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Mom, what's that sound?

I'm not sure but Thyone hears it too and she's heading your way.

Good. It seemed to begin when the giant showed up.

Be safe, honey. We're trying to figure out how the giant appeared.

We?

But, before Avodus could answer Araceli, the ground rumbled again. Shimmering skin shook as the giant took a step. Araceli could have sworn the giant's matte eyes looked straight through her.

"Stand back, Araceli," Tristan said as he tied a glowing vine around a rock.

"Tristan, what are you doing?" Araceli asked. She began walking toward him despite his warnings. During their Power Plant extravaganza he'd proven to be free, jovial, and ... irresponsible. She worried for him now.

Once Tristan finished tying the rock to the vine he began spinning it in circles. It was as if he were looping a lasso. He looked at the giant and took aim...and released. The rock flew in the air directly at the giant's head. Araceli froze. She knew she should be grabbing Tristan's hand to make him run and flee from this area but she couldn't get her feet to move.

The rock hit the giant with a thud and Tristan grabbed another rock from the ground. Before he could place the rock in the glowing vine contraption he'd made, the giant's large hand was around Tristan. The rock had not done any damage to the giant except cause irritation. Araceli woke from her shock seeing Tristan so easily fit in the giant's hand.

She was afraid to startle the giant but she had to do something.

"Hey, Giant."

The giant's head turned her way.

"I'm sorry Tristan hit you. He thought he was protecting me. Can you please put him down?"

Tears were welling in her eyes. Tristan looked so vulnerable. Then, the giant opened his fist and Tristan fell to the ground. Luckily he had not been too high but Araceli knew he'd have at least a bruise from the drop. Next, the giant's hand approached Araceli. She inhaled sharply expecting the worst. But nothing happened. She opened her eyes as they had squinted shut and saw that the giant was pointing at her.

"Me?"

The giant's index finger pointed to her head again and then he grabbed his own hair and then pointed to Araceli's hair again.

"Oh! Do you like my braid?"

The giant shook his head up and down.

"Would you like me to braid your hair?"

Again, he shook his head. Then he placed his hand on the ground in front of her palm faced up. With the variety of emotions she'd just encountered, Araceli hesitated a second before moving forward but began to step anyway.

"No, step back, Araceli, now," Thyone was screaming as she ran in their direction.

"It's okay, it's okay. He's a friendly giant. A friendly, alien giant," Araceli said with a smile.

Thyone slowed. She couldn't believe her eyes. When Araceli smiled the huge alien smiled too and shook his head.

"I'm going to braid his hair. Want to help?" Araceli asked.

"Um, no, I'm fine," Thyone answered. She couldn't believe her eyes when she saw Araceli walk onto the giant's hand. Araceli, the one who avoids confrontation. Meek as a mouse, Araceli, now riding on the hand of a giant without hesitation.

Melic approached a few steps behind Thyone witnessing the entire exchange before. He shook his head in disbelief and then walked over to Tristan to give him a hand.

Tristan rubbed his backside where he had fallen and looked up at Araceli on the giant's shoulder in agitation.

The giant saw Melic short of breath and reached to a nearby tree. He picked the gem-like fruit at the very top and set it down in front of Melic.

"Thanks!" Melic said sharing the fruit with Tristan and then walking over to Thyone so she could have a piece too. "I think this guy could come in handy."

"Toss me some vine, Tristan," Araceli said.

"He'll think I'm going to hit him with a rock again."

Thyone grabbed the vine and handed it to the giant. She pointed to the vine and then to Araceli. The giant grabbed the vine and brought it to his shoulder. Araceli had finished the braid and she tied it with the vine. Then the giant gently placed her back on the ground. He felt his braid and looked at the group and smiled.

~ * ~

But, the giant's smile disappeared and The Song of Squia'lon Seven began playing again. It was as if it were on loud speakers but it wasn't. It was in everyone's heads. And how, they did not know. Movement came from the town and Thyone recognized what was coming their way immediately. For the red glowing eyes were discernable even with a bit of distance.

The giant roared in anger. Tristan and Melic looked around to try and find weapons but before they could the giant grabbed the group up and placed them in a satchel hanging from his neck. The giant then grabbed a tree and pulled it out of the ground. He began swinging the tree from side to side in front of his body almost as if he were swinging a bat. The red eyed group halted. They slowly approached a group of trees on the opposite side of the clearing by The Power Plant only a couple dozen feet away.

One of the red eyed beings pulled a branch like a lever and a castle like structure rose from the ground. Their group entered the castle at such a speed it was a blur. After they had all entered the castle structured lowered below ground again.

"Thank you, Giant," Araceli said.

"Yeah, you protected us. Didn't you? I'm sorry about the rock," Tristan added.

"Hey, guys, where's Thyone?" Melic asked.

They looked everywhere but Thyone was nowhere to be found.

                                                                ~*~

"Did you create the giant?" Avodus asked Lucifer.

"No, and I didn't create the red eyed creatures either."

"Where did they come from?"

"I don't know but we need to figure it out and quick because Thyone's missing."

He approached Avodus. She was so strong and rarely let her emotional guard down but Lucifer could see her despair with the disappearance of her daughter, their daughter. He recognized it immediately as it mirrored his own panic. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

Avodus let her guard down. She hugged Lucifer and all the memories from before he went evil fully resurfaced. The hug filled an intense need. So much had occurred recently. The end of Earth and God handing over the reins to create a new world. The thought of possibly losing both daughters to quickly turn around and saving them both. The feats and adventures they'd had to endure. And all she could do was watch. She had lit the path and intervened when she could but she felt completely out of control now.

Then the retired booming voice returned.

"So, how's it going?"

"I thought you retired." Avodus breathed out.

"Well, I have but old habits die hard."

"Any pointers? Things do not appear to be in her control as you stated they'd be."

"I said no such thing. I said all she had to do was create life and answer every prayer."

                                                                          __~ * ~__

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