Incline 2: Heiya

"Alright... What am I making room for?" Hrurim asks, his hands on his well-developed back. He eyes the giant and all the sand, a shiver taking him over.

"I don't even know. A boulder?" I remark, watching Pops as he vanishes around one of the mysterious dunes. Whatever it is he hopes to find, I doubt we'll find it here.

"How can we even be sure any of this is worth anything? I doubt we're going to find an appreciative collector of sand. Besides, last I checked, we're underneath the Dual-Republic or there abouts. Suhurlodst is going to be clamouring all over this giant." Hrurim points out and I nod with a growing feeling of distaste.

If we were in another part of the world, the Acadamites might be able to give us something truly worth a pretty coin. However, that would be the problem. We wouldn't be close enough to them to have them pay us anything. So, we need to find something worth a lot down here.

"If you're up for the challenge, we can drag that skull with us." I point out and Hrurim's face collapses at the exhausting thought. With how much magic is lacking in the air right now, who knows? Maybe we'll be unpleasantly surprised.

"Yeah, maybe in another life where I am the greatest witch in the world," he snorts, leaving the wagon behind so he can join in with the search. A grumble leaves my lips and I hoist my musket up, eyeing the land around to make sure it's clean. There have been no signs up until this point, but still. It's always worth the effort and I want a wagon to come back to!

"Well, let's get started." I mutter, leaving our supplies behind so I can pick up a fancy rock. Hopefully, I'll luck out and find an exposed gold vein. Maybe even some geodes I can spend the trip polishing. Because I am really struggling to see the value in picking off a piece of giant bone!

Who even wants a splinter of giant bone?

"How would I even prove it's from an impossibly giant... Giant?" I ask, clamouring up a dune and falling down as it falls apart. From my hand and side, I look over at the great sight. All this mountain is gone. I can even just barely make out the signs of battle.

How does a giant this big even fall in battle? How quick do we need to go about this? If there was a battle, then there will be something worse on its way. And we have no idea how long we have...

"Gods and goddesses!" I snap, forcing my way up and surfing my way down the dune. Breaking out into a run, I rush across the sand and up and over another crest. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing!

Nothing of value anywhere!

A dark object falls from high above. My eyes snap towards its direction. I shrug my shoulders and shake my head. Whatever it is, it's from the giant.

Sand showers away from my footfalls, blowing up everywhere. It pushes down as I climb and rolls away as I find myself on top of the world. I bring my musket up and search the area. A body falls.

A body...?

"What do we have here?" I ask myself, taking myself over to a safer position to approach from. My feet adjust their footing and I keep my weapon raised as the figure's details become clear. It's an osibindah. A snarl grows on my face and I prepare to take the shot-

"Where...? Where can I go from here...?" it speaks and a single detail makes my eyes widen. Those are not bug eyes. They're human.

"So, we meet again." I tut, remembering how it went the last time I was involved with this osibindah. Keeping my gun up, I approach our source of money. My frown grows as I take in how weak he clearly is. Did he...?

The 'sib barely manages to turn, and he spots me. He raises a claw and looks at it but shakes his head. Whatever the reason, he doesn't even try and get himself in a position to defend himself. Now, I know it's been some time since we last saw each other and I know he's been at Suhurlodst.

"Sa, haw did yau maaake it here?" I ask in the tongue of the wind-people when I get close enough. My trigger finger itches for a chance to go at it, but I remember my discipline. He barely manages to point skyward.

"I... Beat... Him..." he heaves, his arm collapsing to his side and I blink in uncertainty. Not because his words terrify me. Because I can feel his lack of magic. A smirk builds up on my face.

"Yeah, you sure did." I chuckle in my native tongue as I approach him, gun raised. I take off my gun's strap and tie a knot into it. I zip it around his wrist and pull without a bit of effort at all. Now this, this we can sell!

I know a fair few people who wouldn't mind having an osibindah as part of their exotic beast collections. Never mind the presence of a human-minded one. A bug that can even cast magic, should it be given a chance to recover. And, on top of it all, me and Pops can settle an old grudge with this damn bug!

Speaking of...!

"POPS!" I call out at the top of my lungs as he rummages around a dune near one of the giant's bones. He turns around, the subtlety of his gaze turning it the bug's way. He slides down not a moment later, his weapon entering his firmly growing grip with each step.

"Idiot!" he snaps when he's in throwing distance and I dissuade his concerns. The bug lands at his feet without a bit of effort at all from me.

"Magicless. And check the eyes." I tell Pops as the bug groans in pain from who knows how many maladies. 

"Human." Pops remarks, pulling the bug up. A glare erupts across his face and he strikes the bug. He does it again and again, drawing blood and cracking carapace.

"POPS!" I shout, pulling him out of his moment of nearly a decade of roasting vengeance. Pops flicks his paws clean of bug blood and I approach him, glad that we have our money problem sorted.

"I... I think I know someone." Pops lets out. A lengthy, stress-emptying sigh escapes him. His head shakes and his quills rustle and his back straightens. He glares at our financial safety net.

"Guess you're back where you started, Bug. Back in our inventory!" I laugh out, a strange sense of irony or something overtaking me. It's just like all those years ago, isn't it? I hoist up this Tobaballian as my prisoner and we get going to sell him off!