“Kads!”
Cara stood up
from her chair and rushed to the door. Cara knew that Kadija was
fine, intellectually at least. But seeing her finally in person was
the true relief. Cara opened her mouth to speak. The words would not
form in her mouth. Instead, a tear fell down her cheek. Kadija felt
her heart expand in her chest. She said nothing. Bending over she
embraced the smaller woman and lifted her off her feet. They embraced
for a long moment before Kadija relented.
Kadija was a
truly stunning woman. She cast beautiful figure. Dark red hair
enveloped the soft features of her face. Her bright blue eyes were so
mesmerizing that Cara felt like she was falling into them when she
held eye contact with her. Kadija’s could look statuesque except
for that fact she normally wore a goofy smile. Kadija ran her fingers
through Cara’s hair.
“I’m just so
happy to see you.” Another tear fell as Cara looked up to make eye
contact with her dear friend. “You must tell me honestly, are you
feeling well?”
“Yes. It was
definitely the most unpleasant week of my life, but the worst is
definitely over. The doctors tell me they found three times the
lethal dose of amanita’s poison in my blood tests. The assassins
were clever, they knew that I was 6m tall, so they tripled the
standard lethal dose. But not clever enough, since it would be 27
times the lethal does to kill me.” Kadija said.
A well-dressed
man walked into the room from the side door cradling an enormous pot
of tea. He set it on the table and left. Cara gestured for Kadija to
take a cup and sat down herself.
“You had me
scared when I saw you. The doctors were hesitant to give you much
morphine. You were sprawling and shaking like a demon was inside
you.”
“It was
terrible trip for sure. I’m not even sure what I dreamed about. I
remember numbers flashing from the sky at me but little else.”
Kadija paused. “Even if it’s been hard, I’m so happy to be home
with you. Six months apart from you was wearing me down.”
A man of Kadija’s
height entered the room. He put his hand on her shoulder. Kadija
startled but when she saw him, she grabbed his hand and brought it to
her lips.
“Yaro!”
“It fills me
with such delight to see you with your glow again, Kads. You looked
like you had been sucked of life only a few days ago.” Yaro said,
before sitting down to join them.
“Of course, you
are welcome to stay as long as you need. But I was curious when you
think you’ll be ready to return to Ganges?” Cara asked.
“I’m eager to
return. I’m worried that my three-week absence may have caused
quite the stir.”
“I can make
arrangements for us to leave tomorrow. Yaro and I will be
accompanying you back, as titans.”
The last word
hung in the air. Ever since Cara had appointed Kadija to be the
governor of Ganges, she had sought to save them from this fate. Other
governors ruled as titans. They loomed over their appointed realms as
beings the size of gods. But Kadija wanted Ganges to be a special
region. A place for exploration and the implementation of the social
revolution that underpinned Cara’s teachings. She had ruled over
the realm as a mini taking no tributes. In fact, she had never eaten
one of her subjects. At 6m tall she was imposing but could not
actually eat anyone. She was trying to have the same sort of presence
in among her people that Cara had with the other administrators. Cara
was a literal goddess sent from mother Gaia but she was usually the
smallest in the room. Her touch was almost always affectionate, her
power was her raw intelligence. She didn’t need to be feared.
“You know
that’s not how I want to do it.” Kadija said.
“Kads, I know.
I think you were really brave to take this on the way you have for so
many years. But this has to go beyond you. As much as you may find it
distasteful, our regime’s power comes from my size gift. I can’t
protect you any other way and I would be shattered to lose you. I
also can’t have someone trying to murder one of my governors. There
has to be dramatic consequences, less it happens somewhere else.
Maybe in a generation or two our methods can relax but not today,
unfortunately.” Cara said.
Kadija looked
down at the table. She knew that Cara was right. Cara’s other
governors ruled a top a strict hierarchy. The sort of sabotage that
she had experienced did not happen elsewhere. Still, it hurt her
nature to think of the cruelty that being a top this hierarchy, any
hierarchy really, means. She looked over to Yaro for sympathy.
“I think when
you give it a try, you’ll come to enjoy it. I am sorry this
happened to your project but you’re more important than the
project.” Yaro said. “And besides, we can remake Springsdale.
Teach those bougie bastards a lesson.”
“Springsdale?”
“Yea, we are
going to level it in retribution. It’s going to be the seat of your
new palace. Heck, we can even put all of the stuff those managerial
brats hated over the remains of their district. If you want something
good to come of this, there’s no reason your new palace grounds
can’t also be a bastion of the commons and home for the vulnerable”
Yaro said.
“There has to
be consequences, Kads. With no tributes, I get the sense that leaving
some of the old managers in place has left them with the complex.
That complex has to be broken. For your safety and for the long-term
health of the society you’re trying to build.” Cara said.
The conversation
paused as a string of human sized waiters made their way into the
room. They set the table and brought out the courses. Lush salad was
placed on the table. The main platters carried stacks of sushi. Some
filled with vegetables, others fish, others yet filled with tiny,
drugged people. Some people sat free on the platters beside the
sauces and pickled ginger. The desert was a lemon pudding with tiny
folk swimming to keep their heads above the surface. Panic evident in
their faces. They were left swimming so that their struggle to breath
limited their screams.
“I’m worried
that I will lose the credibility that I’ve spent years to create.”
Kadija said.
“Well, it
doesn’t have to be you doing this. I can wear the blame.” Cara
said. She stood up and walked over to Kadija. As she walked she grow
from her human height to just slightly taller than Kadija. She
wrapped her arms around Kadija’s shoulders and held her. “Besides,
who could blame a kitten for following her master’s orders?”
Cara slipped a
black collar with white hearts on it around Kadija’s neck. Kadija
inhaled as Cara gripped her around the neck. Cara leaned over and
placed a few of the sushi on Kadija’s plate.
“Are they
fussy?” Kadija send while tentatively gripping her chopsticks.
“These ones are
drugged. They shouldn’t cause much a problem to swallow. And the
wrapped ones taste best when chewed.” Cara gripped a lone tiny
between her chopsticks and teased him around Kadija’s lips. She was
shocked by the feeling of the tiny person. He sat on her tongue and
she became aware of the moments of her tongue as he shifted with it.
She shivered when he felt him stand-up. This one truly had no fear.
He took steps like flutters on her tongue and ran his hand along her
molar. He put his hand into the groove of her molar. Right where she
could bite down and crush it.
“They are
harmless but I often find it best to fold them in half before you
swallow. Otherwise they might grab at your throat.”
Kadija knocked
the tiny many over with her teeth. She rolled him over with her
tongue and then rocked him forward. She forced him bend by pressing
him against her pallet. She swallowed. He started to squirm and the
sensation was amplified against Cara’s hand that was still lightly
held over her neck to feel the swallowing. Kadija had to swallow
again. The pressure in her throat was great. But eventually the tiny
carried on through oesophagus. Cara smiled and returned to her seat.
“Now be a bit
more cautious with these ones.” Yaro pointed to the dessert tinies.
“They aren’t drugged so they will fight with all of their might
to survive. All of their might isn’t very much, but a lucky grab or
duck and these guys become a choking hazard. They are delightful to
feel fighting down but I’d recommend you give them a few light
bites to reduce the risk.”
“That’s
because your cheater. The proper form is to suck on them so hard to
they’re struggling to breathe first. That way they have their full
strength to wiggle in your belly.” Cara said.
“Swallowing so
much air invariably makes you burp, Cara.” Yaro said. “A goddess
in all of these lands and you can’t even be lady like.”
“Well, I have
you to be lady like for me, Yaro.” Cara smiled smugly at him.
As dinner
progressed, Kadija avoided eating any of the dishes with tinies in
them. She still found the business displeasing. If anything, she
liked being the submissive. She loved when Cara was at her normal
height but still very much in control. Hurting others like this for
fun felt against her nature.
Cara on the other
hand loved the feelings of futile struggle against her. It was a
dimension of flavour in her food that made everything else so much
more delightful.
“I think you’re
doing our table guests a disservice.” Cara gestured at the pudding
on the table. She looked over to Yaro. “You’d be the luckiest man
in the world, if Kads picked you up. There are so many unfortunate
ways to go, but to have your whole life extinguished for such beauty
– that’s gotta be a dream come true.”
Kadija served
herself a few spoonfuls of pudding. A woman landed on her plate and
free from being trapped in the pudding she began running for the edge
of the plate. Kadija moved her spoon quickly to grab her and put her
in her mouth without much hesitation. The woman fought to right
herself in Kadija’s mouth. The struggling caused drool to run down
her lips. Kadija’s face went red with embarrassment as she wiped
her chin. The tiny woman thrashed around trying against all hope to
knock out the two front teeth blocking her escape. Kadija rolled her
back and remembering what Yaro had advised began to lightly chew on
her. She felt crack from the woman and blood began to mix with the
pudding.
The tiny woman
screamed. Kadija went wild-eyed. She rolled the woman over and the
next bite induced a weaker scream before she swallowed. Yaro and Cara
could not contain their laughter.
“Don’t worry,
it’s easier when you’re titan size.” Yaro said.
“And after a
little breaking in, I’m going to make sure those ingrates learn to
come running to your every need.” Cara said.