---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sir Raoul of Goldenlake
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Raoul heard crashing steps coming through the forest.
Mithros help us, he thought as two hairy legs appeared through the trees. Raoul had seen giants before, and though he was the victor in both battles, it was not an experience he wished to repeat.
As he yelled for the rest of the squad to stay back, Raoul yanked out his warhammer. He heard curses muttered from behind, and one young man yelled, "Horse lords. She gonna get 'm!"
Raoul yanked his head up to look into the big, bright eyes of a giantess. Before he could decide if she was a lady or not, and therefore whether or not he could attack her chivalrously, she scooped him up into her arms. The Knight Commander was carried off, like a baby, to the cave of the giantess.
Inside, she rolled a large boulder into the cave's opening. Raoul despaired, for he only had one squad of the Own with him. Those men alone would never get the rock away from the door. The giantess lit candles the size of torches, then took Raoul's weapons, crushing them to pieces between two very large fingers.
Like a dog, Raoul was tethered to a post with a long hemp cord. For awhile he struggled with the knot, but once he realized that he was not going to be able to get it undone, he sat down, watching the giantess. She went about making him a bed near his post.
Raoul wondered how long she would keep him as a pet. Would he be here in this cave for the rest of his days?
When his sleeping place was done, the giantess made supper. Hers consisted of three spit-roasted deer. She pulled a thigh from the smallest one and fixed Raoul a plate. She had silverware and plates which looked to have been scavenged from a deserted village.
Raoul picked at the food, trying to formulate an escape plan. The giantess watched him, batting her eyes. After supper, she snuggled up to him, pulling the man close and stroking his hair gently. Suddenly, enlightenment hit. Raoul wasn't going to be a pet; he was to be a lover!
When the giantess fell asleep, he mumbled out a prayer to whoever was listening.
Suddenly, the boulder rolled slowly away from the mouth of the cave. He grimaced, glancing at his bed companion. She slept on.
Raoul looked down at his redeemers and his heart sank. His men had been assisted by another force.
"Well, look what we have here," Buri whispered with a sly grin. Raoul groaned.
Riders. He'd never hear the end of this.