The little people formed a group, each running to a horse, which I spotted near the edge of the clearing. They brought their steeds near, and more than one nickered, as they came closer to my massive form. My friend, the one who was originally on my belly, waved me forward. They brought their horses ahead of me and took off. I followed behind them, my footsteps covering a large distance. Luckily, their horses cantered ahead of me, keeping pace with the distance I covered. They took me along a wide open road, of which I could easily walk along without being encompassed. The trees were, as I said, barely half my height. Only a select few were tall enough to take note of. I stopped, and crouched down to examine one. I grabbed a branch, and felt it. It was like any normal Earthly evergreen pine. Just… smaller. The soldiers noticed my stop, and they rode back yelling. The sergeant was the loudest, shouting at me, and poking at my heels, urging me to get going toward Alctopi. I stood up, taking in the tiny people, with their tiny mounts, standing at the base of my bare foot. It was amusing, to see the difference in size between my foot, and these people.

I took off, moving at my leisurely pace again. They rode far ahead and I could see that they were clearly enjoying themselves. All except the sergeant, who rode point, sitting upright in a stiff position, with a sullen expression which I caught when he turned to check up on his troops. My friend was the jolliest of the 4, laughing and joking with his friends. If only I could understand their language! In due time, all in due time as they say. The soaring castle came closer, and more features were revealed to me. It was truly a splendid creation. Turrets and ramparts were beautifully made. The thick walls, a reddish, yellowish color, were thick, yet blended beautifully with the rest. The inner sanctuary was the tallest part, with a spire reaching just above me. I could reach it, if I extended my arms to their fullest extent.

Soon, they started shouting again. I stopped, but quickly realized that it wasn’t meant for me. A town was sitting right ahead of us. People were streaming out of their houses, taking a look at my towering form. There were at least 30 of them, men, women, children, all mixed in together.

An old man walked up to the sergeant and started to converse with him in low tones. The sergeant pointed at himself, then up at me with his spear. The old man’s eyes started to grow larger, as he listened to whatever the soldier was telling him. Soon, a crowd was gathered, as the sergeant continued to talk. I walked up to them slowly, their attention completely focused on the sergeant. Nobody noticed my approach and soon, I was right over them.

A woman noticed me first, and started to scream. I hurriedly backed away, not wanting to frighten the little people too much. The sergeant started to ride toward me, shouting in his tongue. But strangely, my friend, of whom I have taken to calling the man I found on my belly, jumped up at the sergeant, shouting back.

My heart stirred a little, as I saw that he was defending me. I stepped out of the town, back onto the main road, as they argued. Grudgingly, the sergeant backed down again, this time shooting me a venomous glare and my friend the same. My friend came over and decided to talk.

“Et liut, ofed huy…” He said; as I crouched down to hear him better. The other people, seeing this soldier’s bravery at coming right up to my feet, started to inch forward. Soon, my friend was indicating something else.

“Ute cid Carn” he batted his chest, indicating himself. He repeated Carn, twice more and I realized that he was telling me his name. Carn, this was the name of my protector in this strange little land.

I in turn patted my chest and told him my name. “Amanda” I said, indicating myself. He nodded, and tried out the English name.

“Uh-man-duh” He drew it out, pronouncing each syllable carefully. He got it the first time, and I smiled, nodding. He returned my smile and ran back to the horses, shouting out to the villagers. He must have shouted that we were leaving as they all spread to the sides, leaving a space open for the soldiers to ride through. Carn waved, and so did the two other normal soldiers. The sergeant rode ahead again, not looking back at all, horse pointed straight at Alctopi.

Soon, we left the town behind, with some waving at us as we left. I waved back, which earned me some laughter, smiles, and confusion. I strode forward, my pace taking me a great distance, as the castle loomed ever so closer. We stopped at a river, which blocked the path, save for a bridge wide enough for what seemed like 3 of their horses. The river, more like a stream to me, served as the place where we ate lunch. As I had nothing to eat, I drank from the river, trying to rid my body of hunger, by quenching my thirst. The soldiers ate what looked like meat, and I eyed it hungrily. But it was too small of a morsel for my massive figure, not even appearing bigger than a dot to me.

Carn walked up, and I sat there, eyeing him patiently. He seemed nervous, and he walked right up to my leg. I looked down at him and he nervously stared back at me, and offered his hand up. In it was a tiny piece of bread. My heart fluttered for him again, as he once more tried to help me to the best of his abilities. But I shook my head, indicating the miniscule size of the bread, as I pinched my thumb and forefinger together, to make him realize how small his offer was. He blushed shade of pink, and walked away, embarrassed.

I picked him up carefully though, and he gave a quick shout of surprise. His comrades jumped up, grabbing their spears as they did so. I ignored them as they ran at me. And I hugged Carn, right up against my chest. The soldiers still came, shouting but he shouted back at them, realizing what I was doing, and they were silenced, staring up at him, in my powerful grip.

And he attempted to hug me back, extending his arms as best he could. I put him down after a few seconds, right next to his friends, who checked him over really quickly, just to make sure he wasn’t hurt. He waved them off, and looked up at me, smiling. I smiled back and stood up, casting a shadow over him, the other soldiers, and the horses, which started to skitter a bit upon seeing my humongous size again. The soldiers packed up the remains of their meal, and remounted their steeds.

They took off, moving at a slow pace over the bridge, while I just walked through the river, the water reaching up slightly past my ankles. As soon as they crossed, they took their lead again, staying a few feet ahead of me, out of reach of my steps, but close enough to where I could hear them talking amongst themselves. I caught my name quite a few times in one conversation, and they all laughed. All except for the sergeant, who refused to participate in their chats.

And then we arrived at Alctopi. There was a large gate, blocking the path. It rose to a height which brought it right underneath my thigh. The soldiers on top instantly froze in fear when they saw me, but the sergeant and Carn rode out, shouting again, this time it seemed like, to open the gate. There was a hesitation, as the captain of the guard on the gate, decided what to do. But eventually, he opened the gate and my friends rode through. I simply stepped over it, swinging my right leg over, then my left.

The city was beautiful. There was an immediate difference between the outside country and inside urban center. Out there, forests covered the land, with towns interspersed along the main road. But inside the walls, and the gate, a lively city prospered. All the buildings were made out of stone, and some even rose up to my chest. Architecture was very exquisite, yet plain. Beautiful stained glass windows were featured, in many vivid colors. It reminded me of pictures of times before the 20th century, with the stone buildings. Before steel and plastic were invented.

A multitude of people gathered on the main cobblestone path which we walked on. Carn rode forward, chest jutted out, proud of himself. I simply strode, gathering all the eyes that were out on the street. They had never before seen a giant, and I was simply amazing to them. More gathered, and their eyes were almost popping out of their heads as they beheld my majesty. I waved once or twice, and even received a few waves in return. But mostly, the miniature civilization sat still, awaiting what I would do.

I then emerged in a large plaza, a square that could hold me, lying down, without my head or feet touching a surrounding building that made up the square. One side was composed of the huge castle, which the ramparts and walls atoned to that fact. And on the castle, was a large door sitting at ground level, and a balcony above it. And then, a richly dressed figure emerged on the balcony.

I was about to meet with the Emperor.