The setup of this pit is much like the first one, but with one catch: the only safe space to approach the pit from is in the dead center of the hallway, and the ledges are along the side.

I’ll have to jump to the ledge.

Although I could just jump to grab the ledge, I would also have to slam against the wall and make sure my grip didn’t fail the whole way across… so I’m going to try to land on the ledge still standing. This also means crashing into the wall, but hopefully not as hard. Plus- “Kaythe, help me stick close to the wall once I land, ok?” *click* (yes.)

The impact hurts, but my newfound balance combined with Kaythe’s ability to basically stick to surfaces makes sure I don’t rebound. I sidle a bit to make room for Lauren and beckon her over.

She lands, softer than I did, but she doesn’t have a cathid to steady her and nearly ends up off balance. I quickly reach out to steady her.

She shoots me a glare and smacks my hand away with a surly “I had it.”

It takes a lot of effort to not antagonize her by pointing out how she also definitely ‘had it’ when she almost jumped straight to her death.

Even if she had fallen here, she would have been able to grab the ledge. I just spared her the inconvenience. What a horrible thing to do.

I sigh, more tired than anything. I don’t know if I could have handled that last room of Wights without her, but honestly I think trying would have been worth it just to not have to deal with her.

We make it to the far side without further incident, and I pocket another small mana battery as a reward. While the door -and the fire beyond- are tantalizingly close, I make an effort to scan every inch up to it anyway. Especially considering how willing the designer of this dungeon is to use misdirection to land cheap shots.

Fortunately or not, I find nothing.

The room beyond the doors extends further and towers far higher than any room so far. The crackling fires illuminate every corner, top and bottom, making it entirely apparent how small we are in comparison. There are four braziers casting the light and a supersized stone sarcophagus making up the most interesting parts of the room. Oddly I don’t see any holes in the ceiling, and although the fires are large and warm, they don’t feel as hot as I think they should. Something isn’t right. As if on cue, the gigantic stone slab covering the large sarcophagus begins shifting carefully to the side. Lauren hides behind the doors and I drop my stick and draw the zweihander, confident I can retreat if I need to. If the thing in there compares at all to the size of the sarcophagus, it won’t be able to fit through the doors easily.

Despite my expectations, the hand that emerges from the stony depths is not skeletal. It is, however, massive. I almost freeze at the sight of what can only be described as a giant. Seriously, this thing puts houses to shame.

I take a very voluntary step back.

Its large eyes focus on me, blink twice, and then… raises its hand to smack me!

“Greetings, and welcome to the Tomb of the Giant!” It booms in a deep, resonant voice, shaking me to my core, before apparently realizing how fucking loud it was.

“Apologies-” it says, quieter, almost sheepishly, “it has been quite some time since I last spoke. Far too long, in fact. What brings you fine folk to this place?”

My mouth has been open this whole time. There’s nothing that makes any sense about this. I thought this thing was going to easily squash us and go back to sleep or whatever, but it’s engaging in pleasantries?!

“What the fuck is happening right now. What is this. What are you. What the fuck.” It’s not charismatic, I don’t care, there’s a giant in front of me, fuck off.

The giant winces slightly “Please, although the dead do not care what language is used, I prefer politeness.”

“Sorry. Heck.”

The giant raises one of its massive, bushy eyebrows at me. “I am called Zathis. I am something of a guardian of these halls. What more do you wish to know?”

“Is that a serious question?”

Lines of confusion cross his face. “Yes?”

“Well, since you’re offering… Why are you talking to me instead of smashing me?”

“Is… that how your people usually greet others?”

“Uhh no. But everything on this planet seems set on killing me so it was a reasonable question.”

“Including the small creature on your shoulder?”

“... Point taken.”

I proceed to share with him the situation we humans have found ourselves in. Zathis, in turn, tells me a short history of the dwarves that lived and died here, as well as inadvertently confirming a few things I had been suspicious of.

“””The dwarves had been a prosperous people. They were blessed with very long lives, leading to great experience and profound respect for their elders. Their low birth rates made death an extremely important part of their tradition. Every loss was felt by the entirety of the populace. Because of this, they had never been warlike. There were disagreements, but they were mostly solved diplomatically. The dwarves, as a people, had been proficient with magics of the ground and soil, allowing them to ensure the surface of their world flourished with life and simultaneously delivering them the mineral bounties from their stone prisons. They had constructed massive labyrinthine structures, hewn from solid stone by their mystic prowess, and had once stood above all others. Arriving here had changed that. They had become corrupted, deranged, and ultimately most of them had died. The lucky ones had died. Some had been consumed with corruption, and still wander the surface, broken remnants of their once noble selves. Their ground based magic had been all but wiped out.”””

“That’s… terrible. What do you know of the corruption that took them?”

“Very little. It was something new, something from this place. Which thing exactly, I could not say. There was so much new to us, it could have been disease, a monster… anything.”

Not Mana, they clearly had that before this. Energy or Power. And I doubt it’s Energy.

Lauren seems unwilling to show herself, and honestly I can’t blame her. I would have retreated long ago if the giant had actually made a move to leave its stone coffin, but its non-threatening posture combined with my need for information makes me entirely unwilling to leave unless it’s absolutely necessary.

“So how do you fit into this? You’re clearly no dwarf. You’re far too…-”

“Large...?” He peers at me, eyes narrowing slightly.

“Hah! You speak truly, I am no dwarf. I am a giant. The giant, for which this tomb was built. The dwarves were not alone on their world. They had the company of the giants. My people… lacked the sensibilities of the dwarves, and caused significant problems, both for themselves and for others. I was… retribution. Proof that we could be better.”

“So giants came here too, with the dwarves. Where are they now? Why did they leave you here, behind so many traps?”

Zathis breaks eye contact with me for the first time, lowering his gigantic head.

“I know not.” he voice dropping to nothing more than a whisper, yet still full of power. He looks… sad.

“But that is of no matter. I am sure of their health, and that one day I will be relieved of my vigil.” His expression brightens significantly. “Besides, I am no longer alone now that you are here!”

“Y...eah.” I manage, awkwardly.

“You… do not wish to remain here?” His face darkens slightly, but mostly looks sad again.

“Nonono, not at all! It’s just that I… we were tasked with eliminating the monsters that control this region. I believe they were looking for this place, so I will certainly protect it, but anything that doesn’t serve the goal of making me strong enough to secure the place of… my people…” Ok look, I tried to emulate his manner and priorities a bit and I was ad-libbing, give me a break.

The giant, however, takes no notice of my awkwardness and fills in the rest himself.

“I believe I could be of assistance. I will train you to fight.” He can hardly contain his smile, which alone dwarfs (hah) me in size. To train with something that big?

“I hate to say it, but you’d squash me like a bug, even in practice.”

Zathis looks confused for a moment, before realization dawns on him and he starts laughing so uproariously that it throws off my inner ear. I fail to balance and end up on my back, hurting everywhere and listening to the high pitched whine of my mostly gone hearing. My Energy floods to my ears, immediately trying to repair the damage. Mostly my ruptured ear drums, and because they are so small, the healing takes only a short period of time. Meanwhile, I struggle to my feet, nodding along as my chest vibrates with each tone, but unable to parse anything until he’s finishing with “-d better draw your sword quickly, I am beginning!” as a vaguely person shape clump of ground rises up, produces a stone sword from its own body, and charges at me.