Lightning flashed in the heavens above, dark clouds rumbling angrily. Rain had just begun to fall upon the world below, forming small pools upon the battlefield below. Smoke rose up high into the heavens, darkening the sky further as the clash of blades and the shouts of men echoed with the thunder. Lights flashed below much like the flashes of lightning in the sky, both the heavens and earth alight with a furious storm that swept up thousands in its fury.

The armies of Prince Hui Lu Tang were holding a desperate struggle against the warriors of Prince Hui Zhang Zazia. The Tang forces were pushed and trapped against the bend of a river by the forces of Prince Zazia. The fighting was beyond fierce as men and women fell by the scores to the blades of fellow countrymen, though it was becoming fast clear who was going to be the victor in this struggle of family. Even still the forces of Prince Tang the White Tiger surged and smashed against black armored tide of the Èmó De Shǒu, the personal army of Zazia, the Black Gale.

Light flashed below once again as a formation of a dozen dark armored men were flung aside. Standing where they once had been formed was a man standing at well over six feet tall, clad in the finest armor with a tiger pelt across his body. His long dark hair billowed behind him along with a long white cloak. He twisted a spear out through the air, the blade whistling as he pointed it at the warriors before him.

“Is this all Zazia thinks he can hold me back with? Don’t toy with me!” The man roared as he rushed forward.

His spear flashed out, slicing through two men with a single swing and sending their halves flying through the air. Two more came from his side and he swung his spear around, the shaft clanging against their straight swords. He kicked one and sent him flying against another behind him before twisting his spear around and slicing open the throat of the second man. Prince Tang, the White Tiger of Xing and Third Prince of the Imperial Family lived up to his name. He fought with the ferocity of a tiger, no matter how many surrounded him.

Air blasted past him, blowing his hair around his head. “Brother, watch out!”

A crossbow bolt smashed into a man that had been about to come up behind him, punching through armor and out the other side into a tree. He turned and looked upon a young black haired woman in brilliant silver armor, a blue cloak wrapping around her form. The prince snorted. “Hey, I had it under control!” He said with a frown.

The woman rolled her eyes. “You could just say, thank you.” The woman remarked as she loaded her crossbow again.

“Thank you, o’Eagle Talon for your assistance.” The Prince remarked as he swung his spear out, blocking another warrior that had decided to try their luck with him.

Princess Hui Dan Rei, the Eagle Talon, finished loading her crossbow and turned it upon a row of men ahead of her. “Imperial Eagle Technique, Divine Bolt!” The crossbow in her hands glowed a brilliant blue before firing a bolt that smashed through the man immediately in front of her. And the man behind him. And the one behind him. So on down the line until ten black clad soldiers fell over dead. She placed her crossbow on her shoulder and smirked as she watched them fall over, dead from a massive gaping hole in their chests.

“Just no end to them…” Tang remarked as he swung his spear up, the shaft sending the man he had blocked flying high into the sky. He spun the spear around and when the man came back down he ended up impaled upon the tip of the spear. “Zazia still hasn’t shown his face. Is he planning on just drowning us in bodies?”

“There is no need for my prince to sully his sacred hands with your blood, White Kitten.”

The booming voice came from far above and there were none upon the battlefield that didn’t hear it. Men stopped butchering themselves to gaze up at the sky and after a moment a bolt of lightning streaked out and what appeared from it was a towering form that stood over the battlefield. Clad in fine black, voluminous robes and with a headdress of silver upon her head, the woman was a dark beauty. Silver hair was pulled back into a long braid that stretched to the ground, as thick as a man was tall. Accents around her eyes only helped make unnatural golden eyes stand out more.

“And there is a big one finally.” Tang remarked as he pushed the corpse off of his spear.

“Witch-General Shi Fa.” His sister gritted out with a stony look upon her perfect face as she gazed up at the giant.

“Two for the price of one it seems. The White Kitten and the Eagle Chick. How fortunate. When I claim your essences for my prince, he will stand without any in his way.” The woman lifted a thick sleeve up to her mouth and let out a booming chuckle that echoed across the battlefield.

She took a single step toward them, her booted foot lifting up and covering soldiers, both friendly and enemy alike in its darkness before slamming down. Armor crunched as easily as the exoskeleton of insects and rendered the mass of soldiers as a mess of gore left behind when she lifted her foot again. She took another step and once this one slammed down, the earth shook and a shockwave was sent out in the area before her. The shockwave blasted men and women by the scores away, flying through the air only to slam down further away on the battlefield. That cleared the path between both her and the pair of siblings.

Both Tang and Rei were forced back a single step by the intense shockwave of the woman’s power. The earth around her step had cracked and left no doubts as to the power that existed within the dark woman towering above them. Tang held his spear up with a smirk, looking up at the face of General Fa. His sister had loaded another bolt and was taking aim at the titan that was staring them down.

“Rei. You need to get out of here.” Tang breathed to his fellow royal.

“What!? I can’t just leave you!” Rei protested.

“This is the Demon’s Claw herself. She killed Jin. Which means even if we team up we aren’t going to beat her. I can stall her while you get out of here.” The prince stated.

A loud laugh interrupted the pair. The towering woman smirked as she placed a hand upon the blade at her side. “How touching. However, your Imperial Grace is required to help the Prince to reach his peak. A fragment dwells inside of both of you. There will be no escape for either of you.” She stated. “You can try to run of course, but soon there will be nowhere in Xing Prince Zazia’s shadow does not engulf. Whether I claim the fragments from you while you live or from your corpses matters not to me. Of course, I am certain the difference is far greater to you both.”

Tang glared up at her. “While there is strength still in me, I won’t let Zazia touch the Imperial Throne!”

The White Tiger rushed toward the massive Titan, a pale blur to anyone watching. He zipped across the open field, dodging and weaving around the stomping feet of the woman above. He sped around, trying to find a way to get further up and climb General Fa, however the woman was far too quick for that. It was all he could do to rush around and avoid her steps, each one shaking the ground. She let out a booming chuckle.

“Perhaps the White Beetle is a better word for you, little princeling. How long can you keep this up I wonder?” The woman mused.

For her part Rei gritted her teeth. She wanted to stay and help, however, she knew in her heart that her brother was correct. If Zazia managed to catch both of them, he would be the Emperor of Xing without question. He would have the full Imperial Grace and all of Xing would be his. That was not something she could allow. So, cursing under her breath, she slung her crossbow over her shoulder and started running toward the river as fast as she could.

Fa frowned as she watched the girl fleeing, extending a finger. “Not so fast, little bird. Demonic Force, Negative Burst!”

A purple bolt of pure foul magical energy shot out from the digit toward the woman as she ran. There was a white blur before it made impact and a burst of power that cracked the earth itself. When the dust cleared, Tang stood upon the ground, brilliant armor half falling off of his body as he gasped and panted. Smoke rose from his form as he twisted his spear around and twirled it over head. His face was set in one of determination as he spun it faster and faster, the winds around him starting to kick up.

Sparks eventually started flying from the weapon, bolts of electrical energy striking the ground around him. The General crossed her arms and watched him as he prepared, the wind managing to move her massive and thick clothing around her body. Her braid swung behind her as the fierce storm above was being pulled down from the sky and toward the spear of the Prince. Some of the thick clouds above and the very lightning itself was brought into the fury of the tornado that was roaring around Tang.

“Imperial Grace, Wrath of the Heavens!” The prince stopped spinning his spear and pointed it at the General.

All of the gathered storm struck the black clad woman, smashing into her with a force of lightning and thunder and wind that tore soldiers from the ground and sent them flying for hundreds of meters. Even the massive form of the woman was lost amidst the clouds and storm, swallowed up by the sacred technique of the Prince. He collapsed to one knee as the force left him, breathing heavily as it felt like all strength had just flooded out of his body from the force of the storm.

“Impressive, princeling. Without this size gifted to me by the Prince, I would likely have been utterly destroyed by such an attack.” The woman remarked as she waved a hand and cleared the storm clouds around her as though dismissing mist from the air.

General Fa drew the weapon from her side and held it before her. “Demonic Force, Shout of the Damned.” A pulse radiated out from her weapon, extending out all around her.

There was no time to block as Tang took the full force of the blast, blasted back and smashing against the ground hard. The prince spat blood as he landed, his eyes having dark spots dancing before them. He coughed as he felt tremors in the earth getting more intense as the dark shadow of General Fa drew closer and closer, her steps quaking the ground. He looked up at her as she stood over him, the woman having lifted a sleeve to her mouth as though to cover her amusement at him upon the ground.

She lifted one of her black boots up, its sole casting its shadow over the injured man, enough to cover his body entirely. The General slowly brought it down upon him, not pressing upon him, but it was enough pressure to keep him pinned exactly where he was upon the ground. He squirmed weakly, trying to get away from the foot of the General. It was no use of course, he might as well have tried to move a mountain for all the good his efforts did him. Of course his efforts did draw a chuckle from on high.

“Prince Jin squirmed *just* like that before the end. Honestly, if you couldn’t even manage to scuff my boots, you aren’t worthy of Prince Zazia’s blade. Rest assured, when I hunt your sister down I will be certain to take my time. Princess Yui makes a fine insole after I broke her, so the matching pair of sisters would complete the collection.” The woman laughed, shifting her boot aside to look upon Tang’s sprawled form..

“You… demon… Zazia will never… be Emperor.” Tang wheezed.

His words were ended in a cry of agony as General Fa brought her foot down harshly upon his legs. There was a loud series of pops and crunches as she flattened the limbs, sending the prince at her feet howling in agony. The woman had another smirk trace its way up her black painted lips. She brushed strands of dark hair from her face and tapped her other foot upon the ground nearby the prince, a cruel little chuckle escaping her.

“Can you hear her screams in there? Oh if only you could feel her as I do, squirming and writhing like the worm she is. I promised her something before I took the field you know.” The dark haired general said as she shifted her foot back and lifted the other foot over Tang.

“I promised her that I’d crush you with this foot. So she could feel every bone snap and hear your cries of pain.” She boomed before slowly bringing her foot down upon the prince.

There were indeed screams of agony and pain, Prince Tang the White Tiger did not die silently as he screamed and writhed as General Fa brought her foot down upon him in such a way that she managed to splinter his bones and cause as much pain as possible. Such was his suffering that it would be the stuff of legend for those that watched the towering General as she crushed him. Of course, she could only keep it going for so long, eventually her foot coming down flat and rendering the prince as nothing but a red smear of gore upon the ground.

By that point the Tang forces had surrendered, having taken far too many losses and demoralized from the loss of their Prince in so horrifying a way. The General shifted her foot off of the corpse and from the body rose a golden light. It rose high up into the air, before coming to a rest before General Fa. She grasped her fingers around the light, letting out a little sigh as she turned and looked at a few of her commanders at her feet, bowing before her.

“Go forth. Search and scour the countryside for Princess Hui Dan Rei. She is to be brought to me alive.” The General boomed.

She closed her eyes and, inside of her right boot, curled her toes. She smirked as she felt an intense and desperate writhing against the digits. “Don’t you worry; your sister will be joining us very soon.”

The road was a long and winding path, never-ending really. Not this road in particular, but rather the path of the traveler in general. It seemed to never really have a final place to stop, which suited Masako just fine. The world was a vast place after all and she enjoyed seeing all she could of it. The storm of the previous evening had cleared away and now the droplets of water shone in the light of the sun, thousands of little crystals all their own upon the grass and leaves.

Xing was a beautiful place. Lush countryside and fields upon fields of farmland as far as the eye could see. It reminded her of the southern lands back in her homeland, where she had grown up. Masako allowed herself a puff of nostalgia as she made her way to the river. She had a spear resting against her shoulders and on either side of it there was a pack. One carrying her food, and the other a waterskin. That one was growing rather light.

Masako definitely looked the part of the foreigner. Long blue hair was pulled into a rather long ponytail stretching down to her lower back. She bore rather bright and brilliant orange and white armor, its style quite different from that of Xing. She wore simple straw sandals with black tabi wrapping her feet. At her side were a pair of swords, one shorter than the other. The woman stood out like a sore thumb with her brilliant colors and weapons, very obviously a mercenary of sorts. Though those were perhaps not the most notable features most saw when they met her.

Her steps sank deep into the earth and the trees around the massive woman only came to about her shins. The ground shook ever so when she was drawing near, the warrior casting a long shadow in the light of the morning. The woman was a giant and carried herself as such. The road itself was little more than a thin path for her to follow to somewhere civilized really.

Eventually she reached the shore of the river and removed her packs from her spear, bending down and taking in gallons of water into the waterskin. She let out a little sigh, no sign of a town or anything since she left the last one. Any people she had happened across in the countryside tended to take a more run and hide approach to her presence, so getting directions was hard around Xing.

Masako turned her head as she finished filling up her waterskin and blinked. Lying upon the shore of the river was a woman. She wore brilliant silver armor and looked like was soaked completely. She was lying with her back upon the mud and dirt. The giant looked around before standing up and taking a long drink of her waterskin. She took a step toward the fallen woman and crouched down.

"Still alive down there?" Masako asked, poking the woman with her large pinkie. If not, hey, free snack for the road. No one around to see anyway.

To the blue haired woman's disappointment the poking of her pinkie sent water spraying from the human's mouth. She took in great gasping gulps of air as she turned on her side, coughing loudly. Masako let out a loud audible sigh. Should have just eaten the thing and had done with it while she had the chance, ah well, nothing for it now.

"Looks like that's a yes. I'd take a second if I were you before looking up. Get your bearings." The giant remarked as she took another drink.

After a few moments of hacking and wheezing the dark haired woman started steadying her breath. "Ah... ha... I'm alive." The woman breathed.

"Evidently so. Lucky, most people that take a dip with their armor on can't say the same." Masako mused as she scratched her cheek.

"Th-thank you stranger, if there is anything... I... can..." It was in that moment the woman looked up and took in the full scale of Masako.

 3... 2... 1... Masako counted down the seconds mentally until, sure enough, the woman let out a scream of surprise and scrambled back from her. Happened every time, honestly she was getting the feeling the people of Xing had issues showing manners. Regardless the woman below started searching for something, a weapon most likely but without one she just picked up a rock and held it up.

"Are you one of Zazia's ilk like General Fa? One of those bitches he super-sized? I won't go to him without a fight! I, Second Princess Hui Dan Rei, will battle until the end!" The woman called out.

Masako held up a hand. "Woah, woah, I think you've got me confused for someone else. I'm a Ronin from Netaru, got no idea who Zazia or General Fa are, but I don't work for them. So, uh, put the rock down before you hurt yourself."

The princess didn't lower her weapon and so Masako simply sighed and stood to her full height, setting a hand on her hip. Her full enormity was on display for the vastly smaller princess, enough to cause her to take a step back. The blue haired woman ran her fingers through her hair as she let out a snort.

"If just my standing up gets that reaction I'd squish you like a bug in a fight. Your body is aware of that even if you are too dazed to be." Masako stated. "Anyway. I have no further business here so if you'll excuse me..."

Masako turned on her heel and set her spear back on her shoulders with her travel packs on either end once again. With that she started walking away from the much smaller woman. Her sense of staying out of massive trouble was screaming at her to not have anything to do with said princess. Anyone with General attached to their name was undoubtedly bad news to get on the bad side of.

"W-wait! If you really aren't with Zazia then you have to help me!" Called the woman behind her, running after the giant. Every step Masako took at a walking pace was faster than Rei's running pace by a wide margin.

"Don't have to do anything. I saved your life from dying in the dirt of a riverside, should be enough." Complete accident mind you.

"Hey! Stop walking away from me, peasant! I order you to stop and help me! I am the Second Princess of Xing, you have to obey me!" The woman called out as she ran after Masako.

The giant was starting to think eating her when she'd had the chance would have been the best option. Too late for that. Well. She could always do it now anyway, live humans tended to squirm too much for her liking but if it shut her up. It was an option she considered as she very much didn't slow her pace for the woman.

"You are just going to leave a defenseless woman on her own? What kind of savages do they raise in Netaru? I can't possibly defend myself like this!" The princess was still running after Masako, persistent.

"Just wave a rock around, I'm sure it will intimidate any of the small folk." The warrior remarked.

Just as she was about to take another step, the air in front of her flashed a brilliant purple and streaks of light flashed through the air around Masako. Immediately in the path in front of her now stood around ten black armored warriors. At their head was a man with a half mask over his face, a cloak billowing behind him as he crossed his arms and looked up at Masako.

Rei had caught up as the giant naturally stopped walking with this armed and armored group in front of her. The princess stood between the sandal clad feet of the giant, a stricken look on her face as she looked at the man. "Gao Jiang! You treasonous cur! If not for you, we would not have been ambushed at the riverbend!" The woman called out.

The man chuckled. "My apologies, princess, however any smart man can see where the tides are starting to turn. Prince Zazia will rule Xing soon enough. There is no reason to die a pointless death."

"You know he's got a hell of a point. If the cause is lost, no reason to die for it." Masako pointed out.

Rei frowned and crossed her arms. "Well, just as well, as you can see I'm packing muscle that even General Fa couldn't touch. Unless you want to be crushed like bugs I suggest you back off." The princess said.

It took a long moment for Masako to realize she was the muscle being referred to. The figures on the ground looked up at the giant and drew their blades, a couple leveling crossbows up at her. Gao looked up at the distant face of the foreigner and snorted. He drew his own blade and pointed it up at Masako.

"She's a big one for sure, but no one can match General Fa. I hope you've made your peace with the gods, stranger!" He said as he ran his sword through a dizzying array of moves, pretty to look at but looked very impractical.

"Woah woah, I literally just met this broad." Masako held her hands up. She looked down at the woman standing between her feet. "Tell them."

Rei's smug look didn't leave her face. "She is a sworn hero to the cause to topple Prince Zazia. Why I heard her declare that she'd kill General Fa herself with one hand." The woman confirmed.

Gao let out a bark of laughter. "Well then! I will gladly face you, stranger! Know dread for I am Gao Jiang, the Raging Dragon!" He said before he and his men threw themselves at Masako.

"Okay, lady. You and I are going to have a long talk about lying." Masako said as she drew her spear and sent her gear falling to the ground. She twisted it around in the air before her before crouching low. Well, low for her.

The soldiers rushed at her, quite fast and aimed spears and swords at her ankles. Princess Rei had the good sense to back the hell up. Masako herself danced back, the blades never touching her. Arrows flew toward her and she swung her spear through the air, the gale caused sending the arrows spinning to the ground. One man jump up toward her and she swung her foot out. There was a sickening crack as he didn't so much as get sent flying as he did splatter into gore upon the top of her foot.

"Come on I just washed those!" Masako griped as she twisted around and swept her spear on the ground before her.

Five men were send flying as the earth was rent and torn asunder by the sheer force of impact. Bones shattered and were powdered. Boulders were sent flying toward the archers as well. By the end the only one left standing after by a few second was Gao himself, the man now looking a little unsure as to his odds.

"Now then, maybe we can be reasonable about this whole-!" Masako started before the man pulled out what appeared to be a purple crystal.

"I'll not forget this, stranger! You are known now, there is not a place in Xing you'll find that will be safe!" The man shouted before he vanished in a burst of purple light.

Masako stared at the fading purple light and ground her teeth so hard that they felt like they were about to crack. She placed her spear against her shoulder and used her free hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. That... had not gone well. The exact opposite of well as she looked around at the bodies on the ground. The little skirmish had been but a few seconds really and in that time it appeared she had been made an enemy by a major power around her.

"Ha! Serves that traitor right. That was damn impressive, giant! I was worried for a second there." The voice of the princess came from below.

Masako was quiet for a moment before she reached down lightning fast and took up the princess in her fist. The woman was gasping and writhing as she found a very, very annoyed Masako staring her down. She tried to open her mouth to speak but was cut off into gasping as Masako squeezed ever so, her fine armor bending from the pressure and Rei's ribs creaking in warning.

"You've got thirty seconds to explain why I shouldn't squeeze you until you head pops off. Make it a good argument."

Masako held a hand to her forehead as she sat cross legged upon the ground. She rubbed her palm as hard as she could into her skull, as though it would alleviate the massive headache she was experiencing right now. She looked down at the human standing before her two hundred meter tall frame and could see she was looking nervous. The blue haired giant let out a sigh, shoulders falling as though a great weight was sliding onto them.

“So. If I understand that nonsense just now. Prince Zazia killed or captured the rest of your siblings after your mother passed and stole some power that is in your blood. Once he has all of that power he becomes Emperor of Xing.” Masako repeated.

Rei nodded. “Correct. The Imperial Grace is the divine power that rests within us and make us able to perform acts of great strength and power.” She flexed her arm as if to show off. Masako looked less than impressed.

“General Fa is his loyal subordinate and is about my size. She’s the leader of his armies as well. He has used his powers to supercharge some of his greatest warriors into giants and they have been ravaging all the lands that resist him. The General is the one who has defeated all of your siblings and either killed them in combat or taken them alive.” The Ronin said as she looked up at the sky. Her size. She had never met anyone as big as her. Interesting.

“Yes, General Fa is incredibly powerful but she has other giants serving her that are about half your size. They are extremely strong and skilled warrior women supercharged by Zazia’s terrible power.” Rei confirmed.

Shortly after Masako had made her threat she had seated down in a clearing not too far away and let Rei give her all of the explanation of what that all was about. Evidently she had stepped right in the middle of an inheritance dispute that had the whole country wrapped up in a war. Because of course she did. It was just her luck. Maybe if she had slept in today then she wouldn’t currently have to deal with this.

“Also, you are now the last person on his list since the General just killed your brother in a battle a ways up the river last night.” Masako said.

“Yes. I don’t know why you are repeating exactly what I told you but that is the case.” Rei coughed.

“Just trying to wrap my head around how much you made me step in it. So. I’m hearing a lot of how fucked over I am because of your stunt back there but not a lot of reason to not just step on you and be done with it.” Masako said with a glare down at the tiny woman before her.

Rei took a step back and her face paled a bit at the threat. She likely was about to open her mouth to say something imperious but seemed to think better of it and instead took a second to think. She had taken off her silver armor and was dressed in what had once been some nice looking clothes but were currently wrinkled, torn and covered in dirt and mud. For a human, she was pretty. Very beautiful actually. Masako normally would totally be fine with a human like that depending on her. But this one came with a lot of baggage. About a nation’s worth.

“I doubt enticing you with an offer of when I become Empress I would shower you with gold would work.” She said.

“Considering you are sans an army at the moment while this Zazia guy has like a lot of people under him? Yeah not too appealing of an investment.” Masako remarked sardonically as she set her elbow on her knee and placed her cheek in her palm.

“How about this then. You escort me until we reach Seiyan, it’s a port city led by a close ally and friend of mine. She is a friend who would very much pay you for your services if you brought me to her. Whatever you might demand as payment she could give you, easily.” Rei said, crossing her arms. “That seems like it would appeal to a mercenary.”

Masako closed her eyes and thought about it. The Princess looked up nervously and was fidgeting. It was a decent offer, not her first escort job she supposed. The blue haired Ronin mulled it over for a bit before finally nodding to herself. She reached down and plucked up the woman, who looked rather cautiously optimistic. Her thumb and forefinger plucked the princess up gently but firmly, bringing her up before the massive face of the giant warrior woman.

“I’ve decided to not kill you…” She started.

“Oh thank the gods, you won’t regret this-!” Rei started.

“…Because I’m gonna hand you over to General Fa.” Masako finished with a deadpan look on her face.

Rei blinked. “…Huh?”

“Yeah I am not seeing the good odds in helping you. There *might* be a reward on the other end. Meanwhile, if I hand you over to this General Fa chick, Zazia becomes Emperor, all the misunderstandings can get cleared up, and I get a pay day. I mean. That is literally a no brainer.” The samurai remarked as she stood up and cracked her neck from side to side.

Rei stared up at Masako for a few minutes with an owlish expression, almost not believing what she was hearing. Of course that ended in a few moments and then she started kicking and flailing and screaming between Masako’s fingers. Not that it was doing her a lot of good; it was pretty much like trying to push a mountain off of her. The gulf of their strength was far too great to be properly measured. Course the protests were pretty screeching and loud.

“No! You can’t do that! Let me go! I can go on my own if you won’t help me! I’m not some piece you can trade away on a whim!” Rei screamed as she tried to bite into the thumb of the blue haired woman. It did nothing but make her teeth ache.

Masako cleaned out her ear with the pinkie of her other hand. “Yeah if I did that I’d still have a target on my back thanks to you. Only got yourself to blame there.” Masako remarked.

“You savage! Have you no class!? You’d just hand over a defenseless woman like that!?” Rei protested.

“Man, you sure do shout a lot.” The Ronin remarked as she started walking down the road, having finished her side track. “And yes, if said defenseless woman dragged me into a conflict I’m not looking to fight, absolutely.”

“You can’t! Don’t you know what she’ll do to me!? She’ll make me her plaything! Keep me in her boots until I’m screaming for mercy!” Rei continued.

“Sounds pretty kinky to me.” Masako said. “My kind of gal.”

The screaming and protests kept coming however, the princess screaming herself hoarse and still keeping on. It was actually getting kinda grating if Masako was being honest. Plus her hands were kinda not free like this. The blue haired woman reached into her pack and pulled out a length of rope between her fingers. This done she manipulated the arms of the struggling woman and bound them with both ends of the rope. She was squirming the whole time which made it harder of course.

That done Masako allowed her to fall from her fingers down the front of her kimono. She let out a yelp of pain as her arms were pulled taught by the rope which was wrapped nicely around Masako’s neck. The Ronin set her spear on her shoulder and kept on walking with her new jewelry in tow. It didn’t do much for the screaming honestly but it kept her hands free and every step seemed to cause her captive princess to forget her anger for discomfort instead. As it turned out as well, eventually she just lost her voice from all the screaming so it wasn’t really an issue for much longer.

“Hey. Only got yourself to blame here, lady. If you had just gone along with those guys, wouldn’t be where you are right now. I could have gone along my merry way. Maybe think about dragging folks into fighting your battles while you are hanging around.” She snorted in amusement at her own little pun.

Of course the thought did cross her mind that the General might just try to kill her and take the Princess anyway. Or that one of her subordinates might be hungry for glory and do it. If that happened, well. She’d cross that bridge when it happened. Logically speaking, it would be better for them to accept her offer. Princess for forgiveness and money. Seemed like a steal to Masako since it meant their leader was on the throne finally and the war would be over.

General Fa’s brow twitched as she listened to Gao’s report. She sat within the mountain fortress of Xanxi, her seat carven from the bones of fallen warriors melded together by magic. Naturally the bones were countless in their number to be able to hold up her two hundred meter tall form. She crossed her right leg over her left as she looked down at the man kneeling before her. Her expression was not one of anger with him, rather of frustration it seemed.

“What an absurdity. Why in the name of the gods would some vagabond giant throw in with Princess Rei?” Had she been standing by to rescue Rei? Had she somehow miscalculated the assets of the forces against Prince Zazia? It didn’t sit well with her.

“I do not know, great General. However her strength… it was unreal. Even for a giant it was an absurd thing to look upon. She shattered the ground with a single strike of her spear and crushed us in but a few seconds. It is my deepest shame that I fled to report this.” Gao said.

Fa snorted. She was very certain he felt *nothing* but sorrow at tucking his tail between his legs and whimpering away from a giant. It had taken him a few days to make it here, probably because he was considering running rather than facing potential consequences from her. “It is of no consequence. I will arrange for one of my elites to handle her. A giant should be fought with another giant.” She said. “You are dismissed.”

With that wave of her hand the man bowed and groveled his thanks before leaving her sight. Probably grateful that she hadn’t reduced him to a mere stain upon the floor. Not that it wasn’t a tempting thought; however it would serve little purpose. Killing one’s own subordinates for understandable failures was not something she was keen on. Gao had simply been outmatched. It was hardly his fault she had not taken into account the possibility the rebels might have giants of their own. Besides, he had done his job helping to bring Tang to heel.

Fa stood up from her throne and swept out of her audience chambers, her thick black robes scraping the floor. Her guards bowed low as she walked, her booming footfalls shaking the ground beneath them. They had adapted to it well in their service. She walked to her quarters and threw open the vast doors. “I am not to be disturbed unless it is an emergency.” She boomed to the women posted outside the doors. Doors which slammed shut.

As soon as they did the General slumped down in a bed massive enough to hold three women of her scale in it. She let out a groan into the plush pillows of the bed as she flopped out in a very undignified way. She turned over in her bed and looked up at the canopy, sighing as she ran her fingers through her silky silver hair. It was bad form for people to see her like this of course; she was the Witch General Shi Fa. General Fa did not laze, she languished in an imposing manner that had men piss themselves in terror.

“Ugh… I should have just gone after her myself. Stupid mistake on my part.” She sighed, speaking to herself.

She felt a weak squirming in her boot and idly started pushing them off of her feet, wrapping her toes around the pale and naked form of Princess Yui as she kicked her boots off. The First Princess of Xing looked very worse for wear for her captivity. Her form was covered in a faint bit of sweat and her hair was messed up. There was bruising around her toned form, the warrior princess very much having been battered under the feet of the General.

Fa propped her head up on a pillow and looked along the length of her massive form, dropping the princess from her grip. She fell in a heap upon the plush mattress of the bed, taking in great gasping breaths of air and coughing. The beautiful giant rolled her eyes and let the pitiful thing catch her breath. Without her Imperial Grace she had weakened considerably. No real surprise Fa supposed. It was probably one of the main factors of her strength.

“Enjoy the outside time while you can, my dear. It’s the exception with your current status in life.” Fa remarked.

“Yo-you… ah… monster… you killed Tang.” The woman coughed and gasped out.

“Prince Tang opposed Prince Zazia, the rightful ruler of Xing and the strongest claim to the throne after the death of the Empress. As Prince Zazia’s servant it follows I would kill him.” Fa stated without much remorse in her voice.

“You enjoyed it… you made me listen.” Yui said accusingly.

Fa lowered her right foot down upon Yui, who let out a squeak as she was smothered under the sole of her foot. The General pressed her into the mattress and chuckled as she felt her little hands pushing up against the soft flesh. “A woman should always do work she enjoys. My enjoyment of the matter doesn’t change the results of my duty.” She said with a shrug.

She toyed with Yui for a bit before lifting her foot up and sitting up. She hopped off of the bed and walked over to pour herself a cup of wine. The gallons upon gallons it took to satisfy her were considerable these days. One of the downsides to her current size she supposed. She sipped at her cup and watched Yui stand up and try to jump off of the bed. She stopped at the edge, looking down the vast distance to the ground with clear vertigo. Fa rolled her eyes at the display.

Her booming steps shook the bed under Yui and caused her to lose balance, falling forward off the edge. She gripped into the silken covers and flailed, trying to keep herself from falling down far below and splattering on the smooth floor below. “Try not to fall. I can bring you back, however the stain would take forever for the servants to get out.” Fa remarked as she took another sip of wine.

Yui actually started sliding down the covers and toward the floor, managing to land safely upon the ground. She was looking around frantically and saw the door in the vast distance. It only took a second for her to start running in a full sprint in that direction. Perhaps, Fa supposed, if she had her Imperial Grace she would have been able to use such speed as Tang had and maybe make it. As it was however, it was literally like any other human trying to run from Fa. Painfully slow and ponderous.

Booming steps sounded behind Yui as she ran, the bare feet of the General slamming down upon the ground as she walked after the fallen princess. Fa was actually moving quite slow and still managing to catch up. Yui stumbled a few times as her legs moved too fast for the rest of her body. She was halfway to the door when…

BOOM!

A massive wall of flesh rose up in front of her and she smacked face first into the soft sole of General Fa. The giant had her foot planted down much as one might when trying to reach a high shelf. Above Yui could see the arch of her foot and her heel, the fallen Princess paling. The dark haired beauty scrambled to her feet and started running in the opposite direction. Something that had Fa roll her eyes.

“Predictable.” She brought her foot down upon the fleeing woman.

Fa brought her foot down hard and fast, Yui barely having time to react and simply falling to the ground. Fa could feel her quivering under her foot as she was just safe under the arch of her foot. Just as Fa had intended.

“Let’s suppose you actually did manage to make it out of the room. You wouldn’t really have gotten far since my guards would have caught you and brought you back anyway. Poor planning on your part. Were I in your current position I would be trying to curry favor with me. Making it seem like I was a devoted servant that had fallen for my power and intellect. Would cause me to lower my guard and thus increase the chances I’d have for escaping.” Fa remarked as she lifted her foot up and reached down. Black painted nails gripped around Yui’s naked form and lifted her up.

The woman was gasping and panting and writhing much more weakly now. “Hate me if you wish, Yui. What I do is for the good of Xing. Logically speaking, Prince Zazia is the best of the batch of siblings to rule the Empire. He is a cunning administrator and a brilliant politician. He is also smart enough to know that in matters of military and battle he is woefully weak, small, and frail. Hence why he left me to do what I do best.”

Yui let out a stream of explicative that had Fa cluck her tongue. “Now my dear, you still seem to not understand your position. Perhaps I should remind you. You aren’t a princess anymore.”

Fa walked over to one of her fallen boots and stooped over, holding Yui over the opening before dropping her down into the depths. “You’re my insole and once I have your sister in my hands she’ll be the matching set. Once I deal with this other giant helping her.” Fa stated. “Acceptance of one’s place in the universe is an important step in having a happy life.” The general said with a mean little laugh. She walked away and instead refilled her cup. A contemplative look took her face.

Yes. Prince Zazia was the ideal ruler of Xing. He was brilliant man, not a good person of course but few rulers could claim that. The Empress’s soft rule had seen much of their outer territories taken by savages. By rival nations and horselords. His siblings were less suited to the challenges that lay ahead of the nation. Fa was not going to sit by and watch her country fall to invaders. She had not served for years to watch all they had worked for vanish between her fingers. Just a nice bonus she could put the spoiled imperial brats in their proper place. Beneath her feet. No stupid foreigner was going to get in the way of that.

A knock sounded at her door and her brow twitched. “Enter.”

The massive door opened and it was one of her commanders, a shorter giant by the name of Rika. “Pardon the intrusion, ma’am. However, your guards said you could be interrupted in the case of an emergency.”

“Correct. What is the issue?” She asked, gathering her regal presence.

“Well, ma’am, there is a strange foreigner that appeared outside the gates with Princess Rei tied on a rope around her neck.”

Fa stared at Rika for a few moments before blinking. “…Come again?”

Masako was honestly surprised she had been allowed to keep her weapons when she had been let inside. Obviously it was with an armed escort of two smaller giants. She had her hands behind her head as she walked through the massive halls of the mountain stronghold, looking around at the furniture that had been made to giant scale. It was actually pretty impressive. Back home there was nothing like this. If you were this big you weren’t getting a roof over your head unless you found a cave.

The massive doors to the audience chamber opened up and Masako looked down around her neck as she walked. The princess dangling there had fallen silent, both from losing her voice but also very clear and palpable fear. She was completely pale, as though she couldn’t believe what was happening. Poor thing had probably expected Masako to just drop everything to help, or at least decide that fighting another giant was a good idea. Yeah she was gonna hard pass on something like that.

At the other end of the hall, seated upon a pretty uncomfortable looking throne, was a sight that stole Masako’s breath. She was an otherworldly beauty dressed in fine silken robes, a silver hair falling about her head, soft and flawless pale skin, painted nails. She looked like some celestial being straight out of an old legend. More than that, Rei hadn’t been talking out her ass. She was absolutely Masako’s size. The blue haired Ronin had never met another as big as she was. She licked her lips and realized she’d stopped walking from being star struck.

As she finished walking the rest of the way she stopped a few spear lengths from General Fa. “You must be General Fa. Pleased to meet you. I’ll tell you, Princess Rei said you were a terrible titan of fear and horror but you look radiant.” Masako said with a rakish grin.

The General actually blinked from the compliment before smirking. “I was told you looked like an unwashed savage that hadn’t bathed in several weeks. Not as bad as all that though. Clearly an exaggeration.” She mused as her eyes trailed over Masako’s necklace. “A nice piece of jewelry. Very pretty.”

“Awww, you think so? Thanks, she’s nice and quiet now. Spent the first day screaming up a storm. Wouldn’t eat but hey, eventually got too hungry not to.” Masako lifted up one part of the necklace, earning a pained squeak from Rei.

The General chuckled. It was a rather sultry sound to Masako’s ears. The blue haired Ronin reminded herself however, that first business came and then they could exchange pleasantries. Hopefully. Maybe. The Ronin had honestly been expecting some really ugly hag since her title was Witch General. Actually that would have been way easier to deal with. Instead she got possibly the most beautiful woman she’d seen.

“I’m surprised. I was just preparing some assassins to go after you to kill you. Word had reached me that you had attacked some of my men in defense of Princess Rei. So to hear you had come here with her around your neck… well, it seemed a bit too good to be true.” Fa said as she leaned back in her throne.

“Ah, that was a misunderstanding. She jumped and told them I was serving her. I found her having nearly drowned in the river. Honestly, I was gonna eat her until she suddenly woke up.” Masako rubbed at the back of her head and had a rueful smile. “I don’t want any trouble with you guys. So, there are reward for bringing her to you or…”

One of the smaller giants frowned. “Mind you tongue, outlander, you should be grateful our General didn’t decide to kill you for-!”

Fa raised her hand, silencing the outrage on her behalf. “Fortunate for both of us you didn’t eat her. Though I’m certain she’d feel divine sliding down.” She looked directly at Rei when she said that, deliberately dragging her pink tongue over her black painted lips. The woman started struggling to escape the ropes frantically.

The General crossed her right leg over her left and looked at Masako long with appraising golden eyes. “What would you want in exchange for your necklace? I am open to negotiation.”

“Well. Seeing as how she’s the last piece of the puzzle for your boss to be named Emperor… enough gold to fill this sack.” She dropped a rather large and empty leather sack on the floor. “As well as forgiveness for any of those misunderstandings.”

Fa’s lips quirked upward. “Pretty straightforward. Also, well informed. I suspect Rei might have divulged her value a bit too well. Royal brats aren’t particularly bright for the most part.”

Moment of truth and Masako knew it. There were two things that could happen. Fa could decide she’d rather not pay up and take Rei by force or she could just compensate Masako and be done with it. Honestly, Masako wasn’t sure which she’d pick. The General’s golden eyes seemed to be mulling over that same question. Fighting when in the belly of the beast wasn’t ideal but Masako was confident she could make a clean escape at least. No way this woman was as strong as she was. As big, sure, but Masako’s strength was singular.

“Deal.”

With that one word, all the tension in the air evaporated and Masako felt her shoulders relax. She also noticed a few hands being removed from their weapons. Of course the one who was not happy and managed to start screaming bloody murder with her hoarse voice, was Rei. She was writhing and trying to escape her necklace prison with all her strength. She started to glow and Masako blinked when she actually managed to tear the rope binding her. She fell a good distance to the ground and immediately turned to run.

“No! I am not getting traded like some good in the market- ah!” She screamed as Masako calmly lowered a tabi clad foot upon her.

The black fabric enveloped the woman and pressed her against the smooth floor, keeping her pinned. Her Imperial Grace was nothing to Masako’s passive strength. She pounded and squirmed and tried to claw her way from under Masako’s foot. It was no use however. She was as trapped. Masako rolled her eyes and shifted her foot, gripping her between the gap built into the tabi at between her big and second toes. Where a sandal strap would normally occupy, Rei now found herself firmly wedged.

A peal of laughed sounded out through the audience chamber and General Fa was leaning over her throne, seized by fits of laughter. Masako had a really stupid idea in her head but seemed like a decent one if she found that amusing. The Ronin started walking forward, Rei screaming as she was brought along for the ride as Masako’s fabric clad feet left her sandals behind and instead she walked right in front of Fa. The Ronin lifted one leg up and presented the General with the foot currently restraining Rei.

“All yours.” She said with a grin.

Fa’s laughter redoubled and she slumped back against her throne in a very undignified manner at the absurdity of the routine. She started wiping tears of mirth from the corners of her eyes. “Ahhh…” She gasped. “I should charge you for trying to assassinate me, outlander.” She said as she managed to sober up with great effort. The general reached out and plucked the princess from between Masako’s toes and held her up before her face with a smirk.

Masako lowered her foot back to the ground and bowed in an exaggerated manner. “I live to please.”

“Ahhh… haha… Wew. You are quite funny. I haven’t laughed like that in a long time. You’ve my thanks. I feel years younger.” She said as she focused on Rei.

A black aura formed around one of her fingers and she touched the nail of that finger to Rei’s forehead, a golden light leaving the princess and entering Fa as it departed her. “N-no! Give that back! You can’t have it!” Rei protested.

“I believe I can, Princess. I just bought you after all. For a considerable amount no less.” Fa remarked dryly.

Masako walked back over to collect her sandals and slipped them back on. More than a few people in the audience chamber were looking at her in shock. Guess the woman really didn’t laugh like that much. Pity. She had a really nice laugh. The blue haired Ronin watched her pull off one of her boots and she had done something similar enough times to know what was coming. Evidently didn’t matter where one came from, some things were just hardwired in for giants. The thought was quite amusing.

Without another word, General Fa dropped Princess Rei into the opening of the boot. The screams grew muffled and then were gone completely when the two hundred meter tall silver haired beauty slid her foot back inside. She tapped her foot a few times upon the floor before letting out a pleased sigh. Masako had to admit she had perhaps stared at the whole scene a little longer than was considered decent.

“Well. I am very pleased I didn’t have to send out people to deal with you. You’ll have your reward. However I insist you join me for dinner. I’m of the mind to celebrate the end of my wild goose chase for these annoying brats.” She paused. “Ah. Pardon my rudeness. I didn’t ask you your name.”

“Name’s Masako. I’d appreciate that. Travel rations get so bland after a while.” Masako said with an easy laugh. The blue haired Ronin had been planning on leaving as soon as she got her money, but well. It couldn’t hurt to stick around. Would be rude not to accept that invite. Never turn down a free meal.