Mount Lady's eyes raked across the carnage surrounding her; though the giants had the advantage in a battle like this, especially with the fire drakes on their side, some of her men had already fallen. It hadn't been that long since she had sent them into battle against her uncle and his people back in the south lands, but now here they were again, forced to fight against their own kind once more. It pained her deeply, however it tore at her heart just as much to see her uncle's men slaughtering the tiny humans who were fighting desperately for peace. If only Gigantomachia could see that not all humans were bad, that the settlers hadn't intentionally forced them to the south when their numbers grew, then perhaps they could have been fighting on the same side right now, or even have avoided this war all together.
Her eyes found him; her uncle was in a terrible rage, slicing through the air with his spiked club, cutting everyone in his path down like daisies. Mitsuki was flying towards him in the air and there were other barbarians and knights around his feet. She set off to go help them; they were crazy if they thought they could bring down Gigantomachia on their own, they would need her help. But just as she turned in their direction, another three of her uncle's followers descended on her.
It was clear her outcast brethren had fared poorly compared to her own clan. Living in the desolate caves at the base of the mountains, their skin had grown sallow and grey; their flesh was dry, and cracked, having hardened over time from lack of sunlight and nutrition. She hated her uncle for convincing them theirs was the better way of life, one look at their shrunken stature and withered faces was enough to tell her they were severely unwell. The flickers of guilt she had felt towards her uncle were beginning to fade, replaced with a burning anger at his poor rulership and neglect of his people.
Mixed with that anger, however, was a sour sense of pity for those who had followed him. These giants were no longer her people, they had grown feral and aggressive, barely holding on to their humanity; they were no better than the mindless corpse puppets she had been crushing under her feet during this battle. It would be more of a mercy at this point to end their suffering right here and now. And so, with a heavy heart, she brought her giant hammer down on the skull of the nearest of the three and splintered his cranium into a thousand tiny pieces. Her attacker was floored in an instant, but she didn't pause to see him hit the ground before hurling another strike at the second of her uncle's slaves.
The woman's eyes grew wide for a split second before the already bloodied hammer collided with the side of her head, snapping her neck, and killing her instantly. Mount Lady saw the light leaving her eyes, even before her body hit the ground as she turned to face her next foe. Forgive me, she thought as she raised her hammer once again; the grey brain matter of her two latest victims clung in gruesome tendrils from the tip of the bronze weapon as she swung it forward again to end a third life.
-
Mitsuki didn't immediately notice that Endeavour had been waylaid; it wasn't until her dragon was flying in an arc around Gigantomachia's head that she saw the tower of blue flames blocking his path and the dark-haired figure stepping towards him. She was sure the king could handle himself against one singular foe, so she turned her attention to the task at hand, leaving the mainlander to his new battle as she directed her steed to dive once again at the giant's head.
Gigantomachia was grabbing wildly at the air, attempting to snatch the dragon out of the sky, but Mitsuki's reactions were fast, and they easily avoided his sluggish movements. Her intention was to provide a good distraction for the giant and allow her comrades on the ground to move in and attack. It was working; while his attention was on her, his club had stopped swinging and the figures below charged at the giant's feet.
She watched as Vlad ran forward, accompanied by two royal knights, one had bright yellow hair and a red cape not unlike her own, he was almost as large as Vlad, perhaps only a little shorter, and he looked very young. Beside him was a more slender knight in bloodied armor with dark purple hair carrying a shimmering yet blood-soaked sword. The blond youth screamed "POWEEERRRR!" as he ran at the giant's leg, striding straight through everything in his path, before turning to slice at the tight tendons of his target's ankle, while the purple haired boy sprouted tentacles from his free hand that wrapped around the other ankle, stopping the giant from stabilizing himself, which toppled Gigantomachia to his knees.
Vlad appeared to be using his blood control magic to try and immobilize the giant further, but Gigantomachia was too large and too strong for the barbarian's magic; he jerked free of Vlad's hold and swung his weapon arm upwards. Mitsuki was taken by surprise, she'd been too busy watching these mainland knights and their unusual magic to react in time. Her dragon jolted sideways, but it was too late; one of the metal spikes protruding from the brute's club impaled her side as it knocked her off her steed and sent her flying, winded, through the air.
-
Mount Lady watched as the barbarian queen fell from the sky, she ran forward panicked, hoping to catch Mitsuki before she hit the ground. Her large feet caused small earthquakes as she sprinted across the battlefield, but she stopped, skidding to a halt as someone else beat her to it. Another knight, a female beast woman, with long white ears and dark skin visible beneath her armor, bounded across the ground towards her uncle. In one fluid movement, she leaped with powerful legs, using Gigantomachia's chest as a springboard to propel herself through the air to catch the barbarian before she hit the ground. Together they landed smoothly on the ground with the queen cradled in the knights' arms before the rescuer carried the barbarian to safety.
With Mitsuki out of immediate danger Mount Lady turned her attention back to her uncle. The powerful beast woman had landed so hard on his already unsteady body that the giant had keeled over backwards from the impact and was now lying flat on his back. The two young knights from earlier had wasted no time climbing up his sides and were making their way to his head while the barbarian with the tusks seemed to be somehow holding their quarry still with magic. Though Gigantomachia was struggling to free himself from the invisible bindings, his arms were pinned to his sides, and he was unable to remove the men from his body as they scaled his rough skin.
Mount Lady continued to head towards them; no matter what they did, she knew it wouldn't be enough to kill her uncle. Humans simply weren't strong enough. As she reached them, the two boys were preparing to drive their swords into her uncle's eyes, but just before they could, Gigantomachia managed to once again break free of the magical bindings and he brought his hands up to swat the figures on his face.
Mount Lady acted swiftly; she dropped her hammer and grabbed hold of her uncle's head, twisting it violently to snap his neck. His arms went limp and fell heavily by his sides while the two knights toppled at the swift movement under their feet. Mount Lady caught the purple haired one just as he was about to fall off of the giant's head, and she placed him gently back on the floor next to the blonde who had slipped beneath the ground momentarily before springing back up to stand on it. His magic truly was a strange one.
She shook her head, now was not the time to wonder about the small humans. She looked down at her uncle's vacant eyes, all the hatred in them had gone. His gaze was once again soft, as she had known it as a child, and she felt the burst of anger she had felt towards him earlier melt away as her heart once again filled with sorrow and guilt. "I'm so sorry Uncle." She said softly, trying not to allow her tears to form. There were still enemies to kill and even without her uncle to lead them, she knew the other giants would not be persuaded to lay down their arms so easily. The thrill of the fight was like a drug to the giants, and she knew it well. Her own blood was singing with adrenaline, willing her to rage on, but she would not let that emotion control her. She had too much to protect. So, saying one final silent farewell to her uncle, she stood and readied herself for the next battle.
-
Mitsuki was in agony. The spike that had caught her side had left a deep gouge and thick hot blood was draining out of her quickly, taking with it the bulk of her strength. The tall white-haired rabbit woman who had plucked her out of the air was running from the giant carrying her away from the battle.
"Put me down, this fight isn't over yet!" She yelled at her savior.
The woman smirked down at her, "It is for you barbarian, you've fought well but you can leave the rest to us now." She slowed her running and the jostling movements of being carried by the woman settled as she reached a makeshift tent. Mitsuki was gently lowered onto a stretcher and the beast woman stood back up.
"See to it the barbarian queen's wounds are tended to immediately." She commanded. The medical mages instantly sprang into action at her words and a young man ran over to begin pressing a cloth on her wounded abdomen, chanting a healing spell to help quell the bleeding. Mitsuki had never seen a mainland woman be so readily obeyed, and someone from the beast race at that. She was impressed. Just who was this lady knight?
"General Mirko. Commander Mirio has returned, he's asking for you. He says the leader of the enemy giants has been slain."
The dark-skinned lady turned to acknowledge the message before smiling down at Mitsuki. "You see? I told you, you can leave the rest to us. You concentrate on healing. I'm sure your tribe will be glad to have their queen returned in one piece once this is all over."
Mitsuki smiled back, gritting her teeth through the pain as a searing heat spread through her side as the heeling magic of the mage began to take effect. "My tribe don't need me to lead them anymore, they have my son now. But still, I thank you."
General Mirko nodded and quickly cleaned her sword on the hem of her once white cape, staining it further with another blood smear before exited the tent to rejoin the battle.
So, the king had actually appointed a female as the head of his army? Maybe Endeavour wasn't such a foolish man after all. Mitsuki grimaced at the pain as the mages worked on her wound. Perhaps the mainlanders were finally starting to understand what true strength really meant. It had taken them a while... But she held hope for the future of both their kingdoms.