Sizeran Chapter 5

Sizeran chapter 5.

As Alicila rushed through the trees, smoke rose to greet her. She raised her hand to cover her face. “Cassandra. . .” She coughed. “I hope you are ok. I. . . cough. I will be back with help. Don’t worry.”

She flattened herself against the ground, shrinking down even more as the sound of those strange flying ships drew closer. Alicila closed her eyes, her body rapidly growing and shrinking in fear of being spotted. There were more ships this time; she could hear the dreadful hum they gave off, filling the air. “Please. . .” The trees shook, brushing against her body. Alicila looked skyward to see multiple strange vessels fly overhead, many more than when she and Cassandra were being chased on the beach. “Where are they all coming from.” She shrank down so she could almost be mistaken as one of the weird tiny folk from the flying ships. “They are multiplying like rabbits.”

Alicila sighed as all of the ships flew passed and allowed herself to grow back up to the tree line so she could watch them sail away. “I thought they were going to see me for sure. Wait.” She narrowed her eyes. “They are heading for the village. No! Mom!” She suddenly surged in size, growing dozens of feet in seconds. “I forgot. I have to warn them.”

As she ran towards her home, more and more smoke filled the air. It became hard for Alicila to see much of anything. “Ugh.” She formed her hands into fists. “I am not going to find anything like this.” She coughed as she inhaled more and more smoke. “I need to help my family, but not like this.”

Closing her eyes, Alicila shrank herself down to the smallest she had ever been in her life. She blinked as the trees towered above her and the smoke as well. “There, that should buy me some time, at least.”  Cough.  “Now, to make my way to the village before it’s too late.”

Alicila picked up the pace, running as fast as her legs would take her. The closer she came, the thicker the smoke became and the more heat she felt. Soon she realized the source of the billowing blackness as she came upon her home set ablaze. In the sky, the strange ships poured fire down upon her home, and the Sizerans she had known all her life tried to fight back, only to be set aflame in response.

She walked into the village square, raising her hands into the sky. “What is this madness?” She watched as the titans struggled in vain against the flying devils, slowly wearing them down and searing their flesh. “No, please. Stop.” She watched as a friend of her mother fell down, crushing a nearby home. “Why is this happening?”

Alicila watched as one of the strange ships came into land by the fallen body of a Sizeran, the small people pouring out of the peculiar ship before the fires blocked Alicila’s sight. “No. This isn’t happing.” She took a few steps back. “I need to find my parents. I. . .”

She turned around through the fiery landscape. “I. . .”

Without a thought about her own safety, Alicila dashed through her scorched home, ducking and weaving through the flames. Her hut wasn’t that far. If she could just find out what happened to her parents. If she could just know. Her hands gripped into fists as her boots slammed against the parched earth. “Please be alright.”

Thankfully when Alicila came upon her house, it was still intact, even if a tad scorched by the flames. Wiping a tear from her eye, Alicia dashed up to the door and squeezed under the hole she had made for herself when she wanted to sneak out of the house. “I knew that my parents couldn’t go down so easily.”

The inside of the house was a wreck. Alicila gasped as she saw the bodies of small figures strewn about on the floor, all surrounding a gigantic female. “Mother!” Alicila rushed over to Kathrine’s face. “Please answer me.” She rubbed her hands against her still burnt cheeks. “Please.”

“Ughhh. . .” Kathrine’s body shook, and she slowly opened her eyes. “Alicila, is that you?”

“Yes. I’m here.”

“Alicila. I’m sorry.” Kathrine slowly raised her hand, the flesh on her index finger seared off. “I...I didn’t want you to see me like this, honey. I had a bit of an accident.”

“Mother you. . .”

Kathrine winced as she patted Alicila on the head. “Please. Don’t you worry. . . about me. I was wrong. . . about you.”

“We need to get you some help.” Tears formed in her eyes and pulled on the side of her cheek. “Come on. Shrink down so I can help you. They mind not notice you.”

“Alicila. I was wrong too. . . try and force you. . . to be like us. You will one day find the strength in you. . . to be your . . . giantess self.” She turned her head and looked at the slowly burning ceiling. “But. . . you are special for. . . being whatever size. . . you wish to be.”

“Mom.”

“Promise me you won’t forget me.”

“Forget you? You are not going anywhere, you hear me? Now get up.” Alicila poked the side of Kathrine’s head. “Mother?” Kathrine was still for a moment, and then her hand fell to the side, almost crushing Alicila. “No.” Alicila shook her head. “No. No, no, no, no, no. This can’t be—

“Looks like one of them found their way in here.”

Alicila turned her head to see the vermin responsible for this mess enter the room with strange flaming weapons in their hands. She pressed herself against her mother’s still body, unsure what to do. She had thought shrinking herself down to their size would have prevented her from being found, but now she might share her mother’s fate.

“How did she escape the crate?”

“I don’t know. But get her back in chains and onto a sky cutter before one of these giant freaks gets us. I don’t want to tell the boss we lost anyone else because we were careless.”

Alicila closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable. But instead of hot flames searing her body, she felt cold steel wrap around her wrists. She opened her eyes to the face of a middle-aged man with a gruff beard and an evil stare. “What are you looking at?” He punched her in the face. “Now move it. Unless you want to take your chances with a living version of that!” He pointed to her mother’s body. “I am sure you would just love for one of them to step on you.”

“But I. . .” Alicila decided to keep her mouth shut.  What is going on? Why do they think I am one of them? And more importantly, why are they doing this to me?  She raised her handcuffed hands in front of her face.  And what are these for?

She was struck in the back. “Move it! We have a deadline to hit, and we are not going to miss it because of some disobedient. . .”

One of the other strange men pointed his finger at the door. “Hey, what is he doing here?”

Alicila looked up to see yet another man and a strange creature she had never seen. This one had red skin and four arms who stood a few feet taller than his companion. “So, this is what you are doing? Waging war and taking prisoners?”

“Telean, you are supposed to be guarding the beach. What in the blazes are you doing here?”

Telean rushed forward and grabbed the speaker by the jacket. “Trying to figure out what the bloody hell is going on. Why everyone is so concerned about losing simple cargo, and why we are so willing to throw lives away to get it.” He looked at Alicia. “And who is this? Are we taking prisoners now, Kelin?”

Kelin snorted. “Hell no. Why would we try and capture one of those giant freaks?”

“Because Ien heard a report about it. It is why we rushed out here. We are trying to figure out just what you are all up to.” Telean tapped his finger on Kelin’s jacket. “And I don’t think wiping out these people’s homes is what we came here to do.”

Kelin slapped Telean’s hand away. “Don’t tell me what our orders are. I know what we came here to do, and that is to secure this island and our cargo at any cost.” Telean narrowed his eyes. “I don’t need some disgraced captain giving me a lecture.” He threw Alicila at Telean. “Now, take her out of here now. I have to search the area for more escaped rats.” Kelin and his partner dashed off into the burning home.

Telean sighed and looked at Alicila. “Are you alright?” He put his hand on her shoulder. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

“Why are you doing this?” Tears formed in her eyes. “You. . . monsters.”

“Hey. Calm down.” He tightened his grip. “Melrek, help me out here.” The giant, red-skinned brute walked over. “We need to keep her calm, or we are never going to figure out what is going on.”

She slammed her hands against Telean’s chest. “You. . .”

“Melrek, help me out here.”

Alicila felt a strong blow to her back, and everything went dark.

***

Telean tightened his hands into fists. “I said help me not knock her out.”

The Perdition shrugged. “Sorry. I didn’t know what to do.”

“Ugh, let’s get her back to the ship.” As Melrek picked up the young lady Telean pulled on his lower right hand. “And let’s keep this quiet.”

“What do you mean?”

They walked out of the gigantic burning building. “I mean, until we get our answers, let’s not let anyone know that we are taking her back to the ship. Our ship.”

“You mean Ien’s.”

Telean’s face turned red. “Ugh, if I have to hear any more about that confounded woman.” He turned his head to see Melrek laughing. “What is so funny?”

“That someone is getting under your skin more than the chaos around us.”

Telean narrowed his eyes. “Look, I just want to figure out what is going on. Why are they so obsessed with torching this village of people almost ten times our size over what?” He looked at the young woman in Melrek’s arms. “I am wondering just what is it that I have had to do for Keel for the last few years.”