AN: I was hoping to get this out a little sooner. But I've been busy studying for finals, along with a few other complications. Got my first one on Saturday, so I probably won't be doing any more writing until they're over, but at least I managed to get this chapter out.
Orange is blue: I'm actually trying to keep her whole deal separate from the Gigant thing. You'll just have to settle for Sid and Leni.
Guest99: Not likely. It might get briefly touched upon in the future if I decide to make her a recurring character, but broad allusions to it are probably the furthest I'm going to go with that. The story is basically just an excuse to bring her into Gigant, and then I'll figure out what I want to do with her long-term.
Jeff: Fun fact, UnderratedHero having Sid show up at the end of Requiem For a Loud and having them be two peas in a pod was what made me decide that I'd do something with them at some point. And now that day has finally come.
Dragonkeeper10: I wrote that joke on autopilot, and wasn't sure how I felt about it afterward. But I'm glad people liked it.
"WOOHOO!" whooped the spandex-clad brunette giantess who was currently identifying as Gigant Blue, as she dashed through the city streets. "OH MAN! I FORGOT HOW COOL THIS WAS!"
"Sid! Slow down!" Bellowed the normal-sized girl who was desperately clinging to her shoulder for dear life, her skirt and the numerous frills that adorned her outfit flapping wildly in the windstorm she was being subjected to as a consequence of riding atop her much larger friend. "I can barely hold on! And if you don't watch it, you're going to—!"
CRUNCH!
"...Do...something like that…" Ronnie concluded as her ride came to an abrupt halt. She sighed, partly out of annoyance, but mostly out of relief that she was no longer in danger of being flung off. "Alright, what's the damage?"
"NOT...TOO BAD?" Sid suggested, as she lifted up one leg and peaked under her boot. From her vantage, Ronnie couldn't see the boot itself, but the crimson that began to spread across the girl's face spoke volumes. Looking positively chagrined, the brunette peeled something off her boot sole and held up the twisted, metallic mash of what had clearly been someone's car.
"OOPS,"
"Siiiiiiiid!" Ronnie groaned, facepalming.
"I'M SORRY, RONNIE—" The larger girl caught herself, slapping one palm over her mouth. "ERR, I MEAN, SHIMMER SPARKLE RAINBOW PRINCESS, MAGICAL RON-RON."
Ronnie Anne rolled her eyes at her friend. "You know you can just call me Ronnie. Right?"
"BUT YOUR SECRET IDENTITY!"
"Nobody's even around to hear—!" Ronnie began to snap, only to find herself cut off by the approaching sound of gargantuan footfalls.
"WHAT'S UP, GUYS?" Asked Gigant Green as she drew near, a look of concern on the towering blonde's face. And for a moment, Ronnie marveled at the fact that Leni made even her super-sized friend look puny by comparison.
"OH," Said Leni, nodding in understanding. "YOU HAD YOUR FIRST CRUNCHY,"
"I DIDN'T MEAN TO," Sid said, sheepishly, gently placing the vehicle on the floor.
"OF COURSE," said Leni, as she stepped forward, one arm reaching out toward the younger girl. "IT HAPPENS. YOU JUST NEED TO LEARN TO BE MORE—"
CRUNCH!
Leni froze in place, and her eyes flickered downward.
"...C-CAREFUL" She concluded, as her own fair skin began to redden. "OOPS…"
"How about everyone just watches where they're going from now on?" Lincoln suggested from his perch upon Leni's shoulder.
"SO, HERE'S A QUESTION", said Sid, as the foursome made their way deeper into the city, the ruined buildings and cracked streets they were coming across with increasing frequency making it fairly easy to surmise where their quarry had gone. "WHAT HAPPENS AFTER WE FIND THIS GIRL?"
"WELL, IF SHE'S A MIGNON—" Leni began.
"Minion," Lincoln corrected her.
"OH RIGHT, THANKS LINKY. IF SHE'S A MINION, WE PUNCH AND KICK HER UNTIL SHE EXPLODES."
"COOL!"
"BUT IF SHE'S NOT A MINION, THEN WE LET LINKY DATE HER. AND THAT NORMALLY SOLVES EVERYTHING."
"...UM, COOL?" Sid ventured, glancing at her friend in askance.
"No Sid," Ronnie corrected her, shooting a withering glare Lincoln's way. "Not cool."
"T-that never…almost happens," Lincoln stammered, glancing nervously at his big sister. "Right Leni?"
"BUT THAT'S WHY YOU'RE DATING MAGGIE NOW."
"Who's Maggie?" Ronnie snapped, looking to Sid for confirmation, but only receiving a confused shrug from the brunette. "Hey! Lame-o! Who the heck is Maggie!?"
"And there was that recent incident with Miss Fiona," Seven interjected, earning a look of betrayal from the pale-haired boy.
"OOOH!" Said Leni, craning her neck and squinting to get a better look at Lincoln's wrist-bound buddy. "WHAT HAPPENED THERE? LINKY WON'T TALK ABOUT IT."
CRASH!
SMASH!
KRAKADOOM!
The conversation and the two giantesses ground to a halt as a thunderous cacophony of destruction resounded at a distance that, in any other circumstances, would have been alarmingly nearby. However, in this case…
"Hey, look at that!" Lincoln exclaimed loudly, frantically jabbing one finger in the direction of the disturbance. "I think we found her!"
Punguari frowned in concentration, her tongue flitting across her lips as she focused on her target. With one hand, she raised what appeared to be a large, metallic ball, but a closer inspection would reveal that it was actually a hodgepodge of lamp posts, guard rails, bicycles, and other miscellaneous items that had been repurposed for scrap metal and molded into their current shape. She squinted, eyeballing the trajectory between her makeshift ball and a cluster of buildings that stood at the end of the street. Satisfied, she took a few steps back and inhaled deeply. Then, she darted forward, and hurled her ball, rolling it along the ground as hard as she could, watching intently as it rushed onward, tearing up the street in its path as it sped on its way until it reached its destination—
BLAM!
—and plowed straight through several of the buildings.
"YES!" Punguari cheered, enthusiastically punching the air as the buildings, now deprived of their support, began to crumble inward. Moments later, there was now a large, gaping hole in the city skyline. With a satisfied smirk, Punguari snapped her fingers and held out her hand.
"I really think I'm onto something here," She remarked, as the ball abruptly changed direction and leaped back into her waiting hands. "Punguari Ball is going to be so much better than Fire Ball once I get the kinks worked out."
"Look! There she is!"
The sound of a voice that was not screaming in terror startled Punguari to the point she dropped her ball, the improvised plaything colliding with the ground with a pronounced CLANG, and immediately she regretted doing so. That, she mentally scolded herself, was a stupid mistake. Something the old her would have done. But now, she had ascended. And gods, full-blown, legitimate deities, didn't get surprised. So, she took a deep breath, drew herself up to her full height, and whirled around, leveling her most serious, most authoritative glare she could muster in the direction of the disturbance—
—And found herself letting out a gasp of s...astonishment. For there, walking through the large hole her game had created, were two girls attired in brightly colored outfits. Who, most significant of all, were each of a size to rival her own. The list of explanations for this turn of events seemed alarmingly short, and the most likely one...well, that changed everything.
"Okay, Punguari," She said to herself. "Just...remember to breathe. You've...you've totally got this."
Quickly exhaling, then inhaling again, the young goddess strode forward and prepared to meet the new arrivals.
"SHE'S HEADING RIGHT FOR US!" Sid squeaked, glancing nervously at her friends. "W-WHAT DO WE DO? THIS WAS...THIS WAS A LOT LESS SCARY WHEN I WAS THE ONLY BIG ONE."
"This is supposed to be Lincoln's show," Ronnie replied. "So...what's the play, Linc?"
"Well," said the Loud boy. "Normally what'll happen is—"
"I RESPECTFULLY GREET YOU ALL," Said the raven-haired giantess, holding her hands out to the side, palms up, and bowing deeply at the group.
"...not...that," Lincoln said, blinking in bewilderment. "Okay. Now I'm...kind of out of my element."
Moments stretched on, the two Gigants simply standing there, looking at the bowing titaness. Who, in turn, simply held her position.
"Somebody should say something," Ronnie hissed, glancing around at the group, meaningfully.
"I LOVE YOUR MASK!" Leni chirped, prompting Lincoln to roll his eyes at the Santiago girl.
"...Alright, yeah." She admitted, grudgingly. "Probably should have been more specific."
To their surprise, however, the girl who'd been rampaging through the city only minutes earlier straightened up and beamed happily.
"W-WELL...THANK YOU," She said, her cheeks reddening ever so slightly. "I MADE IT MYSELF. SORT OF."
Again, Ronnie and Lincoln exchanged glances, and simply shrugged at each other. Sometimes, it paid to just let Leni do her thing.
"OH RIGHT," said the giant girl, bopping herself on the forehead. "I'M SORRY, I SHOULD HAVE INTRODUCED MYSELF FIRST. I…"
She struck a pose, and a bright, violet spotlight fell upon her, seemingly coming from the sky itself.
"...AM PUNGUARI!" She declared. "DEMI—err…GODDESS! (NO QUALIFIERS, JUST GODDESS) OF THE MOON!"
As she finished her proclamation, tiny sparkles began to drift down through the spotlight. Feeling like it was expected of him, Lincoln began to applaud lightly, and soon after the rest of the group began to join in.
"THANK YOU, THANK YOU," Punguari said, nodding happily at the group. Then she turned to the side. "NAILED IT," She whispered, quickly pumping her fist.
"QUESTION!" Said Sid, raising her hand. "IS THAT A REGIONAL THING? OR ARE YOU JUST THE MOON GODDESS EVERYWHERE?"
"I...HADN'T REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT IT." Punguari said, hesitantly. "I'M ACTUALLY KIND OF NEW AT THIS."
"...DO YOU ALREADY HAVE A MOON GODDESS?" She asked, after a moment of contemplation.
"NNNNNOOOOO?" Sid ventured, after glancing around at the group and apparently finding little guidance.
"OH, GOOD!" Punguari said, wiping at her brow. "BECAUSE THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN AWKWARD."
Again, silence fell upon the group.
"S-SO…" Punguari began, "I THINK IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS WHY YOU'RE HERE."
As if on cue, a half-ruined building nearby collapsed into a heap of rubble.
"UM, YEAH," Leni chimed in. "SEE, THE THING IS—"
"I GET IT, I TOTALLY GET IT," Punguari interjected, holding up her hands sheepishly. "A NEW GOD SHOWS UP AND STARTS STOMPING AROUND ON YOUR TURF. OBVIOUSLY, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PUT IN AN APPEARANCE AND PUT HER IN HER PLACE."
"OUR...TURF?" Asked Sid, blinking in confusion.
"WHICH, AGAIN, I TOTALLY GET." Punguari continued, apparently having not heard her. "THING IS, I'VE HAD THIS PLAN THAT WAS LIKE, EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS IN THE MAKING, AND I FINALLY PULLED IT OFF TODAY. AND...I MAY HAVE GOTTEN A LITTLE CARRIED AWAY."
The distinct clamor of debris slamming into concrete resounded in the distance, as gravity continued to take its toll on the freshly rampaged city.
"BUT I DIDN'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT," Punguari added, smiling nervously. "AND I'M REALLY, REALLY SORRY IF I CROSSED ANY LINES."
"...HUH," Leni said, noncommittally. She looked meaningfully at Lincoln.
"Err...right," He said, clearing his throat.
"Punguari, was it?" He began, as loudly as he could manage, and mentally kicking himself for having never considered bringing a megaphone or something to one of these confrontations. "See, the thing is..."
There was a bright flash of violet light, and suddenly Punguari's gigantic face peering down at him.
"...HUH," She said, looking down at him curiously. "YOU'VE GOT A MORTAL."
"Um…" Lincoln began to reply, only for the girl to immediately look away from him.
"YOU BOTH DO," She added, seemingly only just now noticing that Ronnie Anne was standing atop Sid's shoulder. Which was a no mean feat, given how severely her pink and white costume clashed with Sid's outfit.
"IS THIS LIKE, A THING YOU GUYS DO?" Punguari asked, glancing between Sid and Leni. "I GUESS I CAN KINDA SEE THE APPEAL. THAT ONE…"
She pointed to Lincoln.
"...SEEMS LIKE HE'D MAKE A PRETTY CUTE PET. BUT I BET PICKING UP AFTER THEM IS PROBABLY ANNOYING."
"Hey!" Ronnie shouted, shaking her fist at the giant girl. "We're not pets!"
"AND THEY TALK!" Punguari added, frowning. "WHICH, AGAIN, PRETTY CUTE IN THEORY. BUT HOW DO YOU GET ANY GOD BUSINESS DONE WITH THEM AROUND?"
Finally, realization dawned upon Lincoln.
"Lincoln," Seven interjected, presumably just having to the same conclusion. "I believe she's operating under the mistaken assumption that—"
"OH, WE'RE NOT GODS," Said Leni.
Three palms slapped onto three faces.
"...COME AGAIN?" Punguari asked, visibly confused.
"WE AREN'T GODS," Leni repeated, seemingly unaware that Lincoln was flailing his arms and shaking his head at her. "LIKE, NOT EVEN A LITTLE BIT."
"...HUH," Punguari replied, blinking slowly. "THEN...HOW ARE YOU SO…? I MEAN…"
She gestured at Leni, and then to herself.
"MY SISTER SAYS ITS BECAUSE I HAVE GOOD JEANS," Leni replied. "WHICH IS WEIRD. BECAUSE I USUALLY WEAR DRESSES."
She's inquiring as to your size, Miss Leni, Seven interjected.
"OH," Leni exclaimed. "THAT'S BECAUSE WE'RE SUPERHEROES."
"...UH HUH," Said Punguari. "AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?"
"IT MEANS WE FIGHT BAD GUYS."
"Leni! No!" Lincoln shouted, but the damage was already done.
"OH, I SEE," Punguari said, her expression darkening. The awkward smile that had adorned her lips twisted into a grimace. "SO I GUESS THAT WOULD MAKE ME THE BAD GUY!"
"W-WELL…" Sid began, tittering nervously. "YOU DID SMASH UP THE CITY. BUT THAT WAS BEFORE—"
"YOU TRIED TO TRICK ME?" Punguari asked, sneering at the girl. "WELL, I'M NOT FALLING FOR IT!"
"PUNGUARI! WAIT!" Leni shouted. "LET'S JUST TALK ABOUT THIS!"
"NO MORE TALKING!" The goddess bellowed, her voice echoing throughout the area as her eyes began to shine right bright, violet energy. There was a flash of light, and suddenly she was standing a short distance away from the group.
"YOU SAID YOU CAME TO STOP ME." Said Punguari. "SO…"
Punguari flicked her hand, and a multitude of purple rays of light fell from above, gathering into her palm. She clenched her fist, and the light began to extend, elongating, and before long it had solidified into a staff topped with a crescent moon. The goddess gave the staff a twirl, spinning it end over end, before finally taking ti in both hands and pointing it right at Leni.
"...STOP ME." She said, settling into a battle stance. "IF YOU CAN."
Lincoln sighed and turned to his now very distraught sister.
"Leni," He said. "I know you don't watch old movies, so you get a bit of a pass on this. But, for future reference…"
He pointed at the goddess, whose body was now emitting a pulsating aura of angry-looking, purple energy.
"When someone asks you if you're a god, YOU SAY YES!"