.

- Chapter Three -

- The Last Cyclops vs The Dryad -

- Towers of Myth -

Hakar Dur had not seen this coming. Only hours before, he had been happily raiding the dungeon of Gravekeeper Dorian, rifling through crypts and chests in search of treasure. He had remembered the sound of a man clearing his throat and had turned. Now, he stood at the topmost floor of one of the uncountable towers that thrust upwards in every direction, as far as his eye could see.

Hakar was a big man, standing almost ten foot tall. He was thick set with arms of sinewy muscle and had a pot belly covered in scars from battles well-fought. His shaggy legs and hooves had been plated with armour, with a red sash tied firmly around his waist. Bangles of gold lined each arm, twinkling in the daylight. Hakar's right arm had a thick iron pauldron and forearm guard and was grasping a sharp spear, shimmering with lightning. A net weighted down with iron spiked balls hung from Hakar's left hand, trailing across the coal black stones beneath his hooves.

Taking a tentative step forward, Hakar found his mouth, missing numerous teeth, turning into an expectant smile. He was not a pretty cyclops by any means. His rugged face was filled with a shaggy beard on his jaw while a wisp of a moustache showed above his upper lip. His single eye rested above a stub nose and his mono-brow extended across his forehead. Hakar had placed a pot-helm with an eagle's design on his head, a trophy from a vault from years ago. He stared at the intimidating beauty before him. This was going to be a challenge.

Hakar had heard tales of this woman. The Heartree Keeper, Enyfora. Who knew if the ferocious stories were true, but Hakar kept his guard up all the same, despite Enyfora's innocent appearance. Her translucent, watery green skin seemed to pulse every five seconds or so, casting a light green glow across the stone before her. She wore no clothes, but instead armour that seemed to be made out of some kind of natural wood which wrapped around her arms and legs, but kept little to the imagination around the hips and torso, tendrils of wood barely covering her. The wood gathered from her shoulders and up her neck, splitting up either side of Enyfora's face before connecting back into a grand crown, with a single green gem placed straight in the middle. A great river of green leafy hair fell from the top of the crown, trailing down to below her hips.

Enyfora was a beauty, even for being fifty foot tall.

She was as tall as a giant of legend, casting a shadow over Hakar. He was used to being the taller person in battle, but today was not so. Today he had a fight on his hands.

"I am truly sorry," Enyfora whispered in a voice as sweet as honey. It had a faint musical tone to it as well, which brought to mind bird calls in the morning.

Hakar didn't reply, just stepped forward again. At this step, Enyfora's body creaked like a great oak as she widened her stance, looking closely at Hakar. He paused, contemplating the best way to beat this foe. His net was generally a good ally in battle, but when the opponent was bigger than the net…

Hakar opted for surprise.

He darted forward, spear in right hand, net in left. Enyfora hadn't expected a man of his size to move as such, and barely reacted as he stopped between her legs. Hakar gave a shout, pulling back his right hand and slamming the spear into the crook of her knee, an arm's length above eye level. The electricity crackled and flashed, but did nothing more than that.

Hakar grimaced to himself, feeling foolish. Of course wood didn't conduct electricity.

Enyfora stepped backwards, the spear still firmly in the crook of her knee, and lifted her hand high above her. Hakar did not need visions to see this coming. He scrambled back, leaving his spear behind, and barely made it to the edge of the tower as the hand swung, a great torrent of wind causing his brown beard and hair to flap into his face.

Hakar straightened, glancing down the edge of the tower. Far, far below, it seemed foggy. Whatever was down there would not greet him nicely if he happened to fall. His attention was drawn back to Enyfora at the sound and the feeling of her steps, which shook the tower underneath them. She brought her hand up once more and swung it in a straight arch. Hakar was ready this time, diving to the floor, his free hand holding his helmet down. The hand flew over him, buffeting him with the disrupted air. As soon as the hand passed over him, Hakar sprinted for her leg and leapt with as much power as his legs had in them to grab the top of the bark of her thighs.

Hakar reached up and grabbed a circle of bark on her waist to pull himself up further on her body.

Enyfora's hand swept down to swat her waist as one would a fly.

Hakar let go, allowing himself to land on the stone as her hand slapped her waist. He wasted no time, grabbing his spear from her knee with a flicker of electricity. With his weapon in hand, Hakar made the split decision to run.

A staircase descended in the corner of the tower and Hakar took it four steps at a time. They had been crafted for humans, not a cyclops. As he reached the first of many floors, Hakar paused, taking a brief look around for anything that could help. There was nothing but smooth wooden tables and piles upon piles of papers.

A sudden bang caused Hakar's neck to snap upwards as shards of stone fell down on his head, bouncing against his helm.

"Oh dear…" Hakar muttered, sprinting for the next staircase.

Enyfora's fist smashed through the roof, dropping her one layer. The cobbled stone lay strewn about her feet, yet there was no sign of the little-big man. She reached down the next staircase with a slender hand, managing to fit her hand up to her elbow. Enyfora grabbed at the air with no luck. She pulled her arm back, taking half of the staircase with her. The giant woman raised her fist a second time and slammed it down. This time the floor broke on the first strike and she fell briefly to the next level. Casting a quick glance she spotted the glint of metal as the cyclops ran to a balcony, skidding to a halt when he realised it was a dead end.

As Enyfora ducked down, her hair scraped against the walls of the tower. She reached for the little-big man but heard him mutter, "in the name of the feathered god…" Her fingers closed on open air as Hakar Dur leapt from the balcony.

Hakar Dur cursed as he fell through the air. He landed hard on his side on the opposite balcony, smashing through two desks before coming to a stop, papers covering him. He sat up, groaning at the pulsing pain in his back. Did the giantess know he had jumped? Had he successfully evaded Enyfora?

Hakar was answered by the wall smashing forward, the whole side of the room falling forward. He raised his right arm, a brick smashing against the armour of his forearm. Lowering his arm, Hakar came face to face with Enyfora. She was looking straight through the massive hole she had made, reaching forward and grasping either side with her hands to step to the tower. A chance!

Hakar Dur sprinted forward, hooking his net to his belt. He gripped his spear with both hands and for the second time leapt from a balcony. Hakar shouted something he wasn't quite sure of himself and planted the spear right between the breasts of Enyfora. A tune of pain came out of Enyfora's lips as lightning crackled over skin instead of wood. She reared back to the first tower, her shoulders and head crashing through the roof as she fell to her back.

The blade of his spear had pierced her skin, and faint amber blood came oozing out. He pulled the spear free and ran over her chest to stand on her face, point firmly between her eyes. Hakar Dur grinned a toothy grin.

Tendrils of wood shot from the wood around her neck, jabbing outwards.

Hakar's eyes widened as he dived to the side, the tendrils of wood cracking upwards, almost certainly impaling him if he hadn't moved in time. The wood crept back into her neck as Enyfora pushed herself to her knees. Hakar dragged his spear through the air, slicing through the skin of her thigh. He pulled hard, allowing the cut to widen and bleed the amber blood. Enyfora growled in pain, even that sounding like a melody, and grabbed at him with a hand.

This time she caught the little-big man who had cut her and she watched him struggle in her hands. She stood straight, ignoring the jabs of his metal stick in her thumb. Swinging her arm, she flung Hakar Dur to the opposite tower. The fat man smashed through the first wall in a puff of broken stone.

Hakar Dur counted five floors before the floor decided not to capsize on him this time. He lay in the wreckage of a desk panting, fresh cuts on his body and blood staining his upper lip from his nose. He gasped in pain as he got to his hooves, looking around the wrecked room for his spear and net. Hakar picked up his spear and tried to pick up his net but it was caught under a stone. He pulled harder but it refused to move.

An arm soared through the air, aiming for the cyclops.

As much as he hated to, Hakar left the net under the rock as he fell flat on his belly. With a great crash the pulsing green arm cut through the entire floor of the tower, wall to wall. The floors above him creaked, cracked, and fell, tipping sideways. It hit another tower, creating a large hole as the remnants of the top of the tower fell to the fog below.

Hakar stared at the sky above him, panting. The beautiful face of Enyfora loomed above him, pure green eyes blinking. Up close he could see very faint lighter green lines interwoven into her skin, providing the pulsing effect he had seen before.

Enyfora looked down at the pitiful man. Cut, bruised, and barely moving, she was reminded of a bird with its wings clipped. The Heartree Keeper scooped her hands gently under the little-big man, raising him up into the sky. It wasn't possible for the man to give up but she couldn't kill him. She was not a killer, not anymore.

Staring down at the cyclops in her palms, hooves and arms dangling in the air, she allowed power to move up in the form of leaves. They started at the sides of his belly, curving up his skin and interweaving themselves into his hair and beard, until finally the leaves completely covered the little-big man. Hakar Dur was beaten. He was unable to battle. Enyfora closed her eyes in relief before there was a sharp pain in her hand.

The pain spread across her palms, hot and frenzied. She couldn't help but drop her palms, as well as the pile of leaves that was Hakar Dur. He fell with a thud to the broken tower as Enyfora brought her palm to her face. His spear had been jammed straight through, the lightning flickering up her skin. Gritting her teeth, Enyfora pulled the metal weapon out, letting it clatter against the floor. Amber blood seeped out, dripping heavily to the stone.

Hakar scraped the leaves off his face, trying to keep the fear back. The leaves had got into his nose and his mouth and had been suffocating him before he had managed to impale her hand. It was a close thing… Hakar took a breath and scrambled to his hooves, scratched armour creaking. He grabbed his spear from where the giantess had dropped it and took up his net, now freed from the rock it had been trapped under.

Hakar knew he had to go on the offensive, especially now that Enyfora was distracted with her hand. He ran as fast as he could, hooves clacking against stone.

There was no warning to the fist that smashed into his body.

He flew backwards, rolling through two desks and piles of paper before smashing through the opposite wall. The sky was below him and the ground above, but by the luck of the feathered god his net got tangled on a shard of rock and his leg. Hakar Dur's back slammed against the outside of the broken tower as he stared up at the fog below him. Why had she suddenly gotten so violent? With one hand holding his helmet to his head, Hakar tried to grab at the net to pull himself up to no avail. The net creaked, protesting against his weight. Hakar grit his teeth and tried again.

Crack!

At the feeling of weightlessness, Hakar opened his mouth to scream but was silenced by slamming into a balcony belly first. The helmet on his head popped off, rolling on its rim towards the edge of the balcony. Hakar's eyes widened. "No!" He shouted, pushing himself forward on the ground to grab the helmet. His fingers grabbed open air as the helmet teetered off the side of the building. Hakar Dur watched open mouthed as the helmet spun in the air and hit the fog. Instantly it melted, turning into globlets of molten gold disappearing into the darkness.

Hakar Dur was speechless. That helmet was one of his first treasures, a reward for delving into the Black Chasm. He had found it on a skeleton that had never made it out. It had protected him from swords, maces, bows, and all manner of things. And this woman… this Heartree Keeper she had… she had…

Hakar pushed himself to his hooves and for the first time in his life he felt the visions come freely to his head. Usually they only appeared when his life was in danger, and even then they popped in and out, otherwise he would have seen that fist coming. But now…

Enyfora looked down over the side of the building, seeking the little-big man.

The Cyclops ran under the archway into the building, dragging his net in his left hand and spear in his right. There was no hesitation as he ran up the stairs to the top of the broken tower. Enyfora's large back was facing him as she looked over the balcony.

The giantess turned, spotting Hakar.

Hakar sprinted forward as her eyes widened.

Her arm swung downwards.

He dodged to the left, the arm slamming against the floor, shaking the whole structure. Without waiting a second he threw the net upwards, hooking it on the top of the bark spreading up her leg. He placed the spear shaft in his mouth, pulled himself up, and scampered up her leg.

Enyfora slid her hand down her side.

Hakar spun around to the back of her leg, using net and hand to pull himself up the plumage of leaves that was her hair.

Enyfora's hands raked down her hair, trying to get the cyclops out.

Hakar spun around her body one more, this time face to face with her neck. The crook of her chin was undefended. Hakar hung from his net with one hand, using the other to take the spear from his mouth. He pointed it upwards, the point looking at her throat. With all the strength he could muster, Hakar thrust the point into her throat.

It slammed into a fresh covering of bark, harder than the usual bark on her body. The tip of the spear snapped with a burst of lightning. It shot down the shaft of the weapon, hitting Hakar's hand and traveling up his arm to shoot him backwards off of her chest. He hit the ground painfully without any feeling in his right arm.

The giantess's hand slammed down.

Hakar rolled to the side, allowing the hand to slam against the floor, shaking the building once more. He swung his net, allowing it to catch on her index finger against the ground. With a grunt, Hakar jogged backwards, allowing the strength of his legs and arms to pull Enyfora's arm forward. With Enyfora's arm fully outstretched, Hakar let go and sprinted up her arm, hooves pushing against her skin. Enyfora turned to look him but with a wild growl Hakar rammed his elbow into her right eye. This time Enyfora screamed, rearing backwards.

Hakar jumped backwards in time to watch her trip backwards over the edge. She spun in the air, hands raking against the stone of the opposite tower. But the stone crumbled under her weight and she fell straight down, arms flailing as she rushed down to the acidic fog below.

Hakar Dur backed away, nursing his elbow; pretty sure he had broken the arm with that attack. He took quick note of his situation. The lightning spear was broken, his net now dissolved, his helmet gone…

His thoughts were quickly cut off by an ear piercing scream. The sound of the Heartree Keeper dissolving no doubt.

A length of wood shot through the side of the building, point sharp.

Hakar barely managed to move out of the way in his surprise. The tree cut through his waist lightly, creating a long thin line. He stumbled backwards, one hand holding the gash, blood dripping between his fingers.

Two more lengths of wood criss-crossed over each other through the room.

Hakar ran to avoid these lengths of wood as they cracked through the walls. He ran for the stairs, sprinting down them as fast as he could with the wound in his waist. He glanced backwards to see a spiral of tree trunks curl down the top of the stairs blocking his escape route. Leaves burst from the tips of the wood, coating the stone and stairs and crept towards him. Hakar turned around just in time to duck a point aimed right for his head.

Where were the visions? Hakar staggered forward, heading for the next staircase. Another set of curling tree trunks burst outwards, the leaves flourishing outwards. Hakar turned and rushed for the only other exit – the balcony. With a shake of his head, the cyclops leapt for the next building. He landed roughly, hooves scraping against the cobblestone. Hakar glanced behind him to see that the whole of the broken tower had blossomed into a great tree.

His jaw dropped at the sight. The tendrils of wood had wrapped around each so much they were as thick as the tower, the great canopy of leaves atop the wood shadowed many other towers around him. What was going on?

From the balcony he had jumped from, a number of vines shot straight out. Two hit the wall and fell away, three more missed, but one grabbed his arm – the broken one. Hakar Dur gasped but tore the vine away, amber sap falling from the vine like blood. Another vine grabbed his leg, wrapped around the metal and up to his thigh. A third wrapped around his stomach, pulling uncomfortably tight.

He ripped the one off his stomach first and shook his leg to get rid of the second vine. Some of the metal armour peeled off as he escaped, clattering against the floor. Hakar turned around to find that both entrances had been blocked by the tree trunks. He ran to the opposite balcony ready to jump, but stopped short at the sight before him.

The hundreds of towers that spread out into the distance were towers no more. Each had blossomed into a tree, the canopy connecting to create one solid roof of leaves. He couldn't jump to the other towers now… this was it. This tower was the last tower, be it win or lose. But how could he win? There was no sign of Enyfora… but he hadn't looked down. She had fallen, but evidently hadn't died. Hakar ran to the other balcony and peered over the ledge.

Resting on a spider web of tree trunks and leaves was Enyfora; her whole body was coated in bark other than her face, which showed that her eyes were closed and her mouth slightly agape. Hakar Dur had no long ranged weapons. This meant… Hakar cursed. He took four steps backwards, closed his eyes, and prayed to his feathered god. This was it… whatever path he was meant to take, this was it. Either he would overcome this trial or…

Without letting himself think the thought, Hakar Dur used what remained of his strength to sprint forward and boldly dived straight off the balcony. As the air rushed past him he wrenched off his shoulder pauldron and held it in both hands below him. The metal was angular and sharp, and would suffice. Hakar's aim was on point, the pauldron pointed down towards the innocent face of Enyfora.

A point of wood, shot outwards out of her belly, rushing straight up to meet him.

Hakar could almost feel a laugh bubbling to his lips. A vision received… but no way to avoid it. He gritted his teeth, only hoping that he could reach her face before the point of wood reached him. It was hopeless. It shot up faster than he fell.

The spear of wood pierced him through the belly. Hakar slid to a stop, the wood coated with his blood. He blinked, the edges of his vision blurry. This couldn't be it… this couldn't be the end of his story… not yet… not yet! He slammed the edge of the pauldron into the wood. Hakar was pleased to see it cut deeply. He hit the wood once more and felt himself teeter in the air. The pain in his body was so much that he was afraid he would faint, but if he did there was no guarantee his eye would open again. A third cut finished the job and Hakar fell through the air. He landed atop Enyfora's wooded belly with enough force to push the spear of wood which had impaled him out. This time he screamed and screamed louder as he glanced at the ragged hole it left.

Hakar Dur could barely see but there was no way he could give in to it. He had to fulfil a prophecy… the feathered god said as much… this could not be it. He crawled towards Enyfora's face, every movement sending another spasm of pain through his body. Hakar could see those damn shamans back home laughing, especially that Malkarras. He would show them… show them all… he would save his race!

Hakar had reached her face and managed to push himself to his knees. He lifted the pauldron up high. He would save his race! He slammed the pauldron down.

It barely scraped the skin as Hakar Dur fell forward, completely spent. The pauldron clattered from his grasp, falling through the web of wood. Hakar could feel himself sliding on the slick of his blood but there was nothing he could do. The cyclops caught a glimpse of Enyfora's eye opening before he fell.

Enyfora watched as the little-big man fell, curving limply through the air before he hit the fog. She closed her eyes at the contact, hearing only a heavy hiss. She opened her eyes again and caught sight of the mass of trees around her. For a second she thought she was back home, but that wasn't right…

"What happened…?" Enyfora murmured, pulling herself to her feet. Bark peeled and cracked, falling off of her skin. She looked at it in horror. "No… not again…" Standing up straight, she hugged herself tightly. A shaft of white light descended downwards, completely enveloping her body. Enyfora shook her head and stepped backward. "Take me home! Please! I don't want to do any more fighting! Take me home!" The shaft of light followed her and grew brighter. "Take me home!" The light grew so bright that it invaded every sense. She could feel her thoughts going. "No… no… take… take-take me… me…"

The shaft of light disappeared, leaving the Towers of Myth empty.