Following their instructions, to the border at dawn.
Arriving a moment later are the three riders from the day before along with a fourth. The newcomer is much older than his peers and where their scalps are shaved bald in traditional shoanti warrior fashion, a long silver mane trails down the elder’s back. They lead a short but thickly muscled riderless pony along on a hide leash.
This time, the brawny warriors are silent.
”Greetings Pirknok-Shunder-quah and Ensu of the Uncaring One. I am Galtak, wiseman of the Shiikirri-Quah”, the elder shoanti says.
”Races-the-Sun tells me you have need of a shoanti steed so we have brought you one. Have you brought her a name?”
Pirknok inclines his head respectfully in the presence of the elder and waits for his small friend to answer.
Ensu bows to the elder. "Pleased to meet you Galtak. May I approach the horse and ask her if she might share her name to me? Since I just met her, it seems awful brash to think I can name her. Perhaps she might see in me something that she will trust enough with her name?"
The elder’s expression makes it clear he wasn’t expecting that kind of response but he nods with the beginnings of an amused smirk. ”By all means.”
Ensu carefully approaches the horse. He allows the horse to sniff him and pulls out a quartered apple, offering it to the horse. Once close enough, he whispers, "Well met, my name is Ensu, I am a shield to warriors who face certain death without my help. Giants and a dragon and ogres have fallen before us. You will be my legs and you will carry me to the fight and to shield those who need our help. Will you tell me what your name is?"
The stocky horse sniffs Ensu's offering.
The horse gently picks up the hunk of fruit and noisily munches on it. She snorts gently and looks at Ensu with enormous wet eyes.
Ensu nods.
"How do you feel about Shield Maiden, for you shall carry a shield to battle, does that seem acceptable to you?" Ensu whispers as he scratches the horse under her chin.
While he awaits the answer and the horse finishes another snack, Ensu turns to the others and says, "Pardon me, I do not know how long this will take. I've proposed a name to her and she's mulling it over. If she agrees, I'll share that name with you. Please be patient." With that, he turns his full attention back to the horse.
The stout pony munches and stares blankly for a long time.
Finally it blinks and nods slightly.
Ensu nods and bows to the horse.
"Her name is Shield Maiden. She will carry the Shield into battle." as he says the Shield, he taps himself on the chest.
He then looks to the others as he feeds the last piece of apple to Shield Maiden.
The silver-haired shoanti looks to the pony as if he were verifying Ensu’s report and then nods solemnly.
”Very well. Treat her with kindness servant of the Uncaring One and she will teach you much. The Shiikirri-Quah have trusted in the wisdom of beasts for generations and they have never lead us astray.”
Pirknok nods his own solemn approval once the elder has spoken. With a respectful dip of his head to Galtak, he expresses his own appreciation.
Ensu nods.
He turns to Pirknok.
"Perhaps they've heard where Mokmurian is holed up?"
The dwarf raises one eyebrow. "That's a good thought."
The elder shoanti shakes his head in denial but points toward the distant mountains.
”The name isn’t known to me but the spirits have made it clear that the one behind the giant’s attacks resides within the Great Mountains. They warn that he is powerful and well-prepared but he does not act alone. If you mean to challenge him, you must be cautious and willing to deny what’s before your eyes.”
Pirknok nods slowly. "That sounds hard, but... we gotta do what we gotta do. I jus' hope the spirits'll show me what it means when the time comes."
Ensu says, "Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to learn from Shield Maiden, I will treat her with kindness and respect as she shares her wisdom with me."
Ensu accompanies Pirknok back to Sandpoint.
The next day the party finds themselves once again within the Rusty Dragon alongside Sheriff Hemlock and Shalelu, poring over a map of the surrounding lands.
”If Mokmurian is where the giants say, the best route by foot’s going to be up the Lost Coast Road, over to Ember Lake, then up to Galduria, Wolf ’s Ear, Ravenmoor, and finally the Storval Stairs”, Hemlock explains while drawing a route along the map with the tip of his dagger. ”It’s a long route, and one known to be patrolled by giants, but it’s the quickest by a good margin.”
”From the top of the stairs”, Shalelu explains picking up. ”You’ll want to head directly east into the Iron Peaks and the Valley of the Black Tower. Up through Ravenmoor, this journey travels along roads and tracks and trails, but beyond Ravenmoor it’s open country. The journey is about 320 miles long but most of it is open road so it shouldn’t take longer than 15 days.”
”We’ve packed enough food and water to get you there”, she says while patting a bulging saddlebag laid across the table next to the map. ”But you might want to forage along the way to supplement it.”
"Then I guess we're ready ta go, huh?" replies Pirknok quietly. "Is there anythin' else we should know?"
Ensu buys a few things for the horse and himself before the group leaves.
Hemlock shakes his head.
Shalelu smirks at Jess and then her brother.
"It probably goes without saying but be careful out there. You're heading into one of the most dangerous regions of Varisia."
And also heading toward home... thinks the dwarf to himself.
"We beat a dragon. How hard are a few giants going to be? Me and Pirknok can just carve 'em up like we did with all the ones around here."
Jessamy grins widely, seemingly very excited to get back on the road.
"I intend to, sis." Siolad nods at Shalelu.
"We beat a dragon. How hard are a few giants going to be? Me and Pirknok can just carve 'em up like we did with all the ones around here."
"Well, there's going to be more than one giant, to start..." Siolad starts, but promptly quiets himself.
The tattooed dwarf is silent for the remainder of the meeting, glancing over at Hemlock once or twice with uncertainty on his face. Finally he stands from his chair and looks around at the others. "We leavin' in the morning, then?"
"I can be ready at sun-up," Ventus said, "Just let me swing by the smith and pick up something."
The following morning Ventus arrives at the Red Dog smithy to find Das diligently polishing a beautiful longsword. He grunts in acknowledgement.
"You came just in time. I was just about to renege on the agreement and keep her for myself."
"Wee don't keep me in suspense, man, let me see the thing," Ventus said, clearly excited.
When Pirknok stops by to visit Jonathon is away on duty when he returns later, he learns from children that he's resting (a bit odd considering it's the middle of the day).
He has no trouble acquiring several delicious pies for the road but he's warned they don't keep well.
***
Das takes one more swipe with his oiled cloth before holding it for Ventus to admire. The effect is blinding at first due to the intense shine from the sun's reflection but it's only marginally better when the burly smith turns the weapon on its side to turn away the glare. The simple but incredibly elegant blade glows with an inner light that would suggest it was fresh from the forge but is cool, almost painfully, to the touch.
"She cleaned up real well", Das says the laconic smith. "But I can only imagine what she must have looked like when she was new."
Ventus first recoils from the glare but as he recovers, marvels at the blade. Pulling off his riding glove he reaches out and touches the glowing blade with a tentative hand. "She's cold," he murmurs, half to himself. It was something he had never seen before. Even without the magic to study it, it was plain that this was a blade of great power.
"May I?"
Das hesitates and he gets a distant looks in his eyes.
A moment later, it passes and he repositions his hold on the weapon's grip to offer it to the ranger. "She's all yours."
Ventus picks up the sword and swings it experimentally, marveling at how the edge swam through the air. Pausing, he raps his knuckle on the flat of the blade and listens for a moment.
"Cirrus, I'll call her Cirrus," Ventus decides as the note fades to the very edge of hearing. Drawing the Impaler for a moment he studies both blades. There was no comparison between the two. The Impaler was a weapon of fear and despair. He had not realized that its presence at his side had been weighing him down all this time. Sheathing the Impaler, he unhooked the sheath from his belt and handed it to Das.
"Take this in its stead, Das. The Impaler of Thorns is a dark blade, wrought to strike fear and ruin into its victims. However, if there is anything I have learned from the past months, it is that there is much to be gained from exposing the darkest things to the light. If there is anyone in the world I trust to be able to learn from the Impaler and bring its secrets into the light, it's you Das. Just promise me you won't let it be used again."
Sure enough, compared to Cirrus, the Impaler is an ugly hateful thing and Das reacts as such.
With a bit of a grimace, the smith weighs the weapon in hand. "I'll make sure it doesn't end up in the wrong hands."
"Are you and the others heading out again? Sandpoint's been on edge since those damned giants attacked. Folks have been leaving for Magnimar. They don't think the Mayor and Hemlock have what it takes to keep 'em safe."
"Sandpoint's been good to me, Das. When I came here, I was a wash-out, a disgrace to my family. If I can take on this darkness and keep this place going for one more day, I'm going to. If I hadn't stuck around, I would never have met Pirknok and them or found Beaks. I'd still be driving other men's cattle for a pittance and making excuses to never go see my folks. If I have to fight an army of giants, fine, 'cause even if I die, I'll be able to look Pharasma in the eye and say I was worth a damn."
Das frowns and finally grunts in acceptance.
”Well I wish you luck Adventus”, he offers along with a hearty handshake. ”Don’t go dying on me. Sandpoint needs you.”
***
***
Properly rested and with an understanding of what’s at stake, the party departs for the Iron Peaks in search of the mastermind behind the attack on Sandpoint.
As the party travels up the coast, there’s signs of passage by the giants that marched on Sandpoint but no sightings of the brutes. After the first few days the familiar wilds begin to disappear and the more primeval elements of Varisia’s plains begin to show themselves. The flora grows denser/more brightly colored and the wildlife is no different – with the party crossing paths with a herd of wild auroch sporting bulls that easily measure 15 feet across. This truly is a land of giants.
After a week the party arrives at their halfway point.
The Storval Rise is one of the most unique and infamous landmarks in Varisia; the change in terrain from the fertile lowlands to the rugged and stony scrublands of the plateau above marks the lands of giants and barbarians with an unmistakable boundary. The rise itself often reaches dizzying heights of 1,000 feet or more, but at the location known as the Storval Stairs, the cliffs are only 400 feet high, and feature an ancient monument built to dimensions that make it clear was once occupied by giants. The Stairs are the easiest access for foot travel between the lowlands and the plateau.
Unfortunately, it appears the giants have though the same thing as, from his aerial vantage point, Ventus spots what looks like a dozen giants guarding them at their peak.
Jessamy is in fine spirits as the group sets out again.
"Thank goodness! It's about time we were out doing something again. I thought I was going to go crazy from boredom in the village! I mean, being a hero's nice, but there are only so many free drinks and meals I can have before ... well, I was starting to have trouble getting my breeches on!"
She continues on until reaching the Storval Stairs, her eyes widening at the sight.
"Wow. I'd heard about these, but didn't really believe it. Um ... maybe we should fly up. Oh, wait, the horses. Can we make the horses fly? Can they do that?"
"Hold on, folks, we've got trouble ahead," Ventus said, swooping down on the back of Beaks to land next to the others.
"I suppose I can make the horses fly..." Siolad shrugs. "The question is whether or not they'd be comfortable with suddenly being able to soar through the air--I'm worried they'll get spooked."
Siolad listens attentively when Ventus comes back. "What's wrong?"
Ventus recognizes the larger of the group as a pair of stone giants similar to the ones that attacked Sandpoint. The bulk of the guards are their lesser kin - hill giants. Beyond their immense strength neither species is known to have any special powers or defenses.
"A dozen giants, hill and stone by the look of them. About four hundred feet up."
"A dozen? Huh. That's ... a lot. Still, if we're smart, we should be able to take care of 'em. Can we maybe turn invisible and fly up? Then maybe come get the horses once we've taken care of the giants?"