James had managed to land on a Giant that no one was on the feet of. He didn't know if any of the others were on the Giant, but it didn't matter. He wished his pistol would work, but he knew he didn't have any bullets left.
He worked his way around to the back of the foot and then drove his sword into the hamstrings of the big bully. Pulling with all his might, he managed to severe the hamstring.
The Giant was slapping but not connecting with James, and James was considering jumping to the other one when the Giant picked a foot up and was trying to hold it and see what was wrong with it. James grinned when he saw Connor on the other foot, and he yelled at him what to do. Connor saw what his dad had just done on the right foot and did the same thing to the left.
"JUMP!" James called to him. "HE'S GONNA FALL!" He barely managed to get off himself as the Giant began to topple.
Crystal had still been working on protecting the others from the boulders some of the Giants were throwing when she heard screams. She whirled toward the sound and was just in time to see the shadow of a Giant fall across the Halliwells, Cole, and Carl. She knew Cole could shimmer some of them to safety, but there was no way he could save all of them.
Her ice blue eyes darted around, but everybody else was too busy with their own Giants. "Forgive me," she whispered, and her hands held out to the Giant. Her ice blue eyes narrowed in concentration, and ice spread over the monster's huge body. It drained a lot of her strength to turn him to ice, and as his body completed the transformation, she was on her knees. Her eyes closed, her hands unclenched, and the Giant shattered even as she fell face forward.
Angel heard Blue screeching in terror and knew something was wrong with Crys. He gave up working on the Giant and headed down, sliding part of the way. "What is it, Blue?" he asked as soon as he came down beside him. Blue roared again. "Crys just killed her first being by ice and fainted?" He breathed a sigh. "It's gonna be hard for her. I'll go to her." He continued the rest of the way down the Giant, passing several fighters along the way.
Blue had taken off from Angel the very second that he had assured him he would come, but when he reached Crystal, he found her surrounded by three beings. He was not surprised to see Cindy there, gently nudging her, but he was surprised to find two tigers standing guard, their deadly claws swatting at any Giant who dared to step too close.
Angel reached Crys and scooped her up, carrying her as far away from the battle as he could. He gently stroked her face. "Crys? Please open your eyes." He wished he had water he could put on her face, but he had none.
Blue and Cindy peered anxiously at him. The animals had accompanied Angel, but only those two stayed as the tigers rushed back to the battle. Crystal was breathing shallowly but did not respond to Angel. It was then that rain began to sprinkle gently down on the blonde's face.
"THANKS, 'RO!" Angel called to her. "HOW'S THE BATTLE GOING?"
"THERE ARE TWO DOWN," she responded, her blue eyes turning back toward the fight, "AND IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S ABOUT TO BE A THIRD ONE."
"HOW MANY MORE ARE THERE?"
"YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW, MY FRIEND." She left them, flying back to join the others as a new plan was forming in her mind.
Wolverine could tell that the Giant was falling. "TIMBER!" he yelled even as he jumped. Where was Faith? He hoped she was not still on the Giant, but as the Giant fell, he did not see her. Even when the others scattered, he still could not spot Faith. Wolverine drew near to the Giant whose blood was gushing out on the ground. He tried to sniff Faith, but the stench of the Giant choked him.
Dawson ran forward. "Where's Faith? I know she went up!"
"She didn't get off," Wolverine told him. "She's somewhere under him. We've got to get her out from under there!"
Salem ran up with Lex. "Are you sure she's under the Giant?" he asked, not wanting to believe that. If she were, there'd be nothing left now but an oily spot!
"I didn't see her get off, but I didn't see her when he fell either. I haven't been able to find her by smell. Giant stinks too much."
A roar met their ears as a tiger rushed up. "She went for the balls!"
"You saw her? Was she still on the Giant when he fell?" Lex demanded.
"I didn't see her," Zora replied, "but I heard her say that's where she was headed!"
"Then we'll have to look there," Wolverine announced. He jumped on the Giant and began working his way toward an area he would prefer not to go near.
Zora looked down at Salem. "Want a ride?" she offered.
"Yes, thank you! Meesy needs one, too! Meesy?" he called.
Meesy peered out from little pieces of skin and blood that coated his fur. "I'm here," he replied rather dazed, "I think."
Zora peered down at what covered the royal familiar. "Yup," she announced, recognizing the hair-covered pieces. "Definitely Faith's work."
Wolverine moved the loincloth. It was the most disgusting place he'd ever seen, and if Faith was down in there, or rather what was left of there, he only hoped she wasn't drowning in the blood. He knew she'd never get the stench off. He looked up as Lex, Zora with her riders, and Dawson arrived. "She's down in there somewhere, but I don't smell her. I just think she's down in there."
"We need a rope," Dawson told him.
"We don't have one, but we can use the loincloth. Tie it on to your pants so we don't lose ya."
Dawson quickly tied it on and slowly started making his way down into the stinky area. If Faith was in there, he'd find her. He dove into the blood and tried to peer around for her. He had to keep coming up for air as the stench was very overpowering.
"I'm coming down in there to help ya," Wolverine told him and tied another piece of the loincloth to his pants.
As they dove back into the groin area, Zora looked at Lex. "She's one Hell of a bitch, ain't she?" she asked. At the emotions that flashed in his eyes, she smiled and amended, "I mean that in a good way."
"She wants to be a bitch," Lex told her. "I will amend what you said from bitch to woman. She's one Hell of a woman, and I'm lucky to know her."
Salem was inching his way with Meesy right beside him. "Be careful. You're going to slip," Meesy warned him even as Salem's foot hit something and he went sliding. Meesy barely managed to catch his tail and pull him back. "See? I told you. I know you want her back, but we have to wait."
Chong had been making his way to the inner circle beyond the Giants. He thought that there might be a camp there and hoped to find Jareth. He spotted Jareth and made his way carefully there. He figured he could get Jareth down and then Jareth could help him to get the others down. He was loathe to leave even the Raptors hanging but didn't want to be attacked by them.
Chong looked all over the place. He was worried about the man who hung there so lifelessly. Was he dead or merely unconscious? He prayed it was the latter. He found the lock which was big enough for him to stick his hand in it and began to feel for the catch.
He felt it beginning to let go when he suddenly heard a noise behind him. He turned and saw another Giant heading straight for him with a gigantic glass jar. He let go of the chain and backed up against Jareth, loathe to leave but knowing he couldn't stay or he would be caught. The Giant reached a finger out, swiping at Chong and knocking him to the ground. The jar came closer and closer until landing on top and trapping Chong inside it. Chong hit it, but it did not break.
Sean came flying straight for where he had seen Chong disappear. Along the way he spotted Delvira and paused. "I can carry ye on tae where yer husband is. I'm giin' there now."
"Thank Gods!" Delvira cried. "I've been trying to reach that circle since we got here, and I keep getting delayed!" She had lost track of how many fireballs she'd spun to save others quite some time ago.
Sean swooped down, scooping Delvira up and carrying her to where he figured Jareth was. All he could see as he approached was another Giant. "Damn! Just what we did nae need!" His screams continued carrying him toward the Giant, and he swerved, barely missing the backside and landing in front of him but behind the jar.
The Giant had not seen them but was standing there, holding the jar down over what he thought was a tiny human bean. Releasing Delvira, Sean aimed a scream straight at the jar even as she fought to ignore Jareth hanging behind her and began forming a fireball. The glass shattered, throwing pieces of glass straight into the Giant's legs. He screamed and began trying to pull the glass out. Each time the glass came out, more blood poured out.
"Sean," Delvira called, "I've seen that mouth of yours in action. What do you say we finish this bastard?" The light from the huge fireball she carried flickered in her black eyes.
"Best thing I've heard all day, Delvira." He turned to face the Giant and let go a scream louder than any he had let out all day aimed straight for the Giant's head. Even as Sean released the scream, Delvira hurled the fireball for his midsection. The combination of the two knocked the Giant backward and down. Hitting his head on a rock knocked him unconscious, and Delvira turned toward her husband, letting the fireball burn.
She had forgotten all about the Goblins, including Teak who'd taken charge. Now they seemed to come out of everywhere, tiny hands working at the speed of lightning to undo the chains holding the rest of their people.
Delvira smiled sadly at the sight even as she reached out and gingerly touched Jareth's bruised cheek. She pressed her lips gently to his. "Wake, my love," she whispered against his mouth. "Everything's going to be all right now."
When Ororo had returned to the fight, she had flown to Katrina's side. "Katrina," she called, "I need you to take over watching Clark and Celina for me. If Clark gets out of hand, you may need to talk him down. Can you do that?"
"Of course I can, 'Ro." She lobbed a few more fireballs straight at a Giant that she had been hitting for a while.
Ororo nodded. "Thank you." She then turned, her intent blue eyes quickly picking out a couple of Giants. She held her hands out toward them. "WINDS, HEED MY BIDDING!" Air rushed over her body, taking her higher and setting her long, white hair to flowing straight up in the air. She reached out to the two Giants, and the winds began howling around them. They howled like angry banshees as a hurricane formed around the two. Ororo's hands stretched higher, and she concentrated even more as the hurricane lifted the Giants straight off of the ground.
"Where are you sending them?"
Ororo froze at Katrina's question. She had thought to carry them off somewhere but now realized that she could not think of a single place around the island where they could be safe from them. "Nowhere," she decided aloud and began using the winds to knock the two Giants against each other.
Katrina watched even as the Giants became unconscious and the winds began lowering them to the earth. It was then that she heard Ororo yell; she turned to look back at her friend only to see her snatched up by the hair of her head by another Giant. She flew instantly to her rescue, attempting to strike the Giant with fireballs and make his hand open only to be caught by his other hand.
Pain blazed through Ororo's skull where the Giant was pulling her hair, but still she forced herself to concentrate on settling the other two Giants gently onto the ground. She could no longer see the people down there and prayed that they would not land on anybody.
TOM! Katrina's mind screamed for her mate. 'Ro and I have been taken! Help!
Morph and Tom were on their way back to the main battle and heatedly discussing how easily two Giants had dealt with the one they'd lured away when Tom suddenly went still. Morph turned to look at his best friend in concern. "Tom?"
"It's Katrina," he replied. "She's been caught." Yet he managed to keep his tone jesting as he thought back to her, hoping to lure her mind away from the terror of being in the Giant's closed hand. Don't worry, my love. Two more Giants are heading to join in the fray even as we speak! His tail cut through the air, knocking a tree from its roots, as he broke into a run.
We don't need two more Giants! she frantically told him. I can't see 'Ro down there! I don't know if she's okay or not, but he was holding her in his other hand!
Actually, sweet, two more Giants are exactly what we do need right now. He knew she was afraid and added gently, Trust me, darling.
It was then that they broke onto the scene. "Which one?" Morph asked.
Tom's green eyes surveyed the battle, and he quickly spotted the gigantic hand that Ororo dangled from by her long, white hair -- hair that was already beginning to tear. "You get 'Ro," he told Morph. "I'm going for Katrina."
The two new Giants raced toward the first, and the other bellowed in fright when he saw them coming. "NO! CAT!"
Cat? Katrina heard the bellowed word. What cat? Surely Salem and Meesy were not causing all the fright that she could now tell was going on around them? No, it could only be her Tom and Morph in Giant form! Go get him, sweetheart! she told him encouragingly. She wished she could see the battle instead of only hearing it.
Tom's pupils widened in surprise. "Looks like this one's just as scared as the last one."
Morph grinned. "You must have that effect."
Tom turned his full attention on the Giant and began to purr even as he stepped closer.
"THAT'S ALL WE NEED!" Jack yelled at Will. "RAIN!" He could hear what sounded like thunder and knew it would not take long for the rain to start. Rain would only bring more trouble as it would make the mostly bloody ground slicker and quite possibly cause them not to be able to keep their footing on the Giants.
Will paused in stabbing the Giant long enough to look up at the sky. Ororo's mist had faded, and he was able to see a mostly cloudless blue sky stretching far over their heads. "WHATEVER IT IS," he called back to Jack, "I DON'T THINK IT'S RAIN!"
"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT?" Jack called back to Will.
"NO STORM CLOUDS," Will replied simply as he strove his sword in deeper.
"'RO MUST BE DOING SOMETHING TO CAUSE THE THUNDER," Jack returned. "HOLD ON!" The Giant was raising his foot to take another step. Jack barely managed to keep holding on as a giant hand swiped at him again as he hit a particularly vulnerable spot. Jack gave it some extra hard pushes, trying to drive the sword in.
Will was about to respond when he heard the Giants beginning to yell something about a cat. He frowned. What in the world were those Catpeople doing now? It was then their own Giant began to break into a run, and all he could do was hold on.
Brendan was desperately clinging to the running Giant when he heard frightened screams from down below. Looking down, he saw the Halliwells running for their lives and noticed Prue narrowly avoiding the foot. He stared at her for a moment as he thought of how the Giant had nearly gotten the two people who meant the most to him -- first Jack and now Prue. Then he felt the change beginning to take place.
As fur spread over his body, Brendan started to panic, but then he stopped for a moment. Wait a minute, he told himself. He was getting nowhere with the Giant, but would not the wolf turn against the Giant as well? The others could always knock him out if it came to that, but the Werewolf might, for the first time, actually come in handy. The thought was barely out of Brendan's mind when his mouth contorted, his teeth elongated, and a howl burst forth.
Will looked across at Brendan, screeched, and nearly lost his hold on the Giant. "JACK," he yelled, "HE'S CHANGING!"
"GO GET HIM, BRENDAN!" Jack yelled at him. It was then that he, too, saw Prue fleeing for her life. He looked at Brendan and then back to Prue. Was Brendan going to attack the Giant or go for Prue first? If he didn't go for Prue, Jack was going to have to pull a rescue off. Why couldn't the girl simply get out of the way? The rest of her family had managed it. It was then that Jack saw Cole shimmer in one more time, grab Prue, and shimmer out.
Prue was shaking like a leaf when she arrived where her sisters were. "That was too close!" she exclaimed. "Thank you, Cole!"
Cole, who was breathing heavily, just nodded his head. He had rescued all of them rather quickly -- Piper first followed by Phoebe and then Paige and Carl. He had tried to catch sight of Prue and had almost missed her. He sat down, waiting for his breath to catch up with him for he had forgotten to breathe as he had been shimmering.
Brendan, meanwhile, shot up the Giant as though he were a cat running after a bird. He stopped when he reached the Giant's stomach, and another howl burst from him even as he began tearing at the dirty skin. His claws moved as swiftly as lightning, and soon entrails rained down.
Jack looked up just in time to have a piece fly and hit him on the face. "YUCK!" he said as he swiped it off and threw it. He moved his position slightly so that everything else that was raining down wouldn't knock him off. What had gotten them to running? He had not seen anything, but he had heard "cat" and he wondered what Salem had managed to get going. His mind never even thought once about Tom.
Will clung to the Giant even more tightly as he saw the things raining down. His own stomach churned, and he moved his face away so that Jack could not look upon him as he gave in to the baser instinct.
Clark and Celina had managed to take out another Giant just as the others had started running. Clark's eyes had frantically ran over the ground, searching for Lex, and he finally found him on top of a fallen Giant. He wondered why his lover was peering at the thing's loincloth but quickly forgot all about that as he saw another Giant heading for them. His gaze shot up at the Giant, and fire again burned from his eyes. The Giant roared but would not slow his pace, and Clark took a deep breath and prayed even as he turned his target to the monster's heart.
Lex looked up and spotted Clark, flames shooting from his eyes. He glanced toward the intended target and saw Clark flying straight at him. What did he have on his mind? Gods protect him! He could not tear his eyes away from the collision he knew was about to happen.
The Giant's hands were slapping at his chest, trying to put flames out but to no avail for as fast as he got one out, another one came. A gash the size of a small mountain was quickly building in his chest, and then his heart became exposed whilst still beating. To both Lex's amazement and horror, the fire continued until the Giant and his heart fell -- the Giant collapsing backwards and his heart splattering across the ground before his massive feet. Lex turned his head and threw up; the sight was more than he could take.
It was at just that moment that Dawson resurfaced and gave a yell of triumph. "You won't believe where she is, and I can't get her out by myself!"
Wolverine, who had also resurfaced, swam over to where Dawson was hovering. "Where is she?"
"She's in between those . . . Ithinktheywereballsonceuponatime!" Dawson squeaked.
"Get your breath; we're goin' down," Wolverine told him, "on the count o' three." Wolverine held up his fingers as he counted, "One . . . Two . . . " When the third finger shot up, he filled his lungs quickly and dived. Not being able to see anything, he had to feel to find her. He could feel Dawson next to him, and they both felt around, trying to find a position on Faith. They knew they had to get her out of there. They could not figure out how she was even still alive, not being able to breathe.
Dawson pulled, Wolverine pushed, and Faith shot out like a cork shooting out of a bottle. Lex was waiting, reached out, and pulled her up. He tried not to think about where they were at but busily cleaned the gunk away from her mouth and proceeded to give her mouth-to-mouth. He heard the gurgling sound and turned her head sideways so she could throw up.
When the blood finally stopped coming from Faith's mouth, she began to breathe shallowly. It took her a little while before she was able to grin, but then she did just that. "Helluva ride! How're the others?"
"Some Giants down; some Giants running," Lex told her. "Don't have any idea if any one's injured or worse . . . dead. It's kinda hard to see anything from this height."
Zora, who had fallen silent in desperately scanning the ground for Connor, spoke up. "Ya can't see much, but I don't think anybody could miss Tom. He must be what they're running from."
Wolverine looked and laughed. "That's one prank I'm actually proud o' him pullin'! Who would've ever thought giant cats would scare Giants!"
Hearing Wolverine, Faith turned her gaze toward him and began looking for Dawson. When she found him, she smiled at the sight for, though covered in gunk and breathing hard, he appeared to be unhurt. "How ya feeling, kid?"
"Nasty!" Dawson replied. "This stuff is awful and it stinks, but at least we're all alive! Why'd you get him in the balls, Faith? Did you know you were swimming around in them?"
Faith grinned. "Think about it. Ya want a guy down, where's the first place ya hit him?"
"Ouch!" Wolverine grimaced even as Dawson's hand went quickly to his. The mere mention around a guy about his privates being in danger was enough to make any guy grab theirs, including Lex who turned his back to the others to check and make sure his were still in tact.
"Bitch after my own heart," Zora called as she stepped closer and offered a hand down to Faith. "Judging from the blood, I'd say you ripped them out pretty well."
"Wasn't anything left down there," Dawson informed both of them. "Just two gigantic holes where they once were!"
"That'd be two," Zora replied as she helped Faith to her feet. "What about the third, or don't Giants have two balls and a dick?"
"Don't know. Wasn't there," Wolverine told them without making eye contact. "Just gaping holes an' a little bit that was holdin' Faith in."
Zora noticed the look that passed across Faith's face and asked her in hopes of distracting her, "So what did you do to them?"
Faith shrugged as though the attack had been an every-day occurrence. "Just went to work slicing and dicing."
"Remind me not ta make ya mad," Wolverine told her. "I'd hate to see what a little slicin' an' dicin' would do ta me. Shall we go check on the others, see if they need a hand?"
Faith nodded, and the group headed out with Zora at the lead. She was already beginning to change back into tiger form, and her nose was busily twitching in its struggle to catch Connor's scent amongst the chaos.
Wolf was looking for Delvira and had no clue as to where she had gone. Elvira had fallen off the Giant, bumped her head, and was out cold but being protected by a big, black dog. Wolf had smelled the dog and realized that it was Gonk. "Stay with her, boy," he'd told him. "I've gotta get help." Wolf was many things, but he knew he was not a doctor and he was afraid to move Elvira.
Of all the Giants that had ran, only three had not made their planned escapes. Clark had taken care of the one who had nearly stomped Lex and the others with him while a certain Werewolf had finished off another as he had not ceased tearing out the Giant's intestines until the being had crashed to the ground. The third was still being held back by two other Giants who were determined not to let him go.
"You look like you're not quite as stupid as the others," Morph commented in hopes that they might be able to talk reason with him.
"C-C-Cat," the Giant stuttered out.
Morph shook his head. "Looks like I was wrong."
Tom's hands shot out, grabbing the Giant's wrist. He was careful to avoid contact with the closed hand, however, as he knew it to be Katrina's cage. "Cat want," he attempted.
"Cat want what?" the Giant asked in confusion.
"Cat want . . . " He wouldn't have the first clue who Katrina was. Would he even know a human? "Cat want food." His own stomach churned at the thought of calling his beloved food.
"Cat have food!" the Giant returned, throwing Ororo at Tom. Morph's hand shot out and gently caught the dazed Witch.
Tom's own hand tightened on the Giant's wrist. "Cat want this food," he insisted, shaking the Giant's arm.
Since when am I food? Katrina thought. I'll remind him of that tonight! For now, she only hoped the Giant would give the cat the "food".
The Giant's fingers slowly began to move, revealing Katrina, and Tom's free hand swiftly sought his beloved. He picked her up gently despite his enormous size.
"Giant go?" the Giant asked hopefully.
A slow smile spread across Tom's face even as he made sure Katrina was safe within the confines of his other hand. "Sure Giant go," he replied. "You threaten my friends and family. You kidnap my wife, thinking to eat her, and now you want to go? You're gonna go all right!" His hand released his hold on the Giant and shot straight into his face with such strength that he staggered backwards. Tom hit him again and again until he fell to the ground.
As soon as the Giant was out, Tom turned his full attention to Katrina. He very carefully raised her to his face. "Are you all right, beautiful?"
"So I'm food now? When you gonna eat me, handsome?" she asked him playfully.
Tom breathed a silent sigh of relief. He'd figured she'd heard him. Thank Bast she understood the ploy! "Tonight," he promised her with a grin before gently setting her back down to the ground and beginning to demorph.
"Promises, promises," she told him in a flirtatious matter as her eyes gazed on his handsomeness and her lips puckered for a kiss. "Thanks for saving me, lover."
"Any time," Tom replied as he returned to his normal size. He reached out for her, one arm sliding around her waist as the other's hand caressed her furry face. As his lips touched down upon hers, his tail encircled her legs, sliding erotically against her fur, and he dipped her.
Jack looked around and, for as far as his eyes could see, Giants were laying dead on the ground. The stench filled the air. "Where's Delvira? Has any one seen Delvira?" he called out again.
As the others shook their heads all around them, Zora pretty much ignored Jack. She'd heard his question but neither knew where Delvira was or cared. Right now, she and Vang were looking for Connor.
Vang growled, and she looked in the direction he motioned in to see Connor standing with his father. She tried to slow her pace as she headed back toward him, but her demorphing was the swiftest it had been all day. When she reached him, however, she made no further move toward him but only grinned. "Hey."
"Hey yourself!" Connor said as he pulled her closer to him and gave her a big hug. "Glad to see you're safe and sound even if you are like me and covered in gunk!" He did not release her but continued to hold her, gazing into her eyes.
She didn't try to move from his arms, but her wild, green eyes instead searched his. "What happened to you? One minute you were there, and the next you were gone."
"Dad was in trouble. I jumped to help him, and then we got separated. I thought you were on the same Giant we were."
She shook her head. "I didn't see you jump. Guess I was too much into the fight."
"We all were," James was quick to assure her, "and if Connor had not come to my rescue, I wouldn't be here now. Thank you, son." James clasped his shoulder and gave him a gentle squeeze. "Been one Hell of a day all day long!"
Zora grinned. "Welcome to the island. The one thing you won't find here is boredom."
"I believe that!" James exclaimed. "Where is Delvira, and is every one accounted for?"
Jack had been busy searching faces. There were quite a few faces missing. He prayed that they were safe. "Branch out, and see if you can find any one. We are missing quite a few people. Elvira, Delvira, Wolf, Angel, Crys, Wolverine, Brendan, and Ororo."
"Sean and Chong," Kitty spoke up.
"Are there any others," Jack called out, "who you don't see?"
"We're here!" Autolycus called out even as his mouth fell open as he watched Elizabeth run toward Will. What the Hell's going on! he thought. I thought I had her! Now she's going back to Will! He almost started crying.
Jack looked at Elizabeth and took a step backwards, not knowing how to react to this. Did Elizabeth make her mind up that she wanted Will despite the fact that Will didn't want her? He sincerely hoped not! He would hate to have to get ugly with the woman, but she couldn't have his Will!
When Will saw Elizabeth running towards him, he held his hands out not to embrace her but rather to stop her. "Elizabeth, we . . . we talked about this."
"I know we did," Elizabeth gushed, "but, Will, I have to talk to you!" It was only then that she became aware of the others' eyes and added, "In private."
"Can't it wait?" Will asked hopefully.
"No, it can't," Elizabeth told him. "I've been awful -- " she started but then stopped and faced him with a pleading look. "I don't want to talk about it here, not where everybody can hear."
Will was torn. Just what was wrong with Elizabeth? Did she fear, as he had a few times since returning to the Pearl, that she was losing her sanity? "Jack?" he asked.
"Yes, Will?" Jack wasn't sure rather he should begin fighting yet or not.
"Hum . . . " Will wasn't quite certain what to say. He had to find out what was bothering Elizabeth yet he didn't want to upset his beloved. Would he take it the wrong way if he told him he needed to talk to her?
Jack could tell Will was very upset and torn. "It's okay, Will," he was quick to reassure him. "Take a walk. Find out what's bothering her."
Will nodded but did not take Elizabeth's hand. Turning back to her, he gestured for her to walk ahead, and when she had, he looked back to his beloved. "I won't be long," he promised in a hushed whisper.
"Do what you have to do," Jack said in a quiet voice while his mind screamed at Will, Don't do anything you don't have to do, and don't kiss her! He turned to look around, hoping to spot Brendan and Wolverine.
Will stepped closer to his love. He knew Jack had to be worried. After all, he'd put on such a great act with Elizabeth the first time. He reached out, cupped Jack's face, and gently turned him back to look at him. "I'll be back soon," he assured him, "and missing you every step of the way." He brushed his lips across Jack's. "For later."
"I'll hold you to that," Jack promised him, and his eyes sparkled looking at Will. The taste of his lover on his tongue held promises for later that evening and reassured him that Will didn't want Elizabeth.
Will lovingly stroked Jack's cheek and beard, then reluctantly turned and headed after Elizabeth. He shook his head as he walked. Dear Gods, what could the woman want now!
Autolycus reached the spot Elizabeth had just left and looked up at Jack as though his heart was broken. "Autolycus, walk with me. We've got to find our people who are missing. Every one, branch out and look. Be careful! There's no telling what else we might get into!"
"Or," Vang advised, "how many of the Giants are dead and how many are only sleeping!"
Jack had thought they all were dead. "What do you mean they might be sleeping?" he was quick to ask Vang.
Vang gestured with his head toward one of the two Giants Ororo had knocked out. "Watch his chest for a moment."
"Well, don't just stand there! Do something!" Jack told him.
"What?" Vang asked, looking back at the man. "Kill him in his sleep?"
"No, can't do that. That wouldn't be right. Kill him if he wakes up! I'm putting you in charge of him."
"I can't kill him by myself!" Vang gestured toward the two shapeshifters. "Put them on him! If they grew big enough, they could simply squash him!"
"That's true. Tom, Morph, you watch the sleeping Giants. Vang, would you mind checking the rest of the Giants out to see if they're living or dead?"
Vang shook his head. "I'm on it, Captain." His tail swished; it had been a long time since he'd last used that term.
Zora heard Vang and spoke up. "I'm with him." She started morphing.
"I'm with them," Connor said, "but I can't morph. I'll just have to do what I can on my own. We'll check them out for you, Captain Jack; don't worry."
Jack began to walk, looking on both sides and hoping to spy Brendan, Wolverine, or any of the others. "Autolycus, I . . . kinda noticed you were upset about Elizabeth. Dare I hope there's something between the two of you?" Jack thought it would be wonderful if the two of them hooked up; then he could quit worrying about Elizabeth.
"I thought there was, Captain. Now I'm not too sure. When I woke up from the flowers, she was all over me. I enjoyed every second of it! But after the battle, she had one thought on her mind -- Will! She took off away from me so fast I couldn't even catch her skirts! I don't want her to be after your Will!"
Jack turned to face him. "Do you think I want her to be after Will? If I thought it would do any good, I'd pay you to take her off my hands, keep her out of Will's face so to speak, but if she's not attracted to you at all, it wouldn't help."
"Captain, I don't want your money! I want the woman!"
"You want a woman? Since when, Autolycus! You've always got plenty of women!"
"I don't want just any woman, Jack. I want Elizabeth."
"Well, I wish you the best of luck with her. You're gonna need it. Now we'd best get back to hunting for the missing."
"But, Captain, are you sure it's a good idea for those two to go off alone?"
"The first thing I learned, Autolycus, is to trust. If I didn't trust Will, I would have went with them, but I trust Will and you've got to learn to trust Elizabeth or you're not going to get anywhere with her and you can't fake it. She's not a stupid woman. She's a very brave and intelligent woman. I don't think you're good enough for her, but if she wants you, I'll be the first one to shake your hand and also the first one in line to kick your ass if you mistreat her."
"Won't be any good, Captain. She wants Will, or she wouldn't have ran after him that fast."
"But Will doesn't want her. Maybe we can get her attentions on you, Autolycus? Try being more of yourself and less of the Pirate you want the world to see. I know you've got a gentleman in there; you haven't always been a thief. Let Elizabeth see some of that gentleman."
"I'll do my best, sir."
Prue had seen Brendan wolf and his wolf tearing into the Giant, but she had lost track of him when the Giant had fallen. Half of her was paying attention to what Cole was telling the others about staying close together and not wandering off, but the other half of her was wondering where Brendan was. Had even his wolf been able to survive after conquering that mountain?
Prue had been on the constant look-out for Brendan, her eyes scanning every inch that she could see, and still stayed within calling distance of Cole. Piper had not opened her eyes yet. Prue had about given up and gone to sit back down beside Piper when she saw Jack and Autolycus walking. She waved at him, and he mentally checked the Halliwells off in his mind. "Have you seen Brendan?" he called to her, figuring out of all the people she would be the one to keep track of where he was.
"His wolf killed that," she said, pointing at the Giant, "but he disappeared. We need to look for him."
Jack looked at Cole. "I need some help locating some of our missing people. Brendan's one of them."
"Okay. You can go," Cole told Prue, "but stay close to where you can be seen. We don't know if the Giants will come back. Paige and Carl, you can help too. I'll stay with Piper."
Phoebe was glad Cole had not called upon her for she had no intention of leaving Piper. Even now, she cradled her sister's head in her lap.
Paige looked up at Cole even as Prue hurried off. "Thank you," she whispered to him, "for not trying to keep her away from him."
"I wouldn't want any one keeping me away from Piper," Cole told Paige. "I'm not a big meanie. I'm just worried about y'all and like to keep you all in one spot. You're stronger when you're together, but this is too important. If Prue's not allowed to search for Brendan and something happened to him, it'd kill her. I want y'all to like me, not resent me for doing things to protect y'all."
Paige smiled up at him. "You're well on your way," she told him before looking around for Carl whose hand she could no longer feel on her skirts. She saw him already walking away, his nose busily sniffing, and rushed after him.
Phoebe brushed Piper's hair back out of her face and looked up at Cole. "She's right, you know, and we know you're doing all you can, Cole. Thanks for sticking by us."
"You're family, Phoebe. I love your sister, and I'm beginning to love each one of you." He smiled down at her. "I'll be glad when she wakes up. It scares me to see her like that. I'm hoping that it's only her powers overloading her." He sat down beside Phoebe on the ground to wait for the others to return and was surprised when Phoebe maneuvered Piper so that her head now rested in his lap. He looked up at Phoebe and flashed a thankful smile at her.
Prue had to hold her nose as she walked along the Giant and breathe through her mouth. The stench was so overpowering! She prayed Brendan was not under the Giant. The others had walked in opposite directions around the area, searching for Brendan.
She saw where the Giant's arm had fallen almost straight out. She walked closer to it, and then she saw that the hand held something. Oh my Gods! she thought as she moved closer. Please don't let him be dead! She tried to pull the fingers apart so that she could see if it was indeed Brendan, but she could neither see nor hear him.
"Jack!" she called. "I think he's under here!" Jack was down the far side of the Giant and didn't hear her, but Paige and Carl did and hurried to join Prue. All three of them began intently trying to figure out how to get the Giant's hand to move.
"Let's use our powers. I'll try to move the hand, and once you see him, ask for him," Prue told Paige. "It won't hurt to try. We've got to get him out of there." Concentrating with all her power, Prue commanded the hand to move. It laid there. She took her hands in frustration and flashed them at the Giant's hand, and it jerked.
Carl shouted, "IT MOVED! IT MOVED!"
"Let's try it again. Paige, be fast. On the count of three. One . . . Two . . . Three!" She shot her hands out at the hand again and held it as the hand barely lifted. It took all of her strength to hold it.
Paige could see Brendan but only part of him. She prayed for the best as she called out his name. "Brendan!" Sure enough, the unconscious, barely-clad body disappeared from where he had been and reappeared next to Paige.
The minute Prue saw Brendan was clear of the hand, she dropped her hands and fell to the ground, totally exhausted. She crawled to Brendan and checked him for breathing. "Carl, get Jack!" she told the Gnome. Carl took off like a shot out of a gun, running down the back side of the Giant.
Prue pulled Brendan close to her and then his head into her lap. She could tell he was breathing, and she sighed in relief. "He's alive!" she told Paige.
Will nervously glanced at where Elizabeth had been walking by his side since they had left the others. Though having appeared so eager to talk to him, she was now disturbingly quiet. "You . . . wanted to talk to me?" he prompted.
"Yes," Elizabeth replied, regathering her courage. "Yes, I did. Will, I've been . . . I've been absolutely horrid," she admitted, turning to face him. "I couldn't understand how you could hurt me so, but today . . . with everything that's happened . . . I've . . . I've come to realize that you were hurting all along and that you really did want to . . . want to save me from hurting any more than I would have when . . . when it did come out. Will, you never loved me. Why didn't you just tell me?"
"I thought I did at first," he revealed, "right up until I met Jack. I fell for him hard, Elizabeth, fast and hard though I never would have thought that I would look at another man . . . or . . . even . . . for that matter, any one other than you. I really did think I was in love with you."
Elizabeth nodded in understanding. "As I did you," she told him. "But why didn't you tell me when you found out?"
"I didn't want to hurt you, and I . . . I was scared of how . . . how Jack would react. Then, when . . . when what happened happened, I . . . I just couldn't hide it any longer, Elizabeth. I want you to understand," he said, his eyes lifting to hers, "I really never did mean to hurt you, but I knew that you loved me and believed at the time that Jack could never love me. So I thought, if I couldn't be happy, at least . . . at least I could make you happy. You did mean a lot to me, Elizabeth. Outside of Jack, you're the most important person to me."
"Oh, Will!" Elizabeth cried, catching his hand. "I've been so foolish! When I . . . When I couldn't understand about you and Jack, I . . . I honestly thought you didn't care about me. There was a time when I thought no one cared, but then with . . . with everything that's happened since the crash . . . I've . . . I've . . . " She blushed. "I've come to realize that I never really loved you either. I thought I did, and I still love you just . . . just not . . . not in that way."
Will smiled and dared to lift a hand to her cheek. "Elizabeth, I do love you," he told her, "but . . . as a sister."
A brilliant smile grew over her face, and its light shone in her eyes. "That's it!" she exclaimed happily. "That's exactly it! Oh, Will, can you ever forgive me for . . . for being so horrid to you?"
Will shook his head with a smile. "All's forgiven, Elizabeth, but . . . Could you forgive me? For not telling you the truth before, I mean? For . . . For leading you on?"
"You never wanted to," she now knew. "You just didn't see any other way to be after . . . after what happened. Of course I forgive you, Will, and I want you and Jack to be happy with each other. In fact . . . " She paused as she took his ring off of her finger.
Will shook his head. "No, Elizabeth. Keep it."
She, too, shook her head. "I want you to have it, Will," she told him, holding it out to him so that the sunlight reflected on the gold band, "perhaps one day you can put it on the finger of who you truly wanted to wear it?"
Will smiled as he took the ring from her. "Thank you, Elizabeth." Pocketing the ring, he drew her into a hug. "Thank you for understanding."
Author's Note: Calling all readers! Love on the High Seas is back on the 'Net! No, the fic hasn't left, but for those who have been with us since the beginning, they know that there was once a website that no longer exists. However, the website is back and all brand new! Go check it out at http/k. , and be sure to vote in Salem's Politics and let us know what you think in the guestbook! We will continue posting the fic as we have been, however.
