Chapter Fourteen- Best Laid Plans
Vyse was a very athletic person, of that no one could have any doubts. He was also brave, bordering on the psychotic suicidal. When his target had reached the bottom stair of the long pyramid, he had a close follower, as the teenage Blue Rogue slid alongside. Reaching the end of the stairs, he crouched and sprang up, launching himself into the air.
The man hit the ground, and hit it hard, tackled by Vyse. The pirate quickly got hold of both of the man's arms and pinned him in place to the ancient stones. His friends ran down the stairs to join him, spreading out to surround their mysterious prisoner.
"Finally," Aika said in relief. "Proof of my sanity!"
Vyse did not reply, as he was examining the man closely. He had the same darker skin color as most Ixa'takans, and was dressed in intricate white robes. He even wielded a wooden staff, and began to look suspiciously close to one of the King's priests in his mind.
Drachma spoke up, in a commanding voice. "Who are you, and what're you doin' followin' us?"
The stranger, who was on all fours and looking at the ground, fell in panic, spreading one hand over the back of his head defensively. "Please! Don't kill me! I'm a High Priest of Ixa'taka!"
"High Priest?" Echoed Vyse. Knew it. "Did you follow us all the way from the King's hideout?"
The man sat up on his knees, still gazing fearfully at the ground as he replied, "No, I didn't follow you here... I've been here a long time... I was assigned to watch this place by his Majesty. It's my duty to guard these ruins, and I had some troops with me before they were pulled to fight the Valuans."
"That explains the lack of monsters," Drachma huffed. "They been clearin' em out. Somethin' really ain't right here."
Aika nodded. "Yeah! You mean to tell me that he knew where Rixis was all this time?!"
"Yes," The priest nodded slowly. "We figured out Isapa's riddle, and found the Lost City... if anyone tried to take the Sacred Green Stone, I was to report it, even if it was useless for them to try. Everyone was happy when we recovered it first, because we could use it to fight off the invaders..."
"'Fight off the invaders'? You aren't going to..." Fina stared intensely at the priest, who could not meet her wide eyes. No, they can't be...
The man sighed, bowing his head further in defeat and silence. It's the only weapon we have that can defeat the fire-breathing ships... our only hope is the unsleeping giant...
Drachma's famous temper began to flicker. He placed forward his massive metallic arm, snapping open and shut the steel fingers in a highly menacing way. "Tell us all you know! And if you don't, I'll just have to crack open your skull."
The Ixa'takan sentry began to visibly shiver. "Alright! I'll tell you! Please don't hurt me... Isapa told the King that the Sacred Green Stone could awaken the Giant of lore... if the Giant came, he would chase off the iron ships, and we would be safe! It's the only hope for our people!"
Vyse blinked. "... Awaken the giant? Uh-oh..." The ground began to quake.
Under the thick forest canopy a long way from the ancient city sat a simple stone altar with a grooved center that was molded to fit the Green Moon Crystal that had just been placed there. The King stood back afterwards, joining Isapa and his personal guards as they watched the ambient emerald glow begin to intensify.
Isapa spoke up. "Now that I'm free and the Valuans are distracted and confused, we can use the Giant and take them down, your Majesty."
King Ixa'taka nodded soberly. "Indeed. Awaken, o Giant! I command you to rise from your early grave, and destroy our enemies!"
The portly High Priest sighed and bowed his head. Vyse, please forgive us. This is the only way we can beat Valua, and save the people and the forests of the green lands... The ground shivered and trembled, the surrounding trees unsteadily leaning. A pillar of green light stabbed upwards, intensely bright and full of incalculable energies that were being drawn from the vast stores of the ancient crystal.
All of Ixa'taka now trembled, the ground shaking as it had not done in ages. Vyse and his party looked around, confused for several moments, before he saw the source of the problem. The pillar of green shot far up into the sky, beyond the Upper Clouds.
Grendel roared. It's voice carried in an epic manner, blasting them, kilometers away, with it's angered noise that had lain dormant since the Silvites defeated it.
"... son of a bitch," Vyse said, shaking his head. I really hate the Gigas.
0-0
DeLoco's fleet, after destroying the rogue robot battleships, had attempted to blockade Moon Stone Mountain. Rebelling slaves had overpowered the troops of several hangars throughout the base, and a number of supply freighters, lifeboats, and skiffs were darting through their lines, making a suicidal dash for freedom.
Explosions blossomed around the Chameleon as it's autocannons ripped apart another lifeboat, the iron pellets pulping the unfortunate Ixa'takans onboard. DeLoco chuckled madly. "Yeeees! Destroy! Kill! KILL! KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THESE FOOLS FOR DARING TO REBEL AGAINST ME! Let the skies rain with the blood of these savage slaves! Let the skies rain DEATH! AHAHAHAHA!"
Vice Captain Lucas walked up to him, causing him to pause in his diabolical laughter. "Sorry to interrupt, sir," He said dryly, "But we've gotten a message from the Cygnus. She has gathered her fleet and is moving out to scour the forests again."
"Hm? How many times has Alfonso failed miserably so far?" The total genius inquired, watching with a malicious smirk as the ship's flamethrower turned one of the long, thin wooden freighters into a torch, and the occupants began to burn to death.
"Eleven, I believe," Lucas replied. Suddenly and without any warning, the yell of Grendel shook the ship. Such was it's power, even from the great distance, that DeLoco jumped in surprise. "What was that?!" The Valuan officer asked in fright.
DeLoco began to chuckle. "Ahahaha! That, Vice Captain, is the sound of oblivion! Those foolish Ixa'takans have dared to trifle with the Gigas, and have unleashed pure evil upon the lands! Quickly, mark our best speed for the source of that noise! All ships, make ready for battle! Mauahuahahaha!"
"As you command, my Lord," Lucas said with a bow, walking out of the small command deck.
0-0
Vice Admiral Alfonso stood on the spacious bridge of the Cygnus. His ship was shaped to very strongly resemble the traditional Valuan battlecruiser, however it was painted royal yellow and pure white, and it's nose was pointed and curved upwards. Dozens of Valuan officers busily worked at the electrical control stations scattered on the level below his, taking advantage of the technological marvel that was Valuan engineering.
The noble second son of the Empress flicked a stray hair away yet again with a grandiose motion, seeming little affected by the savage roar that had just torn through the air. "So," He remarked to his new Vice Captain, "King Ixa'taka really was hiding the Crystal from us all this time. How convenient, all we have to do is take it from him. All ships, move out at full steam for that column of light. Battle formation Delta."
His support fleet of a dozen regular gunboats and several Merrimac corvettes formed up around his flagship, following his lead through the skies. The Vice Captain said, "Sir, everything appears to be going to plan... Harbinger is taking the lead of the squadron. And... I also heard that you were injured in the mines, are you ok?"
Alfonso growled, wheeling on the man so fast he thought that the noble would surely draw on him, but he merely said in a lower than usual tone, "You are never to speak of that incident again, under pain of execution, Vice Captain!" He turned in a huff back to watch his crew work. "Now carry on."
The fleet drew nearer the source of the column of light, and pointed themselves towards the epicenter in the forest, which was as bright as the sun. Suddenly the ground began to break, and chunks of dirt and clusters of upturned trees flew into the air. Through the gaping wound in the lands came forth the Green Gigas, a monster of hatred and devastation that was so powerful the Rains of Destruction couldn't wash it away: Grendel.
It's form was clearly crafted to resemble a human, with the familiar impenetrable material coating it's outer surface, acting as both rigid defensive armor and completely flexible skin. It was, of course, green, with a single back eye and lit up a blazing red as it awakened with another roar. A back stem-like object, like a plant, grew out from it as it's bulging spinal cord, and it's limbs were badly misshapen. It's waist was extremely thin, which expanded either way, giving it an odd almost two-dimensional quality to look at from a certain angle. It stood colossally high, at least two hundred meters into the air, and thumped it's chest angrily. The figure was clearly visible from the Rixis temple crowning the mountain, even though it was leagues distant.
Alfonso narrowed his eyes. "So, Grendel's awake. Let's pound him back to slumber- all batteries, open fire! Explosive shot, double-barrels. Hold nothing back, and show these savages the full power of Valua." The ship shook as the powerful cannons mounted on the steel deck of the Cygnus belched flame, joining the other ships in a furious cannonade which sent dozens of explosions peppering the outer skin of the Gigas.
The fire had absolutely no effect on Grendel- in fact, it took it several moments to notice it was being attacked. When it did, it turned ponderously on it's massive limbs to face the Valuan warships, letting loose a third bellow of rancor and winding up it's fist.
The Harbinger was the closest Valuan ship, and so the most convenient first target. The fist of the mighty giant sped through the air faster than the eye could track, and struck the prow of the gunboat with perfect accuracy. Crumpling forward under the awesome might of the impact, the front section compacted instantly into one-fourth it's usual size, jagged and broken steel crushing a hundred Valuans below the decks and cutting into the vital systems. Sparks from the impact set off the exposed magazine racks for the guns, and a series of explosions rocked the ship as it shivered and capsized from the punch. Flames swirled forth from the dying ship as it descended into the forest, plowing a considerable wake with the force of impact and crushing the forests under it.
The arrogant and youthful Vice Admiral took a step back in shock as he saw the Gigas obliterate one of his ships with a single hit. "Blast! We cannot even make a dent on Grendel, yet he will plow through our squadron in a minute! Retreat!"
The Vice Captain was a new and fresh junior officer, and saw no reason to run just yet. "But... but sir, the battle hasn't even begun yet. We could load the torpedoes and have another go at-"
Alfonso began to throw a tantrum, angrily turning and gesturing with urgency to the officer. "Why are you questioning my orders, plebeian?! I refuse to die in these filthy, backwards lands! All ships return to Valua at once! Dissemble the Iron Net and make best speed through North Ocean! Go!" The surviving Valuan warships fell silent, turning and speeding away in retreat from the juggernaut. Grendel seemed content to roar in anger at their passing.
Vyse observed the Valuan fleet begin it's retreat, wisely fleeing under the seemingly unstoppable might of the Green Gigas. He was narrating the action, and declared, "Hey, Alfonso's running away!"
"Oh, that's a surprise," Aika said dryly. "Well, I suppose we'd better stop it... this is going to be tough."
"Don't worry," Vyse said with a sigh. "I'm sure it won't be so easy. Hell, DeLoco's probably en route right now to attack us with a souped up flagship..." He paused, and then turned his skyglass towards another swarm of dots on the horizon, zooming back in. He fell silent, then bowed his head. The Chameleon was leading the charge forward to the Gigas. When he looked back up, a familiar determination burned in his eyes. "Well, let's get to work, then."
Drachma turned to the priest. "Can you control the lifts?"
The priest blinked for several seconds. "Um... we've discovered that certain magical energies can... alter the flight of the platforms... yes," He concluded. "Why?"
"We need to get back to the Little Jack, and you're takin' us there at full speed." The wiry native sentry found this request difficult to refuse, of course due to the intimidating old fisherman and his enormous, rusty steel arm. "It's our ship, waiting in the forests."
"I'm not sure how long the range of the platform is... but I can try," He said, running over to the platform. "I can only take one person at a time, though."
"Boy, go down first and get the ship. Fly it up here and collect the rest of us." Vyse nodded, leaping onto the lift and bracing himself. The Ixa'takan High Priest started up the lift, and brought them through the chilling depths of the clouds and back into regular skies. The floating platform deviated from it's course, heading over the side of the Lost City of Rixis, descending further down the massive mountain.
Eventually they reached the forest's canopy surrounding the mountains. Vyse silently pointed him towards the clearing, wherein rested the green fishing sloop. "Are you going to try and go up and fight the fire-breathing ships and the giant in that?" The priest asked, setting down the lift on the grass.
"Haven't you heard?" He asked, flashing him a charismatic grin as he stepped down off of the lift. "That's what Blue Rogues do." No trace of his exasperation from before could be seen- he was putting on his usual brave face.
The priest made to follow him, but Vyse turned as he heard a strange roar. Several monsters were swarming around the vacant ship, and three of the odd floating pineapple-creatures turned to attack him as he boarded the deck via the ramp. They rushed at him, but he evaded by rolling to the side while the Ixa'takan made himself scarce
Counterattacking, he pulled out a Pyri crystal and tossed it at them. It struck one of them in midair, and it's rotor-leaves caught flame. Unable to keep afloat, it fell to the wooden deck. The other two began to retreat, flying away.
Vyse chuckled victoriously, running onto the bridge and cranking up the throttle. A shiver ran through the deck to join the quaking ground, and the vents mounted on the side expelled masses of steam that were built up in the pipes. The moonstones in the engine chamber began to release their energy, and artificial lights activated on the control panel. The Little Jack was now ready for flight.
The sentry of Rixis leaned in to the bridge. "Amazing," He said. "Your Eastern ships are so advanced. Even this craft is far beyond anything we could dream of building."
He pulled up on the controls, making the sailing fins on either side of the hull begin to flap, lifting up the bulk of the airship. Passing through masses of leaves overhead, he cleared into the sky, continuing to steadily rise. The ship was not designed to gain so much altitude, and in the thin air it's engines worked five times as hard as usual to flap the fins enough in the thinner atmosphere to keep them floating. The controls also began to lag badly, which luckily didn't matter for them.
Achieving the crest of the mountain, he stalled the engines for a moment and tossed a rope-ladder down to his waiting crew. They climbed onto the deck as quickly as possible, and once Aika had pulled it up again he began to kill the power to the fins. They braced themselves into a sitting position as the floor fell out under them, gravity taking hold of the large metal and wood machine.
"Alright, boy," Drachma nodded. "Good workin'. When the altimeter is back in the orange zone, manually restart rudder controls and get movin' for the Gigas." Blessed warmth returned to them as the thicker air of Livable Sky conducted needed heat to them.
"Aye aye," Vyse replied, slapping the wheel and getting a decent spin radius out of the falling sloop.
0-0
"Think you could hide from me, you filthy little sub-humans?! Hehehehe, well, you were wrong, and when I catch you, I'm going to personally make you all suffer. You will feel pain as never before imagined, and wish for the death that shall only come... slowly... in the very end of your nightmarish torment! And that's just phase one of seventeen, you foolish 'King' Ixa'taka!" Admiral DeLoco had been afforded a temporary distraction from his vendetta against Vyse- the Green Gigas loomed directly in front of them, and floating right behind it with a mocking defiance was the wooden Ixa'taka royal flagship.
Vice Captain Lucas saluted as he walked into the bridge from the lift. "Sir, engineering reports that the experimental cannon unit is ready for... testing." The Chameleon's triple-barreled regular cannons had been removed, leaving an empty, smoother prow armor cone, which would open like the petals of a flower to expose their Moonstone Cannon. The flamethrower was mounted on a rack below the ship's mechanical arm, next to a new handgun-class torpedo launcher. The side-autocannons had doubled in number. The entire ship was completely upgraded, in terms of attack power.
"Most excellent!" Roared the small genius in triumph, bashing his besieged armrests in a hyperactive state of near-euphoria. "Target the King's ship, and fire! Fire! FIRE AWAY! Wahahahahahah!" On the screen, the ship looked painfully primitive- fully wood, with small paper fins keeping them afloat and fixed sails, and no armor whatsoever. It didn't appear to be able to stand against a rifleman squad, much less DeLoco's newest weapon of mass destruction.
Lucas blinked. "Sir? The ship? Why don't we fire at Grendel instead?"
"You fool," DeLoco howled, rounding on him. "That is why I am the high Admiral of the grand Armada and you are a lowly Vice Captain! The Gigas only follow the commands of the person using their Moon Crystal- if we crush the King, the Gigas will be utterly defenseless! It's a foolproof plan!"
The junior command officer sighed and nodded. "Aye, sir. Very well... firing control! Target the savage flagship, and fire when ready!" The ship began to rumble and shake as massive amounts of energy gathered in the conical front armor sections. Sliding out with bolt-action hinges, the cannon slid through the prow and the armor flipped back, resembling a cold metallic flower with a long central barrel.
Suddenly, the ship was thrown back by tremendous recoil, and the lights dimmed for several moments as most of the power onboard DeLoco's flagship sat completely exhausted. Eventually secondary generators got up to spin, and began providing emergency power.
On the outside, rings of golden light shot outwards with an audible noise, and the ship was enveloped in the dazzling brightness of the cannon shot. A beam of focused, swirling yellow energies shot out across the ship, and within a fraction of a second it had completely illuminated the forest lands directly below it, and passed narrowly over the massive shoulder of Grendel. It glanced the left side of the ship, sending it reeling backwards as the fins melted, sending the entire balance of the fragile Ixa'takan royal craft off-kilter. Isapa braced himself from the light and heat, and a moment later looked up to find several of the priests completely gone, and the King slumped forward in his throne, Green Moon Crystal still clutched in his limp arms.
"Oh, no," The old man said, hurrying over to King Ixa'taka. "Wake up!" He began to shake the teenage ruler. "Please! Wake up... no! This is not good! Helm, we must retreat! Return to the hideout at once." The solder who had been manning the simple steering mechanism next to the throne did not reply, as he had been tossed overboard when the ship lost it's balance. "Damn!" He assumed the wheel himself, turning the small ship as it shook and shivered inside.
His Royal Majesty was the one in control of Grendel, but until he wakes up, it's just going to destroy everything in it's path... including this entire continent. He sighed, looking hopelessly into the sky. It all went so wrong... how? How? All we wanted to do was save our people...
Grendel had hunched over, bellowing in anguish and clutching the small structure that contained it's blood-red eye, and presumably what could be called the behemoth's head. He shook and rattled, anger over the ages releasing itself without any check at all to limit it's destruction. The monster that had leveled an entire civilization's remnants was back, in full force.
Instead of following DeLoco's predictions about being helpless, it proved Isapa right, standing up and crying out louder than ever. It swung it's enormous fist at the first and most obvious thing in range- a small island to the side. At the impact, it splintered and fell apart, enormous boulders raining into the jungle landscape below. After hitting the island, it reared up, roaring again and beginning a rampage across the forest.
DeLoco blinked slightly. "Well, it looks like I was slightly off... keep our distance, KEEP OUR DISTANCE! You saw what that thing could do... it's might is limitless! And until we harness it to crush the savages into dust, it will be a threat even to my majestic Chameleon! And look out for Vyse and his fools, as well! We can't be too careful. He's probably on his way right now to save the day. Heh."
Almost as soon as the last sentence had left his lips, an ensign cried out. "My Lord! Ship spotted, coming in from the west... it's the Little Jack!"
"Oh? Excellent! Prepare the cannon to fire again!" He turned his malicious gaze upon the electronic status displays, that showed radar reports in real time of the fishing ship rushing towards both the Valuan forces and the rampant Gigas.
"Sir, the main capacitor is overheated, and secondary generators are running hot," Lucas protested. "The cannon's output is more than expected- if we fire again we might overheat and then-"
"Ridiculous!" Thundered the proud Valuan Admiral. "My Chameleon's precious test cannon can fire all the live-long day, I've seen the figures! Now I order you to wipe Vyse out with a blast of our ultimate weapon! Quickly! DO IT!"
Onboard the Little Jack, the crew was assembled on the bridge for their orders for the battle. "Grendel's in range," Vyse reported with the aid of his skyglass, "But DeLoco's blocking our path. Looks like we'll need to take him down before we fight the Gigas."
"Ok, boy," Drachma nodded. "But be careful. We'll need to fight him defensively, and conserve our true strength for the fight with Grendel. We can take advantage of our torpedoes to throw him off balance, and the new blaster upgrades to our main guns will allow us to load them with three shots and give him a triple-broadside. You," He pointed to the Ixa'takan priest, who was also on the bridge, "You're helpin' me and the girls with the cannons. Four gunners will allow us to fight with a full crew."
The former watchman of Rixis nodded, apprehensive but obedient. "I'll help your ship belch fire, since you're fighting the Easterners."
They ran out onto the wooden deck of the ship and Vyse leaned forward, focusing all of his attention onto the controls. Bring it on, DeLoco. Squinting, he realized something. That ship isn't moving... at all. What's he planning?
It happened at the exact same time. Vyse began to turn the ship, preparing to start a distant orbit of the Chameleon and set up the first shot for his cannons. DeLoco fired his own weapon- the Moonstone Cannon flashed the brightest yellow he had ever seen, and he covered his eyes instinctively, hunching over the shivering wheel. The ship lurched to the side, and his stomach did the same motion inside his body.
He willed his eyes to open again, blinking away the spots in his vision. "Now I know why Dad got so angry about me and Aika staring at the sun," He mumbled, looking around for signs of damage. "Everyone ok out there?"
"We're fine," Aika replied quickly. "I think he missed us."
Wow, Vyse thought in alarm, Whatever DeLoco's new weapon is, it's so powerful that it can knock our ship half out of the sky with a near hit? They were still flying sideways relative to their enemy. He said, "Open fire!" On pure instinct, and the four obeyed. Their blasters tossed one, two, and then three solid cannonballs out into open sky. They flew for the briefest of moments, and then reached their target. Some missed, others battered into the heavy front armor of the ship, shaking it slightly.
"Boy, line us up for the Harpoon Cannon," Drachma ordered. "I don't know why DeLoco's stopped movin', but let's show him the consequences!"
"Maybe he's used up too much power," Aika suggested. "I really doubt they can fire that thing again soon, at any rate. They'd need a generator the size of... well, that," She said, pointing to the feral Green Gigas that was in the distance.
Little Jack turned, accelerating to give it's attack more power. The fishing ship's massive spear was pointing directly for the mechanical heart of the Valuan butcher's creation. Vyse wasted little time in theatrics, shoving down the firing trigger. The ship rumbled and rattled as the motors housed in the Harpoon's launcher tossed the enormous hunk of shaped metal. Rushing forward, the thick black cord connected the ship to it's foe. The harpoon had passed right through the Chameleon, crushing a dozen sailors and destroying a storage depot, but otherwise doing little. They failed to hit a single critical spot.
The Harpoon returned moments later, shaking the ship again, and the fishing boat passed the Valuan flagship. Now facing away from DeLoco, Vyse began a sharp turn to bring them around for another attack. "Torpedo," Aika warned, seeing the signature flames shooting straight into the sky from the minimally damaged metal warship.
"Evasive, boy," Drachma encouraged, but Vyse had already yanked the wheel hard the other way, starting a turn back around for the enemy while completely shifting it's flight path. "That little lunatic's a tricky bugger, but once you figure him out you can whip him in no time."
Vyse had an idea, and switched back to their own torpedoes. The controls, like the ones for the Harpoon, were at his fingers. The targeting system was a metal grate that tilted and slid according to aiming, and with several bright beads on there for various targets. Range marks were ticked off in white on the sides of the instrument, and although it was a primitive way to do things, he easily manipulated it to hit a stationary object.
Two small canisters sped out into the sky, roaring upwards higher than any airship known to Arcadia could hope to fly, only to come plunging down within a minute, right for DeLoco's helpless ship.
He was intently watching the explosives plunge down to earth with a corona of fire behind them like moonstone showers, and which would have roughly the same affect on the impact area. So intent was his observation, he failed to notice a dozen stars growing brighter in the sky above, through the thick layers of darkening clouds.
Fina looked up and gasped. "Torpedoes," She said, her voice a squeak of surprise. Vyse had no time to react, and they were hit by one of DeLoco's Shock Torpedoes. The device crushed through the nonexistent roof armor, burying itself deep into the deck before exploding. The ship shook as it's structural integrity was threatened, debris and shrapnel ripping through supports and the heat melting several levels of the interior wood rooms.
The fishing ship began to veer off course as it racked itself, twirling and swinging as they trailed thick curtains of black smoke. "Damn, he must have predicted we would have gone evasive..." Vyse sighed. "Dead since we did, dead if we hadn't."
The priest was beginning to show more than his usual amount of fear- by now the Valuan fire onto the ship had fully convinced him that resistance was futile, and furthermore that they were all doomed. He expressed so, but was silenced by twin killer glares, one by Drachma, the other by Aika. Fina merely looked down, loading more ammo into her assigned blaster.
Chameleon charged up for another cannon shot, still completely motionless, and still less damaged than the Little Jack. Vyse growled. Now-or-never spirit gripped him, and he turned the ship, speeding right towards DeLoco. Arming the Harpoon again, he concentrated,waiting for the exact moment...
A voice in his head spoke out. Now! He obeyed, shoving the lever down. The Harpoon rushed out to meet the Moonstone Cannon as it temporarily emerged from the shell of it's hardened armor dome- instead the whaling weapon crashed into the highly fragile magnetic coils and iron braces of the cannon itself, and bent and damaged them irreparably. The massive energies that had been charging up inside the cannon instantly returned to their former place, in the engine core, and a feedback loop slammed into the already malfunctioning power plant.
DeLoco once again found himself on the bridge of an utterly ruined and broken war machine. The Chameleon was engulfed in flames, as the engine cores exploded with a force that rivaled the greatest explosives of the Nasr Kingdom. He was outraged, refusing to believe the truth that the sirens, the smoke, and the panicking bridge crew all communicated to him, loud and clear- he had lost. Again. To Vyse. Vyse, his newest mortal enemy and thorn-in-side of all Valuans. "Whaaaaat?!?! NO! How could this happen?!?!? Twice in a row! No, No! This is all a nightmare! It can't be happening! I WANT TO WAKE UP NOW! I WANT-" He paused in mid-rant, his specialized suit literally ejecting handfuls of steam. He fell back into his chair limply, eyes going slack.
"Sir," Lucas said in alarm, running up to his command chair and shaking him lightly. "Pull yourself together, my Lord!" He looked around. "We are defeated! Get us out of here- transfer all power to the engines, and retreat!"
For the second time in as many days, the skies over the lush green continent of Ixa'taka were privileged to the sight of Admiral DeLoco's wrecked command ship slowly lumbering away, shaking in midair as if it might explode at any moment. The crew of the Little Jack cheered as one, watching him pull back.
"Yeah," Vyse said. "Not time for the party, just yet! We still need to find a way to beat back Grendel."
"It's enormous," Fina said. "And it's physical strength... there's no equal in the entire world to the Green Gigas for pure strength. How are we going to engage it?"
Drachma sighed, looking around. "Well, it ain't gettin' any weaker while we sit here! Keep us movin, boy! One haymaker and we're all done. Angle us for a shot! Fina, I want you to cast Increm and Quicka on the Little Jack to increase our combat power. That ought to give us a chance at this."
Fina nodded. "Of course." Closing her eyes, she knelt and began the familiar chant. "Moons! Give Me Strength!" Lines of blue and red power began to appear over the surface of the entire ship in a chaotic grid, with semi-transparent spheres of light in the air around them. The air itself began to shift, and sparkling clusters of multicolored dust swirled about like the cyclones of South Ocean. Using her magics, she strengthened the ship's armor, doubled it's engine output, and enhanced the explosive properties of the gunpowder mounted within it's blasters and torpedo launcher.
Vyse decided to bring them a little closer. "The thing's so big, we'll try attacking it one part at a time. Let's hit the head first!" Grendel had noticed their approach, and, as most of the other things around it had already been pulverized by it's insatiable power, it turned it's full attention to the small fishing sloop. It had begun it's plodding walk forward, watching quietly as the ship slowly got closer in it's circling. "Fire!"
Drachma lit the fuse on his gun, followed by the girls and the Ixa'takan mage. The sparks ran up the separate cords, igniting the magic-laced power within and causing a booming report and a mass of smoke and light. The cannonballs dove right for the Gigas.
The impacts were notable not for the explosions they caused, nor for any damage visible by the human eye, but rather for their complete futility. They bounced harmlessly off the unknown Old World alloy that comprised it's skin-armor, flattened by their own velocity into a large, jagged disk of lead. The fisherman glared down at the enormous humanoid war machine. Looks like solid shot is useless... "Boy! It looks like he's walkin' in a straight line. Hit him with some torpedoes while we load explosive rounds up!"
Vyse momentarily devoted his full attention to the torpedo's aiming system, and then let fly another two of the explosives. They darted high into the air, and he returned to making sure they were safely out of reach of it's fatal fists, but close enough to get semi-accurate cannon fire. Soon enough Drachma had commanded his crew to light their fuses, and the small explosive packages encased in a hollow wooden shell were shoved forward. They fired their second set of charges, the blasters allowing them to store up to four shots of any ammo, and they placed their last bombs up.
Small spheres of red energy appeared over the shoulders of the Gigas, and a few hit it's surface. The attacks, like the solid shot, proved to be utterly useless, or if they were making any damage it was too minor to be of any help, as their rather limited supply of the bombs ran out.
The shock torpedoes fared no better- both landed perfectly on the green machination, loosing enormous explosions. Grendel hesitated for a split-second, but then continued on it's nearly indomitable path. Fina sprinted gingerly to the magazine buried in the center of the Little Jack, retrieving another pair of torpedoes to reload their launcher as the gunners made ready.
"Nothing we try works against that thing," The priest said. "Even though your technology is impressive, fisherman, I do not think we can beat the Giant via firepower..."
"Thank you for that observation, Your Holy Annoyance," Drachma growled, searching the surrounding landscape, the Gigas, and his own ship for anything they could use for an upper hand. If we don't stop that thing, it'll head right over to Horteka and kill everyone, and then destroy the entire continent... It's only got those two legs, if we could knock it off into some... He paused, his eyes falling on the large lake they had seen before, where the grass-bird drawing had led them on previously. ... big body of water... He saw the wide river that wound through the forest. "New plan, boy! See that river? We're going to knock it in. It's gonna be tricky gettin' that thing to follow us. Get in closer, within it's range, but keep frosty and go evasive. If we make it punch us, we may be able to lead it on!"
"I'm sorry, did you say make the Giant punch us?!" Demanded the high priest, now panicking fully. He was silenced as Drachma again raised his metallic arm. "Good. That's... that's what I thought... yay us?"
Vyse shook his head. Time to commit suicide again. Leaning over the helm controls intently, he narrowed his orbital pattern, subtly bringing them closer. They didn't bother to fire any more. Apparently Grendel noticed this change, and it stopped, turning to face them clumsily. The forested ground shook under the massive plodding of the rampaging Gigas.
Vyse yanked the wheel, sending the ship into a dive at Grendel. The gigantic humanoid machine wound up it's four fingered fist that by itself was about the size of a small island, readying itself to smash the annoyance from the sky. It sprang up, fist rushing forward with lightning quickness, but with the magically enhanced ship they narrowly evaded. The wind from the glancing miss shook them and nearly capsized the ship, though, which only enhanced the Blue Rogue's desire not to find out what a full power strike would do to them.
Now fully interested, it began a pursuit as they led it right towards the steep cliff overlooking the wide river. They passed over it, turning and hovering in the air above the other side to watch. The Gigas roared and thumped it's chest, preparing to step over the large gap, when Vyse fired the Harpoon Cannon.
Rushing forward, it struck the impervious skin of Grendel and glanced off, it's deadly sharp point finding no purchase within the ancient construct. However, the sheer force of the blow knocked tons of energy through the giant Gigas, and it stumbled. Loosing it's footing on the opposite cliff-bank, the creature of war could no longer sustain itself upright. Gravity claimed it. The splash made by the tricked monstrosity rushed high into the air, saturating the surrounding sky with flying water droplets.
Vyse let out a whoop as soon as he saw the plume of clear liquid, as did Aika. The priest also joined in celebrating, while Fina gazed up reverently at the sky, and the bright, full Green Moon that shone back down upon her. Drachma nodded. "Serves 'im right. Ok, we stuck him for now, but I'm guessing he'll eventually learn how to climb out and start smashin' again." Already it was flailing madly, letting out terrifying roars that shook the lands. "We need to get that Green Crystal- full rudder to the King's hideout, boy."
The teenager responded with an enthusiastic, "Aye aye!" And spun the wheel. The ship, which had emerged from battle with it's second Gigas unscratched, save for the torpedo damage of DeLoco's aggression. Everyone aboard couldn't help from feeling that this good luck signaled positive omens for things to come.
Their trip across Ixa'taka was luckily uneventful, as they fought off several clusters of flying monsters. They made good time- in about four hours, when the sun had reached over the half-way point in the sky and was beginning to descend towards the opposite horizon, the humble little cabin appeared in the distance.
The King had made a recovery, luckily escaping any concussion or permanent damage. When the crew entered, announced by one of the soldiers, he stood up unsteadily from his throne. The first one in was the High Priest. He looked around, and then took a leg in respect. "Your Majesty, my charge having been rendered moot when the Sacred Green Crystal summoned the Giant, I return to your side with honor."
"You are gladly welcomed," The King replied, motioning for him to stand up and join his royal court in the background. "But it is not with honor that we act now..." He looked up to the pirates sadly. "I cannot tell you how sorry I am... we were fools to summon the Giant."
Vyse was a gracious person, and tried to divert him by reciting a quote that his father had given to him many times. "With great power, you've also got great responsibility. I guess now you see why Valua can never be allowed to gain control of six of those." A visible shudder ran through every Ixa'takan.
"Yeah," Isapa said with a sigh. "Well, the King and I and everyone else agrees that you've more than proven yourselves worthy. A lot more worthy than us. Take the Green Crystal... and do what you gotta do to save the world. We're behind you all the way." He took out the precious jewel, it's green illumination a warm glow on Fina's face as she stepped forward to accept it.
That's two, she thought in relief. Cupil chirped an affirmative, joyously swimming laps around people in the air in celebration.
"Thank you... you have saved our people," King Ixa'taka continued after several moments. "To celebrate your victory, I have arranged for a celebration of honor to take place in Horteka. Now that the Valuans have shown their true metal and left, we need not fear to congregate. One night, surely won't hamper your quest much?"
Vyse smirked. "Food, drinks, and partying... I'm up for that." Aika nodded as well, grinning. "We accept your offer." Let's enjoy ourselves a while. Tomorrow, we sail for Valua.