Patrick slowly opened his eyes, his vision too blurry from drowsiness to take in his surroundings. "Nngh..." He groaned as he turned under the covers of the bed, his memories not entirely pieced together from last night. As he was slowly regaining his vision, he heard the sound of a fireplace crackling somewhere in the room... Wait, a fireplace?

Against the will of his tired body, Patrick managed to push himself to sit up. He rubbed his eyes and looked around as his vision began to clear up. What he saw was completely foreign to him. It was a quaint, simple room, like something out of a primitive hut. There were some chairs and tables carved out of wood, the walls seemed to be made of stone, as did the fireplace against the wall to his right. When Patrick looked down, he found he was in a bed, the covers conspicuously made from haphazard patches of cloth.

                "What the hell is...?"

                "Ah hello!" Patrick jumped in shock to the sudden gruff, manly voice that spoke to him. To his left he saw a burly, hairy man with a white shirt and brown overalls. He had a bushy black beard, hairy sideburns, but a conspicuous bald spot on the top of his head. He seemed to be sitting in a rocking chair, moving back and forth as he was whittling away at some wood in his hand. "Gotta say," he said with a chuckle. "Ya gave me quite a scare. Saw you just passed out on the ground while on one of my hunts. You doing okay?"

Patrick stared at the man wide-eyed and in disbelief. He didn't know this man. He certainly never met anyone like him in the neighborhood he lived in. "U-uh...yeah, just a bit tired." This had to be a dream. He couldn't help but chuckle a bit as he looked down at the covers again, rubbing his eyes to remove any remaining drowsiness.

The gruff looking man quietly rested his knife and the wood he was working on on top of the table next to Patrick's bed and shook his head. "Most people who feel fine don't go passing out in the wilderness. It's a dangerous world out there." He looked toward the hut's front entrance. "Village's doctor said you seemed well enough. Just what the hell were you doing outside?"

Patrick shook his head as he rubbed his head. He was remembering what happened before he fell asleep. He worked on shoveling snow for his parents, before strangely being forced to sleep by his answering machine and an unknown entity. Could that have also been a dream? "Outside? Uh..." He tried to think about the best answer he had. "Shoveling snow...I guess?"

The hairy stranger gave him a look of disbelief, leaning back in his chair as he crossed his arms. "Snow? In the middle of the Blooming Season? Yeesh, you must really be out of it."

Patrick raised his eyebrow at the befuddled man. ‘Blooming Season'? What on earth did that mean? Regardless Patrick could tell he couldn't say anything that made sense at the moment so he just shook his head. "Sorry." He chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "I must be pretty out of it. I don't remember much."

To that the man immediately gave a jolly laugh and slapped Patrick on the back, making him heave for a moment. Holy shit, this dude was strong! "Think nothing of it!" He stood up. "Still, you seem well enough! Maybe you could even help with hunting later today. Might house ya for a while, so might as well put ya to good use!"

Patrick looked at the man curiously. The hell was this man talking about? This may have been a dream, but does he just put any random person he comes across to work. "Err...I don't know what you mean sir, but I don't know if I can work right-"

"Aw, don't be like that." He put his hands on his hips, giving a grin. "Work is good for the body and soul, especially for people like us! Just rest for a bit and we'll see where your strengths are!"

Before Patrick could get in another word, the impatient man immediately left the room, slamming the door behind him, leaving a confused young man alone in that room. All he had in his head were questions. Where was he? Who was that man? How'd he get here? However, the biggest question he had on his mind was the man's comment: ‘especially for people like us'. Just what did that mean?

                Meanwhile, in a rather busy town that wasn't too far from where Patrick lived, a cute young woman was walking down the street with a book she recently bought from the library. The woman was the picture of a pure angel. She had long blonde hair that reached to her shoulders. She wore a long white dress, that reached to about her knees, and below her knees were some sturdy brown boots with dark soles, perfect for walking in mud. Complimenting her brown boots was a vest she had over her upper torso, middle-aged in design, but provided a nice contrast to the white underneath it.

                In her elegant left hand she held a straw basket filled with sunflowers, roses, and other such flowers. She looked from side to side at the various people that passed by. Some wore normal, regular peasant clothes, while others had more formal attire, perhaps visiting the town on business.

                "Excuse me?" She said in a sweet voice to some of the people passing. "Would you like a rose? A special something for the Mrs.? If you buy two I could throw in a violet for free?"

                The man in the formal attire didn't give a verbal response. He just shook his head before going about her day. As he left, the woman's sweet smile turned to a disappointed frown and she gave a soft sigh. This was another poor business day to sell flowers. Normally the blooming season would be perfect for her. A season where many wished to declare their love for someone, or some just wanted to celebrate a special occasion. Today, though, everyone seemed far too busy to pay a girl like her any mind

                She shook her head and decided to head home. If she wasn't able to sell anything, she could at least see how her father was doing.

                Eventually Patrick was able to get out of bed and changed into some clothes that was left at the side of his bed. It was a white shirt and brown overalls, similar to the attire the hairy man wore, though much smaller to fit his physique. After getting changed, he headed outside to see just what he was dealing with.

                What he saw left him stunned. A far-cry from the cold, snowy suburbs he found himself in a day ago, now before him he saw a primitive peasant village. It wasn't exactly a pretty sight. The village had, at most, a dozen houses, and the plains that the houses rested on were nothing more than mud and dirt, not a single sign of grass to be found. Most of all, it seemed to be night time, as the only source of light were the torches that were lined alongside the pathways connecting the stores and homes. It was odd though, as Patrick looked up, there didn't seem to be a star in the sky. Was it cloudy?

                Before he could continue these thoughts, Patrick felt a very familiar slap on his back that almost made him lose his footing. "Ho ho ho! There you are, m'boy!" The hearty sound of the hairy stranger that looked after him snuck right next to him. "I see you got your clothes on! Good, really had to go out of my way to buy them!"

                As the man laughed without a care, Patrick straightened himself up, recovering from the slap. "Don't sneak up on me like that!" He said with an annoyed groan. "Keep doing that and someone will give you a black eye..."

                The man smirked at him. "Funny, I get that a lot." He brushed the comment off and continued. "So I see you seem relatively healthy." As he said that, he handed me a stick of meat. "Here! Good protein."
                "O-oh I don't-" Before he could finish, his stomach gave an audible growl. He blushed and took the food without saying another word. Biting into it, it tasted like it was finely smoked, but kind of dry and lacking any spices. It did the job though.

                "Felt like it was important to fill your belly before going on your trip!"

                Patrick looked at the man confusedly. "My...trip? Wait, you're really going to put me on a hunt?"

                He nodded. "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

                The young man shook his head. "How about the fact that I just got here? And don't have any training?"

                "Yeah you do seem on the scrawny side compared to the other folk here." He teased giving him a poke. "Still, for people like us, we need to make sure we can gather as much resources as possible. Can't have anyone slackin' not even for a second!"

                There he goes with his ‘people like us' talk again. "So, why're you going to have me hunt if I don't have any training."

                Just then a voice came over from behind the bulky man. "That's where I come in." In came a fit-looking young man with dirty purple hair. Definitely an...unusual hair color, but for a dream like this it would probably be normal. "Name's Cornell. I'm a hunter, and Hatch here told me to help show you the ropes."

                Patrick looked at Hatch. "You already got someone on the job huh?" At this point he wasn't even going to question it. This ‘Hatch' fellow seemed to be the type to act on his own without warning.

                Hatch chuckled. "Of course! You don't remember much right? Well at this time of the season it ain't safe to take you to wherever your home was, so it's for the best we take care o' ya and put ya to work as soon as possible!" He patted his shoulder, but more gently than before. "...What's your name by the way."

                "O-oh!" He only just realized he never introduced himself. "Sorry, I'm Patrick."

                Cornell looked at Hatch with a questioning look. "You had him put on a job before knowing what his name even was? I know you're impulsive, Hatch, but come on!"

                They talked for a little while before Cornell and Patrick were set on our trip. We headed to the edge of town, to which Patrick looked back and forth in confusion. "Um..." He started, there was a lot he still didn't know. "So, Hatch says we're going hunting, but...is it really safe to go hunting at night?"

                Cornell looked at me in confusion for a second, but then his face brightened with a chuckle. "Oooh, right, yes. You're new here, so you don't know! It isn't night time."

                Patrick gave Cornell a skeptical look. "Um...excuse me? It's nearly pitch black!"

                Cornell bit his lower lip, looking unsure how to explain. "I'll tell you what. Once we're out, you'll see what I mean."

                ‘Get out'? As Patrick thought this, he took notice of a small light up ahead. It got brighter and brighter, the closer they got, nearly blinding Patrick. However, the closer he got, he realized that there was a wall ahead of them, a wall with a hole that the light was shining in from. As they reached the hole, they both stopped in their tracks. Cornell looked at Patrick with a friendly smile. "After you!"

                Patrick gave an unsure look to his companion, but against his better judgement, he followed his advice and headed through the hole. He covered his eyes, which stinged from the sudden brightness. As he stepped out he could hear many sounds at once. Birds singing, crickets chirping, the sound of the win. What most grabbed his attention, however, was the feel of warm sunlight touching his skin. As his eyes adjusted to the light...a sight laid before him that was more otherworldly than anything he had ever experienced.

                A forest...a forest filled with trees the size of monuments. It was absolutely impossible to describe the sheer magnitude of the numerous trees that surrounded him and Cornell. No, not even just the trees. EVERYTHING! The grass, the leaves, flowers in the distance. They were several times larger than the sizes of Patrick and Cornell combined could ever hope to match. Noticing a nearby blade of grass, Patrick found that he must've been no larger than half its size. Practically the size of a bug! This was...impossible! The trees alone were larger than anything he'd seen in his entire life.

                "I-I...!" Patrick was wide-eyed and in shock, collapsing on his knees.

                "...! Patrick!" Cornell kneeled by his side, putting his hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay? You seem to be in shock. Are you getting sick?!"

                Patrick looked around in a daze at the expansive trees that casted intimidating shadows over them. Being just barely able to process Cornell's words, Patrick shook his head. "N-no just...this is impossible!"

                Cornell tilted his head, looking at Patrick in a strange way. "Hm? What is?"

                The shocked young man turned and looked at his companion in disbelief. "Are...are you not seeing what I'm seeing?! The gigantic trees! The Leaves! The grass! None of them should be this big!"

                He gave back a confused look as he turned to analyze their surroundings. "I'm not sure what you mean. They've always been this big. Been this size my entire life."

                Patrick shook his head. This was too much...just what was going on?!

                As the blonde, young flower girl opened the door to her home, she looked around to see no one in the living room. She let out a sigh and she called out. "Father! Are you home?"

                From upstairs she heard a man's voice. "Yeah, I'm home, Elizabeth! I'm taking a nap so could you please be quiet?"
                "Tsk tsk..." Elizabeth clicked her tongue as she rested her flower basket on the table. Ever since her mother passed away, it seemed her father would rarely ever take the time to have some small talk with her. She understood he was in grief, she was too. Still, since she's currently the breadwinner, it'd at least be nice to hear a ‘thank you' from him! Not that she'd say this out loud.

                She once again sighed and looked in the cabinet for anything to eat. There was still some bread left, so she took some and had a bite. She sat down in the dining room's chair and stared out the window. Just beyond the fence and a grassy plain, she saw the wood to a dense forest not far beyond the town's borders. It would normally be the place she'd visit to pick some flowers for the flower shop she worked for. The wildlife in this area was benign, so it had never been much of an issue for her to explore the place on her own. She didn't mind going in alone. Honestly the quiet time and getting to take in the Goddess Bell's natural wonders always helped to ease her nerves and take her mind off of...other things.

                As Elizabeth thought this over, she looked back toward the stairs just outside the kitchen. She knew just up there was her father, taking a nap, and probably not wanting anyone to bother him. With an annoyed groan she stood up. "Maybe another trip wouldn't be a bad idea..."

                Having said that out loud she grabbed her flower basket and opened the door. She stopped for a second and looked back at the stairway once more, giving a longing glance. After a second she continued her way to the forest, closing the door behind her.

                Patrick and Cornell walked their way through the dense foliage of grass and fallen leaves. It took a good while for Patrick to regain his will to move, if anything because of his partner's encouragement. As shocking as it all was, Patrick was indeed able to get a better grasp on the situation. It seemed that the world he was in was much larger than he expected. The trees, the animals, everything! The people, however, were much smaller. Judging by the size of the blade of grass he saw earlier, he had to have been no larger than an inch tall. Talk about a humbling experience, being reduced to the size of a bug!

                Patrick shook his head as he thought all this, continuing to reason himself that it was all a dream. It must've been! Talking radios, invisible entities, being transported to a different world, even the scale of the place! None of it could be real! ...Even so, he couldn't help but have doubts. Even for a dream, this one had been far longer and far more realistic than any he had ever experienced. Still, he had to hold on to some sort of semblance of reality, so he just held onto that explanation.

                "We should find it soon." Cornell stated, snapping Patrick out of his trance. "Soon enough we'll find a group of ants and jump them! The buggers can be quick, so we have to make sure to deal a fatal blow before they can get away."

                That's right, they were leaving to get some ant meat to bring back to the village in the tree...god, the fact that an entire village would be staying in a hollowed-out tree was surreal in itself. It made sense, wanting to not be out in the open, but the lighting just made everything so bizarre.

                Just then, however, the world had one last surprise that would change Patrick's life entirely. As they moved, they both stopped in their tracks as they felt the ground shaking. "Did you feel that?!" Cornell shouted, looking around with a cautious demeanor. "I know that feeling... it's..."

                Just then the ground shook again. And again. Along with the shaking came loud ‘thuds', which almost sounded like thunder. As they continued and got louder, Cornell's cautious look soon became terror as he slowly shook his head. "No...no! Why this far out!?" Before saying anything else, he turned and grabbed Patrick's shoulder. "Change of plans! We're leaving! We're heading back to the village!"

                Patrick gave a surprised gasp. Before, Cornell seemed more confident and brave than anyone he'd seen. Suddenly, however, Cornell's words dripped with terror and fear. "I-I don't understand-"

                "I don't care, just go!" Cornell yelled at him, and that was all he needed. Without another word, both Patrick and Cornell made a break for it, running back from where they came. As they continued to do so, they just heard the thunderous noise get louder and louder, and the shaking equivalently got more severe. Against his better judgement, his curiosity pushed Patrick to look behind him to see what was making the noise. The sight was beyond anything he could've ever imagined. Just around the tree, a beautiful young blonde woman wearing a pretty white dress and a brown vest came walking in. This woman, however, was the size of a god! No, a titan! With each step her boots made on the ground, it came with a thunderous ‘boom' and shook the area around them like an earthquake. Worse yet, she was walking in their direction! "Shit!" Cornell, who apparently was looking at the goddess too, stumbled a bit as he noticed the oblivious woman's feet fast approaching the running duo. In just a second, it seemed her right foot was about to collide with them. "Move!" Was all Cornell said before grabbing Patrick, and shoving him ahead. The moment he did, he stumbled on the ground and fell.

                It all happened in just a second, but felt like an eternity for Patrick. As Cornell shoved him ahead, he fell to the ground. The adrenaline pumping through the young man led him to immediately try to scramble back up, as he looked back at Cornell, who fell to the ground. He was about to go help the young hunter up, when suddenly he noticed the boot of the blonde woman closing in. He could see it all. The foot greater than the size of a hole building, the mud and dirt caked to its sole from frequent use, the little specks of said dirt that would fall like rain for each movement the girl made. Slowly, he saw her right foot land just behind Cornell with a thunderous boom, the tip of her toes literally right at his feet. Noticing that he hadn't been crushed, Cornell seemed to immediately work to scramble his way back up, but fate had different plans. As he tried to move, the woman's left foot took a step forward, and following through with the motion, her right foot leaned forward onto its toes, pinning down the legs of the poor man. As it did so, Patrick could hear a sickening and audible ‘crack' echoe out into the air, a crack that only got louder the more the woman's right boot moved. This prompted Cornell to let out an ear-splitting cry of agony as his legs were being pulverized under the cute lady's sole.

                Elizabeth was having a relaxing time walking through the woods. She appreciated listening to the birds singing, the crickets chirping, and feeling the breeze through her hair. This peaceful walk would be interrupted, however, as Elizabeth could swear that she heard a slight ‘crack' coming from her feet. She also felt as if something under her right toes were giving way under their weight. Stopping in her tracks for a second, she looked down at her feet. The first thing she noticed the inch-tall person, seemingly sitting in shock at her feet.

                "Oh my..." She trailed off a bit at the sight of the tiny thing, but there wasn't a hint of surprise in her voice. "Is that one of those humanoid bugs I heard about?" She kneeled down to get a closer look.

                The words of the woman above him barely registered for Patrick. All he could focus on was his companion, who was still pinned under her toes and clearly in horrible agony. He wanted to step forward. Help pull him out from under there. But the striking fear froze him in place at the sight before him. A gigantic human being just crushed someone's legs into the dirt. How could anyone process this!

                "HM?" The loud voice of the woman speaking, soft in nature, but incredibly loud to the tiny young man, echoed in the air around him. As Patrick stood there in silence, the young Elizabeth's eyes looked down, focusing on the toes of her boots, and noticed the other ‘bug' pinned under her toes. "OH MY! MY APOLOGIES!" Having said that, she lifted her foot, which prompted Cornell to scream once again, his now flattened legs stuck to the sole of her shoes, lifting him up a bit. The lady herself seemed aware of this, and kept her foot elevated in the air until the flesh and gore on her sole slowly began to peel off, allowing Cornell to fall face first into the dirt.

                Elizabeth tilted her head at the injured creature, and took note of his crushed legs, which made her frown a bit. "OH DEAR, DID I HURT YOU? AWW, SORRY LITTLE GUY..." Though loud, her voice was so sweet that Patrick couldn't interpret  the sympathy in her words as anything other than genuine. But... her saying it in such a matter-of-fact and casual way sent chills down his spine. She was clearly guilty, but she was quick to brush it off as a simple mistake, as if she just hurt a bug and not a human being. "ARE YOU STILL...?"

                As she trailed off, her finger came forward and poked Cornell's back. To her it was a gentle touch, but to the man himself it was like having a boulder forcefully slamming him into the ground, and he cried in incomprehensible pain. He tried to crawl away, tears streaming down his face, but his lack of legs and the woman's overpowering finger kept him in place.

                As Elizabeth poked the ‘bug' she noticed the wriggling reaction it gave, and her hand instinctively reeled back. "EEK...!" Her squeal echoed through both men's skulls. Her momentary look of fear quickly subsided, and was replaced with the same look of sympathy she had before.

                After a brief pause, she stood back up, and Patrick looked at the goddess in awe. The fact something so large could make such a simple, yet gigantic movement from his perspective seemed to completely incomprehensible. "DON'T WORRY..." The girl said. "YOU WON'T HAVE TO SUFFER ANYMORE..." Patrick didn't know how to take the lady's words, but he would soon find his answer. The next moment, he witnessed her titanic boot hover into the air, its shadow being cast over Cornell. He could see it all. The mud firmly adhered to the treads of the boot, the various specked of dirts that fell like rain over them as it hovered in the air, and even the blood plastered onto the toes of the boot from crushing Cornell's legs. "QUICK AND PAINLESS..." The giantess spoke softly to herself as she trailed off, but these words alone made it click in Patrick's head what she was about to do.

                "N-no! Don't...!" He tried to call up, but it was too late. Faster than anything he'd ever seen, the ball of her foot came down on Cornell's entire being, kicking up a fog of dust before the young man. As it landed, he could hear the sickening crack coming from underneath, and the sound of Cornell's cries coming to a brief end. The dust quickly cleared up and she saw the boot ground into the dirt. Elizabeth's foot seemed to be grinding back and forth for good measure, further releasing the sounds of Cornell's already pulverized body. After a second, she lifted her foot, revealing a horrific spot of blood and gore before Patrick. Plastered on the ground, as well as the boot, was a spot of blood, and even some trails of guts and flesh that still connected the two spots as she removed her foot.

                Elizabeth leaned down, looking at the spot of blood, and nodded to appreciate her work. She clasped her hands together, as if in prayer. "MAY THE GODDESS OF NATURE BRING YOU TO NIRVANA..." As she said this her eyes opened, and locked onto Patrick, who looked back in unadulterated fear. After all that, she gave Patrick a sweet, innocent smile. It was angelic, pure and beautiful, but to the young man it was a sight more chilling than anything he'd ever seen. "SORRY FOR YOUR FRIEND...BUT I HOPE YOU'LL HAVE A GOOD DAY REGARDLESS!" Having said that, she lifted herself up and walked away. The blood on her sole was likely being scraped off with each step she took, until she was out of Patrick's sight.

                Patrick just watched her leave, a look of horror and unending fear plastered on his face. How could he describe what he just witnessed? How could he describe a sight more terrible than anything he'd ever witnessed? How could he...

...

...

...

                After a moment of silence, Patrick vomited.