t anger at all, but just a sheer lack of emotion. There were times he wanted to feel bad for the giants that he killed. Many of them were never even a real threat but just seen as a nuisance to the towns. They’d steal a cow or a few goats every now and then but aside from that, they never caused any real harm. Some were even innocent of their crimes, often times being mistaken for a roaming ogre but the kill would need to be carried out anyway; the people wanted blood.

    That wasn’t always the case though; powerful ogres or giants who had developed a taste for human flesh would terrorize and even decimate entire villages and their populations. There had been several instances where Faolán and Fae had passed through a town whose streets were filled with human entrails and fresh blood flowing like rivers between the cobblestones. Though giant slayers were loved and respected by their communities, there was nothing glamorous about the job.

    While Faolán was the blank slate, and often times thinker of them team, Fae was driven by her emotions and strong desire to win. She showed exceptional hunting abilities when she was younger and her father simply told her one day, ‘You are to be a giant slayer’ and encouraged her training over the years to become the formidable killer she is today. She feared no, giant, dragon, or beast and if she wasn’t pairing with Faolán in a fight, she was the one leading the charge. Fae played second fiddle to no one, she fought on equal terms when teaming up with other slayers and despite her small, and slim build she could hold her own. Many giants would make the mistake to underestimate her, or even assume she was meant to be a distraction for some stronger wave to come in, but once they took their eyes off of her, she would go in for the kill.

    With her confidence and formal training and his improvisation and persistence, Faolán and Fae have proven themselves to be not only incredible individual slayers, but an unbeatable team as well. They had to be; they were all they had.

    Faolán had left his father and what family he had left far behind while Fae’s parents pushed her to out and travel, slaying monsters and making a name for herself. Both had left home at an early age and travelled among the countryside and forest for three years now surviving solely on their earnings from killing giants and the kindness of strangers along the way. While many giant slayers would stay in one area and protect a certain town, Faolán and Fae drifted from location to location, staying when they were needed and moving on when they weren’t.

 

    The walk into Forwyn, and the number nights spend sleeping out in the forest took a larger toll on them than they had originally thought. Finally able to sleep in a comfortable bed in a safe location, neither of them stirred until late morning.

    Faolán laid there for a moment with his eyes closed. He had almost forgotten where he was and when he finally did open his eyes, the log cabin like walls and furs hanging up around him almost took him by surprise. Fae was just beside him, still fast asleep with her arms tight around her pillow.

    Faolán was careful get up without waking her. He noticed that the buzz of voices from down stairs that they heard last night was gone and the whole building seemed eerily quiet. As he got changed into his clothes, Fae started to wake up. She pulled and kicked at the heavy covers over her. She lifted her head, looked at Faolán through squinted eyelids and collapsed back into her pillow again and moaned,

    “I don’t wanna leave...”

    “Who said we were leaving? We’re here until that giant’s dead.”

    “I mean here. I don’t want to leave here. This. This bed... right here.” She pulled the covers up over her head and Faolán could see her shape shift into a little curled up ball.

    “If you want to sleep all day, I have no issue with that.” He was just finishing lacing up his boots when a low roll of thunder rumbled through the air. Both of them lifted their heads up, though Fae was still under her blankets.

    “What was that?” she asked.

    “I’m gonna find out.” Faolán grabbed his sword by the belt and hoisted it over his shoulder. Fae threw the blankets off from her just in time to see Faolán rush out of their room down.

    “Faolán, wait!” She didn’t have time to get changed. She tossed her dress over her head and hastily pulled her boots on to go catch up with Faolán.

 

    They ran down the hallway, which was open on both side, allowing visibility down into the empty tavern below. The rolls of thunder became louder and more consistent, rattling the empty glasses on the bar shelves and the fixtures that hung from the walls.

    “Those are footsteps!” Faolán shouted. They hurried down the stairs and across the dining room to the front doors, which were barred closed.

    The two worked together to remove the wooden beam that pinned the doors closed and Faolán scurried outside.

    “Faolán, wait! Faolán!” Fae screamed, but he didn’t listen to her and darted outside. The streets were completely empty, every door was barred and window closed and if the windows weren’t protected with shutters, there was a heavy dark sheet hanging up to hide anyone inside.

    Fae huffed and ran out after him, prepared to drag him back inside if she had to.

    “Come on, Faolán!” She tugged at him but he was still as stone, his eyes fixed on something far behind her and when she turned, her mouth fell open and eyes widened at what she saw.

    First, it was his dark blond hair that whipped about at his shoulders. Long curls blew across his face and would become stuck to his thick goatee which had become nearly white with age. His arms and shoulders were thick with muscle and his round belly indicated he was well fed, which was striking given his massive size. His dark green shirt and black kilt whipped in the breeze and his wide belt and sporran were made from parts of a dragon.

    Handsome and imposing, his appearance demanded attention and neither Faolán nor Fae could take their eyes off of him as he approached. Faolán could see that he had a large ax strapped across his back and in his hand he carried three large cattle that were tied in a tight bundle at his side. Faolán gulped, he estimated this one to be at least twice the size of the giant he had just slain back in Arwel. The tavern owner was right, he didn’t even come up to this giant’s knee.

    The ground began to shake as he came closer, if he kept on his current course he would be passing right in front of the tavern. The giant seemed to be looking ahead of him, not paying any mind to what could be happening down on the ground. Faolán thought maybe it was a good thing that no one was around as they easily could have been stepped on.

    The giant’s footsteps became almost deafening now. Fae hurried back inside the tavern but it would have been better for her to have stayed where she was. The quick movement caught the giant’s eye and he stopped. It wasn’t Fae that he saw though, but Faolán staring up at him wide-eyed from the centre of the street. He froze, for the first time ever he was too scared to move, no one had ever intimidated him like this before. Even from such a distance he was able to see the brilliant flash of the giant’s copper eyes as they caught the sunlight.

    Fae hissed at him,

    “What are you doing?!” But Faolán didn’t hear. Holding eye contact, he slowly took a few steps forward and became engulfed in the giant’s colossal shadow. The giant stopped before him. He narrowed his eyes and his brows lowered. His mustache was long enough that it covered his upper lip and gave a very serious demeanor to his face. Many of the buildings on the street only reached up to his hip, even some of the taller ones just came up to his waist.

    “Faolán!” Fae hissed again, “Get in here!”

Faolán couldn’t move. Trapped in the moment the two stood there, watching each other to see who would make the first move. Faolán rested his hand on his sword that hung from his shoulder, prepared to throw the scabbard off if needed. The giant kept a close eye on him, making sure that his fidgeting wasn’t done with hostility. Staring up at this creature gave Faolán a charge that he hadn’t felt in years; a mixture of anxiety, fear and excitement; a stark difference from his usual absent emotions.

    The few minutes were tense but after realising that this young human wasn’t a threat, the giant gave a huff through his nose and continued walking. Faolán could only watch as he slowly strode past him without once looking back.

    He suddenly felt a sharp tug on his shirt and was pulled towards the tavern.

    “What in the world were you thinking Faolán!” Fae screamed, “You could have been killed!”

    “If he wanted to kill me he would have.”

    “Yes, I’m sure he would have! You could have become lunch had he been wanting anything different. What am I saying, you’d be nothing more than a snack to him.”

    She stopped when she noticed Faolán wasn’t listening to her. He was far too fixed on what he had seen, and though the giant was no longer visible he still stared off into his direction, hoping for another glimpse of the extraordinary creature.

    “Fae...”  A smile spread across his face,

    “Could you imagine,” he started, “if we killed that thing?”

    “Yeah... imagine the mess.”

    “Imagine the money...”

    Fae attitude suddenly changed and she smiled, “Imagine the rush.”

    “Imagine the fame.”

    “Imagine pinning that beast to the ground...”

    “Every bard in the land...”

    “And seeing the life fade from his eyes...”

    “Will be singing songs about us.”

    “As you punch your blade through his neck.”

    “The stories we could tell to our children...”

    Fae was about to say more but she suddenly paused and raised an eyebrow at Faolán, “Um...what?”

    “I mean our children, not like our children. That’s just weird...”

    “Very...” Fae tucked some of her hair back behind her ear, “Hey, so, ya know what I forgot today? Trousers. I’m not wearing anything right now under this shirt. So I’m gonna ya know... go finish getting dressed.” She gave Faolán a quick pat on the shoulder and slinked back into the tavern, leaving Faolán out in the middle of the street, alone.

    The image that Fae had painted in his mind played out; he could almost hear the giant’s last gasps for life as he lay, pinned to the ground, several arrows already sticking out from his chest and neck. That helpless glance he would give Faolán before he made that final cut across his throat. He knew Fae wanted to take this one, but now he wanted it too. His hand clenched at the handle of his sword. He was ready, and he was ready now.

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4 :: The Hunted

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5 :: Autumn

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6 :: A Promise Made

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