by M. D. Grimm
He sounded like a girl. Scowling, Kodie turned back to the training field. Despite the truth of his desire, he still sounded like a fluttering bride on her wedding night. Good thing no one could hear his thoughts. Kodie had known Jeth was big, but when aroused? No man could compare. It would hurt without the proper... supplies.
A sound caught his attention, and he turned to Jeth’s tent again. He recognized one of the scouts as she stepped into Jeth’s tent.
“Vinik! Take over.”
The older soldier jogged up to take his place as Kodie turned and climbed the small rise to Jeth’s tent. He pushed in without announcing himself. Jeth and the scout, Nesk, leaned over the map and she was pointing at something.
Jeth glanced over at him, said nothing, then turned back to the map. Kodie stepped up.
“...a small unit, no more than five, to the dangerous passes here,” Nesk said, pointing again. “That’s close to a giant hunting trail. You know we have a couple of clans near us. They’re just over this rise here. Mountain giants, I’m sure of it. The Dathian unit were heading right there.”
Nesk looked at Kodie, face pale, eyes dark. “I have no idea why they’d willfully go to their death. What sane person would voluntarily step into giant territory?”
Jeth straightened and rubbed his beard, gaze inward, expression brooding.
“King Kurmain is getting desperate,” Kodie said, venturing a guess. “Maybe he thinks he can make an alliance with the giants. Get them on his side so they do his dirty work and trample us, freeing the pass for his use.”
“Even insane, he has to know that won’t work!” Distressed and tired, Nesk swayed, face slightly green.
Kodie reached her quickly. “Easy, just breathe. If there’s nothing else to report, you should go to your tent. Let your sisters take care of you.”
“Right. Th-thank you.” She stumbled out and he followed to make sure she got to her tent safely. He needn’t have worried. As soon as she’d taken a few steps away, five women soldiers flocked to her side and nearly carried her away. She was in safe hands.
Kodie turned back. Jeth still stood, silently contemplating the information. Kodie walked over and boosted himself on the table, waiting.
“The clan is south of us,” Jeth said after a long moment of silence. “There is a clan north of us, here.” He tapped the map. “They would be enemies, don’t you think?”
“I suppose.” Kodie eyed Jeth warily. “Or they could be clans that intermarry. We don’t know much about giant society, mountain or ice.”
“Giants don’t like humans,” Jeth said, as if Kodie hadn’t spoken. “And yet there are those like me. He said they don’t like mixed-blood offspring, and yet I highly doubt they’d like fellow giants allying with humans.”
Kodie listened intently, not understanding everything. “What do you mean he said?”
Jeth blinked and glanced at him.
“Your father.”
Jeth’s jaw tightened. He nodded.
Kodie touched Jeth’s shoulder. “What did he say?”
Jeth shook his head. “Not right now. I need to think.” He brooded for another moment before closing his eyes. “I think you’re right, Kodie. The king is insane enough to try an alliance with the giants. Who knows? They just might take it.”
“Why?”
“Think about it, we’re on their mountain. They can’t like us here. I’m actually surprised they haven’t rampaged through all the camps and trampled us into dust long before now. Centuries before now.”
“We don’t intrude on their camps or hunting grounds. We leave each other alone.”
“Until now.” Jeth took a deep breath. “If the Dathians create an alliance with the giants, I have no choice but to do the same.”
“What?”
“We can’t let them have such an advantage. They’ll win the pass and have giants on their side. We can’t afford to let them tip the scale in their favor. They might even lead the giants into a campaign down the mountains, on the flatlands.”
The image of that seared into Kodie’s mind. He jumped to his feet and held out his hands. “Wait. Just wait a damn minute!”
“No time.”
“Wait!” Kodie grabbed Jeth’s arms and turned him so they faced each other. “Your father said giants don’t like offspring of mixed blood. I understand that well enough. You’ll be walking to your death and how the hell will that help us?”
“Not going won’t help us, either.”
“Do you honestly believe the giants will agree to an alliance with a human king?”
“Whether they do or don’t, the Dathians have the right idea. This stalemate has to end. It must end. Before more lives are lost. Before more generations are slaughtered by the thousands. We have a chance to end it, right here and now.”
Kodie cupped Jeth’s face and could see the stubborn determination etched into his thick brow. There would be no swaying him. No amount of pleading, begging, or threatening would change his mind.
“Our king won’t agree. The master general won’t agree.”
“You might be surprised.”
“If they say no?”
“I’ll do it anyway.”
Kodie paled and his knees trembled. “Then they won’t have a choice, will they? Either they agree to the terms you and the giants decide or they have a horde of pissed off beasts on their hands.”
“Exactly.”
“Risky. Damn risky, you idiot.”
Jeth wrapped his thick fingers around Kodie’s wrists, encircling them completely.
Kodie’s throat threatened to close. He stared into Jeth’s familiar, beloved onyx eyes, and let him see his heart.
“Don’t die. Don’t you dare let them kill you. You come back and take me off this cursed mountain. I want to see grass and the sea with you. I want to have a home with you. You understand that? I want a life with you, Jeth. I won’t settle for anything less.”
Jeth smiled but his eyes remained serious. “We’ve had a life together, Kodie. Since the moment you became my friend after those boys threw rocks at me. Since the moment you kissed me and broke the rage. Since you held me when we both thought I was dying. It’s been a good life, all-in-all. I hope to have a longer one. A better one. Maybe even a peaceful one.” He cupped Kodie’s face in return. “I promise I will fight hard to return to you. You’re my life, and I will battle anything and everything to keep you.”
An embarrassing whimper escaped Kodie right before he yanked down Jeth’s face and kissed him roughly. Jeth held him tightly, the kiss aggressive and possessive. It spiraled out, bruising his lips, causing his jaw to throb. He needed it. Pain let him know he was alive, Jeth was by his side, and they had something deeper between them.
“I’ll send the message now.” Jeth pulled back and Kodie barely resisted reaching for him. “Then leave.”
“You won’t wait for a reply.”
“You thought I would?”
“No.”
Jeth nodded, expression stony and set. “You know me well.”
Kodie had nothing to say to that. He watched silently as Jeth scrawled a message on a piece of parchment, then rolled and tied it with a ribbon. He packed supplies and quickly dressed for the harsher climate farther north, and higher up on the mountain. A place no ordinary human could travel and survive. Maybe that was why the Dathians had chosen the clan south, they weren’t so high up.
Before Jeth left the tent, Kodie stopped him. He solemnly reached over and tugged Jeth’s beard. Jeth blinked and a flash of warmth crossed his eyes. He returned the tug, then slyly slapped Kodie’s ass before he left. Kodie gasped and touched his butt before a surprised laugh burst out of him. It didn’t last, but it felt nice. He left the tent a moment later and watched Jeth hand the message to a scout who immediately saddled a mountain horse and took off. Then Jeth headed north, never looking back, his broad form quickly overtaken by the flurry of snow carried by the merciless wind.
“Come back to me,” Kodie wh
ispered, the wind eating his words.
Chapter Nine
Jeth trudged on, pushed forward. Thoughts of Kodie steadied him, fortified him. It hurt with every step, the distance he put between him and his heart, but he had no choice. If he wanted to save his heart and every soldier under his command, he had to take the risk. He wouldn’t let them kill him, he promised himself. Kodie didn’t deserve that. After all the trust and love he’d given him, Jeth had to prove it wasn’t wasted, it wasn’t taken for granted.
Wind cut across his face, whipped his hair and beard around, trying to tear them from his skin. His coat snapped behind his body, kept secure by the pack on his back. The storm would have felled lesser men, men without the monstrous blood burning in their veins. Jeth gritted his teeth and called on the giant inside him. More than ever before, he depended on the more brutish part of his nature.
Night and day seemed to merge into one as the angry clouds blocked the sun’s rays. He merely grunted and pushed on. He only took short breaks in crevices, a mild reprieve from the vicious wind and hail. He ate and drank a little before continuing on his mission. As he neared the Belshen post where Kodie had fallen, he took a slight detour. He didn’t want to encounter any of his soldiers. He needed to keep going, alone, away from humans. He needed to be a giant, not their general. He needed to embrace that other side of him, the one he’d neglected for so long. He could only hope that he would still be the man Kodie loved when all was said and done.
He began to climb. Tight grips and sure footing prevented falling. He soon arrived at the place he’d met his father. He looked around, sniffed, crouched close to the ground. He sensed no one nearby. It was only then he acknowledged his other motivation for pursuing the giants—he needed to know more about them. Who were they? What were they? Monsters? Or misunderstood creatures that simply wanted to be left alone? Humans could be monstrous, brutish, and more vicious than giants were rumored to be. He needed to know all that was in him. How much came from his mother and how much from his father? What was the other half of his heritage?
Jeth turned his face north and took a deep breath, his lungs burning. The storm was even more vicious this high up. He stood, bent forward, and trudged directly against the wind. He went with instinct, part of the mountain seeming to call to his giant blood. Or perhaps it was his giant blood calling to the mountain. Either way, he never hesitated or second-guessed himself. He just kept moving.
Despite his thick skin, he was beginning to feel the effects of the cold. His teeth started to chatter, and his beard and hair were frozen solid. His eyes stung as the cold ripped at him with jagged talons. He never stopped.
It was so dark up here. All he saw was gray, black, and white. Some instinct to mountains and their treacherous natures kept him from walking off cliffs.
Then he saw them. He couldn’t stop his legs from buckling, and he fell to his knees in the thick snow. He’d tied a length of cloth around the lower half of his face, trying to warm the air that he breathed. It didn’t work very well. He crossed his arms over his chest, tucking his hands in his armpits.
The snow houses were enormous. He couldn’t see much with the snowy wind obscuring his vision, but he suspected it was a large village. Now that he was there...what should he do? Walk up to a door and knock, asking for sanctuary?
Well, he couldn’t just stay where he was. Even he would freeze to death. Gritting his teeth and summoning his remaining strength, Jeth pushed to his feet and continued the last, arduous steps into the mountain giants’ village. The snow reached well above his waist, and he swayed from side to side, creating a thick trench to the nearest house. He realized the giants most likely waited out the worst storms in their homes. The snow showed no signs of trampling, which furthered his theory.
Seeing no choice, he approached the nearest house and banged on the door made of ice. He waited a moment before pounding harder and longer. When nothing happened, he leaned against the door, pushing his tired and frozen brain to think of another plan.
The door swung open and he fell, sprawling across the entryway. He gasped and managed to roll over. Looking down at him was a matronly-looking giant, not too different from the shape of a human, though considerably larger in all ways.
“S-s-sanctuary,” he managed to croak out of frozen lips.
The giantess’s brows beetled and for a moment he wondered if she would stomp on him or simply kick him out in the snow. Then she simply huffed and reached down. He struggled despite the uselessness of his limbs. He was done. He wouldn’t keep his promise to Kodie.
The giantess scooped him up and shut the door, cutting the noise of the howling wind by half, and keeping the cold outside. He only noticed then how warm it actually was inside.
“Luthern!” the giantess said, her voice strong and loud, despite her wrinkled and weathered look. “We have a guest. You won’t believe who it is.”
***
Days past and Kodie finally received a return message from Master General Cord. Apparently she thought the plan had merit, which surprised Kodie, and had taken the proposal to the king. She stressed that no action should be taken until the king considered all angles.
That ship’s sailed, Kodie thought.
After reading the message, he debated a long while if he should say anything about Jeth. If he did, it could ruin Jeth’s plan and cause the master general to come herself. He could be court marshaled and either branded outcast or executed. If he didn’t, then he would still be court marshaled and either branded outcast or executed. He opted to say nothing.
He sat in his tent, staring at nothing. Then he closed his eyes and prayed. He hadn’t prayed in years, yet it seemed the right time for it. He prayed to all the gods for Jeth’s safe and triumphant return. He prayed for the life of his soldiers, his family, and all the unknown masses that simply wanted to live their lives in Senica. While he was at it, he even prayed for the poor citizens of Dathia. They didn’t deserve an insane king.
A storm set in the day Jeth left and hadn’t let up. They spent most of their time in their tents, and he hoped the soldiers at other posts were hunkered down with sufficient supplies. He wondered how Jeth fared, wondered if he’d reached the village, yet. Night had fallen some time ago, and Kodie curled up on the furs, knowing he wouldn’t sleep. He was so cold. So tired. He missed Jeth acutely and continued to pray for his safe return.
***
Jeth opened his eyes, not surprised he’d fainted. His entire body ached, his legs throbbed, and his face was raw from the wind and snow. But he was warm and comfortable. He slowly looked around and realized he was naked and wrapped in a thick blanket. He was on the floor, and the room he lay in was tall and large. His entire squadron could fit inside with room to spare. He didn’t see a fire, and that didn’t surprise him, considering the ice walls and furniture. Yet, as cold as it was outside, he doubted a fire would do much damage. So where did the heat come from?
The sound of something approaching had Jeth struggling to sit up, and his body protested. Loudly. He fell back and winced, shivering. He was considerably reassured by the giants’ treatment, so far. Perhaps they weren’t the beasts the rumors painted them as. Not entirely, at least.
Granny giantess entered to his left, from a long hallway. She bustled around, fiddling and rearranging a few things here and there. He guessed she was around thirteen to fourteen feet tall.
Jeth swallowed despite his dry throat and took a deep breath. “Thank you.”
Granny hustled over to him and knelt. “You hush, now. Drink some water.” She set a large cup next to him. He tried to sit up again, and she slid a hand behind his back to help him. He tried and failed not to be self-conscious. He’d never met anyone bigger than him, except his father for those few, precious moments. It was humbling and terrifying.
He sipped from the mug and when he couldn’t swallow anymore, she lowered him to the floor. She was gentle. He didn’t expect that.
“I need your help,” he said, his voice cl
earer, stronger.
“You certainly do.” She clicked her tongue and reminded him of Kodie’s mother and older sisters, the way they would shake their heads and cluck over his foolishness as a child. “What could you have been thinking? Determined and stubborn, just like all men, human or giant. Battling the mountain even knowing the mountain always wins. This is the worst storm we’ve seen in a while, and you decide to journey right in the middle of it? Foolish.”
As she spoke she filled up the mug again and pulled his clothes out of her pocket. He was surprised to see they were dry. How? No fire. It took a moment for his brain to process all that was happening, to Granny’s words and the annoyance behind them, to the fact she herself gave off heat waves. Jeth had always been warm to the touch, and Kodie certainly enjoyed the benefits of being close to him. But this full-blooded giant was a fire unto herself. That was why the ice home was so warm, there had to be other giants there, generating heat, surviving even the coldest and harshest weather simply by burrowing inside. He suspected she simply put his clothes in her pocket and let her body heat do the rest.
Granny set the clothes beside him, and they were warm to the touch.
“What is your name?” he asked.
“Why, where are my manners? Here I am scolding you like a child, and you don’t even know who I am. I’m Jettina, wife of Luthern.”
“Why are you healing me?”
Jettina frowned at him, thick brows beetled once more over her eyes. “And why would I not? Half dead and pitiful, you are. Your giant’s blood took you this far, and I mean to see you the rest of the way, son of Jethron.”
Jeth jerked and his eyes widened on the matron’s face. “H-how do you know any of that?”
