Solo Mission

The locals only saw a hulking figure walking out of the mist, and this is why they reacted so poorly. The adventuring giant, short for his kind at 400 cm was beginning to regret his enthusiastic “Yes SIR!” upon receiving his mission. Sithik had been forbidden to endanger the lives of any living creature he encountered, unless of course he was eating it, so fending off 13 angry farmers wasn’t easy.

During his trek from the volcanic island of Pulabuta Sithik had many times thanked his grandma in her absence for the pack of useful things she had insisted he take. Somehow he had managed to not soak everything while he crossed the Banjero strait, so he ate well his first night.

The next morning, he set off before sunrise, eager to make progress in his mission. Unfortunately this led to him arriving at the outskirts of a small farming hamlet under a heavy morning fog as the locals were heading out into the fields for their day of work. Having only heard stories of giants eating children, and not even clearly identifying what they were looking at, the farmers raised the alarm and attacked with the tools they had in hand.

Faced with a handful of charging farmers (a profession Sithik was not familiar with yet), and failing to recognize the opportunity for a diplomatic solution, the giant clobbered the first 3 small people that got within reach. He was careful to not use more force than needed, though they all crumpled to the ground after a single blow. This was enough to halt the rush, and Sithik allowed himself to be surrounded while he began to work out what he should say.

“I’m not here to fight you.” is what eventually came out. This appeared to have stunned the farmers, whether because they were surprised that the giant could speak their language, or that he didn’t want to fight – Sithik couldn’t tell. There was silence from the villagers until an old one wearing a plain cotton overdress and a band of leather on one arm made his way into the fields.

After a brief clamoring for attention the elder gathered his peoples stories with an assertive efficiency before turning to the giant and asking, “So you’re not here to fight hm?” He didn’t appear to be skeptical, however there was no kindness on his face. I heard some curiosity could be found twinkling in his eyes though.

Sithik remained with the farmers until the following Conjunction of the Moons. On that night the locals shared some of their traditions with him, as he attempted to teach them the parting song of his ancestors. The village elder pulled Sithik aside late in the evening saying “I expect you to return this to me on your way home from your travels” as he removed the leather strap from his arm.

Having been told of how that simple leather strap had been credited with a nearly unending series of fortunate events he knew the significance the gift represented. As Sithik tied it onto his arm he announced that he would be ‘speaking with’ the bandits that the farmers had spent most of the evening warning him about.

As the peanut shaped moon drifted out of alignment with its celestial neighbours the imposing figure that had so frightened the locals made its way to the edge of town, occasionally being stopped by another of his new friends. It was not an easy path to follow, but the directions he had been given served Sithik well, and he was able to avoid many deadly obstacles. His report would certainly include a section on the value of friends.

It was a stroke of luck that Sithik overheard someone complaining that they “just don’t understand why a bunch of brigands wouldn’t want to sell their loot”. He had been trying to locate the bandit’s hideout for nearly three days in ever worsening weather, fortunately he managed to find a pair of what he assumed to be travelling merchants. Their robes had a unique sheen to their fur, and they wore matching medallions depicting what appeared to be a house-cat in a labcoat.

Speaking to the merchant wearing the bigger hat, Sithik learned that there were two entrances to the bandits cave. Using his tremendous strength Sithik placed some boulders to block the back entrance, before making his presence known at the front. The bandits weren’t too hard to scare off. A 13 foot tall man shouting loud enough to make your ears bleed will do that, especially when balls of fire shoot from his hands at the same time.

After his point had been made and he was clearing the last of the bandits out of the cave Sithik threw one last bolt of fire over their shoulders. Unfortunately he had never seen the effects of a wild magic storm before, and was unprepared for the erratic, powerful eruptions of fire that resulted. Sithik watched in fascinated horror as his spell grew out of his control. He could hardly keep up with how quickly it branched out into new formations.

Having only intended to frighten the bandits Sithik feared for the value of his oath as he heard the bandits scream out in pain, he did not want them to die. Humans taste terrible.

Checking on the humans once the storm had moved on he found that none of the bandits were mortally wounded, but the smell of burnt flesh cemented the horror of the events into his memory.