"There has to be some mistake! A clone, an illusion!" Susan yelled. "There wasn't. I could sense it. It was definitely you. At some point in the future, you murder my husband, the father of my children" Lawan said gritting her teeth. She pressed her foot down harder squeezing the air out of the borrower girl's lungs. "I... can’t let that happen" the giantess said shedding tears. A rib cracked causing Susan to cry out in pain. And then, her innate power awoke once more. She held her tiny hand up between the giantess' toes. "Analyzing of spells. Growth and fortification level ones. Spell destruction" she muttered before a beam of light shot from her hand. Lawan yelped as her own magics were torn apart. She shrank down to her normal size and lay in the stone circle dazed.

"Ice blade level two" Susan muttered as she formed a sword of hard cold ice in her hands. She ran forward so fast the blades of grass cut her ankles. "Oh shit!" Lawan said as the girl closed the distance. She threw up a barrier for defense and Susan kicked it aiming for her head. The blow shoved Lawan to the right 15 (to their scale) feet. "Alchemical destruction. Oxygen separation...detonation" she muttered. Susan had torn the oxygen from the very air, compressed it and blew it up point blank in front of Lawan. Her ears were ringing. Her barrier broken. And now felt Susan’s hand squeezing her throat. The blade of ice looming over her head ready to strike her down. Lawan could see the magical array in her eye. Her hand trembled as she looked upon the Asian girl. "NOOOO!" Susan screamed tossing the blade to the ground. She collapsed to her knees shaking. Lawan rubbed her throat as she stood up. She walked over to Susan extending her hand.

"Don't touch me!" she screamed. "I... I won't hurt you" Lawan sighed. "Not you I'm scared of" Susan muttered. "Let's go inside so we can talk" Lawan said. Susan nervously held her hand as she got up. "Just a minute ago you tried to smush me under your dirty foot. Why be nice now?" Susan asked. Lawan still held her hand. "I panicked. I was terrified of losing him. You can understand that right?" Lawan asked looking at her with tears in her eyes. "More than you know" she replied softly. Lawan led her back into the house and prepared tea. "So, where is he?" Susan asked. "Your rescue didn't go without incident. Keith purposely violated Indian airspace and was nearly shot down by a fighter. According to Keith, Hope shrank the jet and teleported it into the plane" Lawan said. "You gotta be shitting me" Susan said. Lawan stood up and got the teapot. "No, I'm not shitting you".

"Hope sent the jet and the pilot back to its hangar normal size but what's done was done" Lawan said. "So magic was exposed?" Susan asked. Lawan poured her tea. "Shockingly no. From what your scouts said, the gun cam was damaged during the teleport and the pilot is catatonic from shock. What they do know is the jet disappeared from radar and then poof back in its hangar without being seen landing or anything" she replied. Susan sighed in relief. "Don't sigh. Keith’s in big trouble. India is demanding he be extradited from the UK" Lawan said. "We're not turning him over" Susan said. "Either him or Rose" Lawan said. Susan stood up. "They won't get neither. I'll send Briar Patch...

"And kill the entire judicial board?" Lawan asked. Susan had no answer. "Keith’s working on a diplomatic solution as we speak. But first those powers of yours. We should take a closer look" Lawan said. "Hell to the no. I get you had your Yoda moment with Keith and Clare but leave me out" Susan said. "You broke my spells as if they were cobwebs. We can't just pretend this power doesn't exist" Lawan said. "You don't understand! When I kick this power into full gear it's like turning off my soul! It took every ounce of will not to shove that sliver of ice through your heart."

"It's terrifying Lawan. Imagine knowledge being shoved into your brain so you can use it to kill someone. As I held you by your throat a hundred different ways of killing you crossed my mind. Decapitation, boiling your blood, ripping the potassium from your body and setting you on fire with it. Fuck! I didn't even know that shit burns until the magic told me! I thought this would be cool...it's not" Susan sobbed. Around that time, Keith entered the house. "What's up jellybean?" Keith asked. Susan held him tight and sobbed. "She's scared of her power" Lawan muttered. Keith nodded. "Any word?" Lawan asked. "They want our flight data and me" he replied.

"And?" Lawan asked. "Forwarded it to Rose and her answer was and I quote..."eat a bag of dicks. You tried to shoot down a civilian aircraft engaged in humanitarian rescue operations. You want extradition? We'll go over it at the same time we file a violation of the UN regulations regarding search and rescue in a non-warzone" he said reading off his phone. "That's my girl" Susan chuckled. "And now to you. Who was that man with you?" he asked. "My dad Tegan" she replied. "Whoa" Keith said. "Gets worse. He was Scorpio of ZODIAC and sent to kill me. That's how the plane went down" she replied. "He sent you through the rift" Keith said confused. "We were being hunted by cannibalistic hybrid gremlins. And no, I'm not making shit up. They were right on top of us when I fainted. He didn't make it did he?" Susan asked. "...no. He said to tell you he never stopped loving you" Keith said. Susan fell to her knees once more. "I wish I never tried to find him. I only did because of my luck powers. It was easier...easier when I thought he was dead!" she yelled.

"Now do you understand?! This power is a fucking curse!" she shouted at Lawan. "I'll bring ruin to everyone eventually. You, Keith, hope, my sweet Ruby. I should've let you kill me" Susan said to her. Lawan held her tight and used her free hand to knock her out. She carried her to her room. "What the hell did she mean by that last bit?" Keith asked concerned. "We can discuss it when we're of better minds" she replied. "Uh...no. When I ask a question, I expect an answer" he said coldly putting his hand on her shoulder. "You are my husband, but you will not talk to me with disrespect" she said. "Yes I am your husband but when a guest of our house, someone I care about I find with bruises on her arms and smelling of your feet, says you should've killed her, I will get my answer when I ask for it" he said walking close to her. Lawan could see the anger in his eyes. "Oberon shut the fuck up" he muttered. "She's going to kill you" Lawan replied softly. "So, you thought it was best to crush the life out of her" he said.

"If you had...if you had I would be forgetting who you are...and who I am. If we have problems with loved ones, we work it out not flatten them under your fucking feet!" he screamed. "You didn't see what I saw! You think it was easy to decide that?!" she yelled crying. "Easy? Maybe not but I bet it was easier knowing she's in love with me" he said coldly. Lawan slapped him. "Dinner time will be soon, so I have to get the kids from the neighbors. Don't even THINK of touching Susan" he growled before storming out. Lawan slumped into a chair and sobbed. Keith returned 20 minutes later with the infants and Hope. "Dad. Can I see the human city again?" Hope asked during dinner. "Only if you're big. You need practice" Keith said softly. Hope quietly nodded. She looked at Lawan and back at her father. "I don't understand" she muttered. "Understand what dear?" Keith asked. "How aunt Lawan can feel mad, sad, and scared at the same time" she said. Lawan put her fork down and covered her mouth. "Adult stuff" Keith said. "But I wanna know. It's hard to block out so many emotions and thoughts" she said.

"Me and your aunt said and did things very bad" he replied softly. "Then say sorry" the girl said annoyed. The husband and wife looked at one another. "I'm sorry for saying what I said honey" Keith said. "I'm sorry for what I did. You're right. We should look into this before deciding anything rash" she replied. "Good! Auntie you promised to paint my toes later. Don't forget!" Hope said cheerily before leaving the table. "It comes so easy to her" Lawan muttered as she cleaned the faces of the babies. "Most kids are like that. It's only when we grow older that we compound our issues with adult bullshit" Keith said.  "You're happy go lucky more than often" she said. "You should've known me five years ago. And I have reason to be now" he said tickling the cheek of his infant son Justin. "Can you bathe the kids while I clean up here?" she asked. Keith nodded.

As she washed dishes, she thought back to the vision she had. It was dusk, the sky was deep red, and she found herself on her stomach in a field. In the distance was the bodies of soldiers and close to her was Claire, Elena, and Hikari who was wearing a strange broken armor. The stars in the constellations pulsed overhead of a mountain. And hovering in the air was Susan who held Keith by the throat. Lacerations all over his body, blood dripping off him. His sword sticking in the ground underneath them. "You should’ve known this was coming Keith. You had fair warning when you saw what I was capable of" she said. "Should've killed you...back then" he coughed out. "Yeah...don't worry. You won't be alone in the afterlife. I'll personally see to it" she said coldly. "Lemurian spell. Alchemical destruction level three. Entropy" she muttered. Keith cried off for a single instant before his entire body was reduced to carbon ash. Ash which scattered in the wind. "You monster!" Lawan yelled. There was a flash of light before Susan floated to the ground and it now occurred to Lawan that the woman had cast a spell shrinking the area around her and everyone in it. Susan brought her blood-stained sole over her body. "Be a dutiful wife and join your husband" Susan said before slamming her foot down.

Lawan dropped the dinner plate. As she cleaned it up, the woman shook. She had seen some terrible things in the last year, but nothing compared to that vision. Her love of her life reduced to basic lifeless elements before her eyes.

Later that night...

Lawan sat on the porch looking at the stars. Everyone else was asleep so she was not expecting the sound of bare feet on the floor behind her. "Got anything to eat?" Susan asked making the Asian girl jump. "Didn't mean to scare ya" she said. "It's alright. I bet you are hungry. You missed dinner after all" Lawan said walking to the kitchen. "That happens when someone knocks you the fuck out" Susan grumbled. "You understand why?" Lawan asked getting food out of the fridge. Susan didn't answer. The sound of a crying baby broke their train of thought. Lawan left the kitchen and returned with Justin. "I can hold him" Susan said seeing Lawan trying to decide what to do. Lawan gave her her son but kept a close eye on her. "So fussy" Susan said bouncing him in her arms. "He's hungry. I'll put the food in the microwave and then feed him" Lawan said looking.

As she made a plate, she could hear the boy crying softly until suddenly it stopped. She quickly glanced over very worried only to find Susan gently cradling him as he breastfed. "Much better" Susan said softly. She sat down in a chair and rocked back and forth as she played with the boy's hair. Lawan couldn't help but notice how peaceful she looked. "I had no idea you had a child" Lawan said. "I don't. Almost did but I lost the baby. Carried it long enough to enter the lactation stage though" Susan replied. "I'm sorry. How did the father take it?" Lawan asked. Susan didn't wish to lie to the woman. "Keith was hurt by the loss. He's dealing with it as best as he can" Susan replied. Lawan froze.

"Not his baby per se. It's a long story full of parallel universes, rape, and dramatic rescues" Susan said. Lawan didn't miss the rape part. For a moment she was furious that Keith never mentioned fathering a kid with her but hearing the rape part meant there was far more to the story. She knew Keith was a horny fucker, but he wasn't capable of raping someone he loved. She left the matter be for now. "He fell asleep just like that?" Susan asked. "You have a knack for it" Lawan said. "Too bad I won't be able to put it into real practice" Susan said. "You're young. You can try again" the woman said. "There's a lot in my life I want but I don't see myself raising a kid from scratch. Look at me. I can barely keep my shit together for the adopted daughter I have. Can only imagine the hang-ups I could give a toddler. Mommy never being home. Coming home smelling of blood. Having to explain to their friends that mommy kills people. Ruby herself is just now realizing that my job is not some James Bond bullshit" Susan said.  

"What do you want in life right here right now?" Lawan asked placing the hot chicken and rice on the table. She took Justin from her so she could eat.  "What I want in life? Hmm. I want a normal nine to five job. I want to raise a kid in safety. I want someone to hold me when I'm hurting and suck my toes when my feet hurt. I want...I want bad shit to stop happening" Susan said slumping in her chair. "Eat" Lawan said. "And you want my husband to give you these things?" she asked. Susan didn't answer. "I know you took the loss of Lily hard and Keith was there to pick up the pieces for you. Does it have to be him?" Lawan asked. "Maybe I just want someone I know won't die on me" Susan said. "Buddha teaches us we all have desires. Some basic and others not. As a borrower you seek a capable mate that can protect you and your offspring. A mate versed in sensuality, affection, and kindness. But as Susan, you need someone who won't leave your life. Someone to keep you...sane" Lawan said. "I'm that transparent?" Susan asked.

"I only know because I was like you at one time. Stumbling through life. Waiting for the other shoe to fall. I can understand how it feels to find comfort in a man that makes you feel alive again. We have roleplay nights you know. And between you and me, Keith is one kinky bastard. He likes for me to shrink down in this house and hunt me. "Don't hurt me Mr. giant!" I say as I wriggle in his fist. I can see the lust in his eyes as he pulls my clothes off. His warm breath as his mouth opens up and lays me on his tongue. How he takes his time to suck on me. My heart races as I could just slip right down his throat. And when it's all over and I'm wiping the spit off my body, he sits there with his magnificent giant cock drooling semen on the floor looking at me with eyes so soft they tickle my soul" Lawan said softly in the end. "Is there a point to telling me this other than making me wet?" Susan asked.

"My point is this. It took me years to find a man like him. It didn't happen when I was trying to kill myself in the cliff outside the city. He wasn't there when I used my shrunken students as sex toys to feel better. And he wasn't there when my parents didn't call me on the birthdays since. It came in its own time" she said. "So, I should just wait" Susan said. "Keith is what you want. Not what you need. You confuse the two" Lawan said standing up. "Good chicken" Sudan said finishing. "The secret is the local herbs. Goodnight Susan" Lawan said leaving.

The next day...

"I still say this is a horrible idea" Susan said sitting in the training circle human sized. "You said you were focused enough to know you had to save that girl in Atlanta even though you were fully powered. That you had a specific intent separate from saving yourself. We need to find out why and that takes practice. So yes, you're getting the Yoda treatment" Lawan said playfully slapping her giant big toe. "So how do we start?" Susan asked. "Nice and easy. Create a steady gust of wind and direct it at me" she said. The giantess concentrated and a gentle breeze hit the three-inch woman at her feet. "How do you feel?" Lawan asked. "Nothing much" she replied. "Now kick it up a notch by making it rain on me" she said. Susan shrugged and pressed harder drawing on her magic. Her eye began to faintly glow. A patch of clouds formed over Lawan's head and it began to drizzle. Susan laughed. "This looks like some Bugs Bunny shit" she snickered.

"I'm glad you're so relaxed but I asked for rain not drizzle" she said. Susan frowned and it began to steadily rain. She grimaced where she sat and clenched her toes. "Stop holding back. You're fighting yourself. This wouldn’t even water my garden. Until you can straight up drench me, you're going to sit out here while I have fun with Keith. It's Friday so that means it's my turn for roleplay. Shrunken scientist? Yeah haven't had him worship my pussy in a while. He can worship my feet really good, but he knows how to hump a giant clit like nobody's business" Lawan muttered. Susan grit her teeth as her eye flared up. "Lowering barometric pressure. Lowering air temperature below 32 degrees Fahrenheit" she muttered. What came next wasn't a torrent of rain though. "Jesus! Shit!" Lawan said dropping to her knees as she was pelted with hailstones. Susan snapped out of it and dispersed the spell. "Christ! Lawan hold on!" the giantess said picking her up. She began healing the cuts and bumps on her small body.

"See! This is what happens when I push too hard!" Susan yelled. "No. This is what happens when you don't have the right frame of mind. Magic isn't just conjuring or using your energy to change a state of being. It's enforcing your will on reality. And will is an emotion. Mogwai use anger, rage, lust, and ego. Yaksha use peace, stillness, and hope. Fae used desire, structure, vanity, and synergy. And the koonago...honestly I'm not sure" Lawan said. "And what about me?" Susan asked. "That girl you saved. How did she make you feel?" Lawan asked. "Candice? She was adorable. That poor girl and she was so brave. That night we had together" she muttered. "So, you were intimate I see" Lawan said. Susan blushed. "I think I know what drives your focus now. Put me down and let's begin again" Lawan said.

Susan repeated the steps until there was a light steady rain on the tiny girl. Lawan could see the giantess trembling down to her toes. "Now listen closely. That day of the battle I saw how broken you were. The loss of a loved one I know that pain and as your friend I wished I could take it away. That night I went to your room and I heard you sobbing so hard. My cowardness prevented me from entering. I should have entered. I should have told you I'm sorry. And I know I should have told you you're not alone. And... I’m that person you needed. We became family that day through blood, pain, loss, and grief. And family loves one another without...conditions. I failed you then and I failed you yesterday" Lawan said. "Lowering barometric pressure. Condensing water vapor" Susan muttered shedding tears.

A torrent of harmless rain fell on Lawan before Susan picked her up and kissed her. "I knew that was your focus. It's love Susan. Whatever you may be, love is what binds you to your power. Never forget that" she said. With a sigh, Susan felt a weight leave her heart and her power briefly connected to the hearts and minds of those around. People paused to look at the giantess guest in their city and smiled warmly. Suddenly, Susan lashed out dropping Lawan to the ground. "What is it?!" Lawan asked worried. "Something...something is wrong with Keith! Pain! Anger! So much pain and anger!" Susan yelled. Keith was outside in the human city with Hope showing her around and getting her used to being human sized among people. Susan rushed from the training circle so fast her bare feet made tremors. She didn't even notice her strides were more like short glides through the air. She went through the magical gate to find chaos in the street.

People dead on the street. Women crying and wailing. A crowd had gathered not far away. Susan rushed over. "Oh god" she muttered seeing Keith bleeding on the street. "Help is in the way!" a man shouted in Thai. "Keith! I'm right here!" Susan yelled kneeling. "Men. Men took her! Took them all!" Keith yelled coughing out blood. Blood streamed from his chest from a lung shot. She knew from experience he would die before he got treatment. She picked him up in his arms. "You can't move him!" a man yelled at her. With barely a thought, she shoved him aside with a gust of wind. Only a few people watched the western barefoot girl walk back to the temple. Lawan watched in horror as she returned carrying a bleeding giant in her arms. His blood splattered buildings, windows, people as she walked. When she got near, she shrank themselves down and rushed past the terror stricken Lawan.

"No!" I'll do it" Susan said stopping the woman from healing him. "Too fast and he dies of shock" she explained as she concentrated. "Searching for bullet. Bullet found. Alchemical...magnetic force applied" she muttered using her power to yank the bullet out of him. "Stimulating blood cell reproduction. Stimulating cellular growth. Stabilizing blood pressure" she muttered as she healed him. His wounds closed but he was deathly pale. Lawan was trembling where she stood. "Men with guns took Hope and the kids. I have to...to..." before he passed out. "He's unconscious. Stable for now. Use a low-level healing spell. Nothing higher. Excuse me" Susan said leaving her. Susan walked to the dojo.  There was a sliding door which she opened revealing the combat gear Lawan had worn the day of the battle. She took one look and nodded.

Standing nude, Susan picked up the undergarment first. The breastplate buckled in the front locking it in. Next the shin guards. And then finally the sandals. Her toes set into the worn grooves of the leather insoles. Lawan's feet slightly larger than hers. Her toes slightly longer. Everything fit the wrong way until she touched the plate and concentrated. By magic, it transformed its fittings. Susan didn't pause to admire herself. The armor gleamed from the silver and crystallized iron it was made of. It's enchantments of defense and speed already doing its job. Susan returned to the living room. "You can't go alone" Lawan said. Susan picked up the bullet. "I have to. This was no coincidence" she said tossing the bullet to her. Lawan looked at it and went wide eyed. "It's made out of..."

"Iron. Not lead or copper jacket. THORN calls these fuckers Mage Killers. It'll blow right through a weak fortification like it's not even there. Whoever shot him knew who he was" she said. "Then who?" Lawan asked coldly. "We made some enemies lately. This part of the world who knows" she replied. Lawan put the bullet down and held her arms out. In a flash her trusted glaive appeared and dropped into her hands. "Take my weapon Black Lotus. It has served my family faithfully sister" she said handing it to her. "Sister...alright" Susan nodded before touching the forehead of Keith. Her eye glowed. "He saw them leave in a heavy transport. Jesus, they took a shitload of kids. He heard her screaming for him. He reached out..."

Susan shuttered as she broke the connection. "I'll hunt them down like dogs" she hissed as she walked out. Minutes later, Susan stood in the human city looking around. Her perception spell kept them from seeing the westerner in armor as she watched the makeshift police cart off bodies and take notes from sobbing parents. Overhearing an officer, the armed men attacked just as school has let out. The perfect time to kidnap a whole lot of them. But Susan knew that was just the public face of it. Someone knew Keith was a magic user. She gripped the glaive tightly as the officer confirmed that 31 kids ages 8 to 14 had been taken. Susan concentrated her power looking for Hope.

It wasn't that hard for her. Magic is drawn to magic, and Hope stood out like a lighthouse in the darkness of night. There was a mountain in the far distance and at its base she could sense her. With her destination in mind, Susan chose an old beat up Honda Civic, used magic to start it, and drove off. Ambulances passed by screaming. The old four banger screeching as she pressed the gas. The clutch grinding as she slammed it into third. A bobble head of Buddha jiggled on the drive on the bumpy road. Very dark thoughts entered her mind.

Susan was versed in many aspects of different countries. Knew seven languages. A necessary thing for a three-inch-tall international woman of mystery. Thailand was no exception. Beautiful, historic, exotic, was just a few words used by tourists to describe the place. However, it also had a saying. "Anything goes...for a price". It's part of the Golden Triangle and as such dealt in drugs, guns, and sex. That there is what worried Susan the most. This was no ransom job even if you exclude Hope. No, this was all for sex trafficking. She had heard of kids being taken from villages of the parents wouldn't sell them. Never did she think it was this bad. In her first year as an agent, she had a disagreement with Lily about an assignment. A dealer was pushing tainted extasy in London. The drug has killed 16 people in three months and the police couldn't find the guy. One victim was the daughter of a friend of Lily's.

Susan obliged out of respect but made it clear that they hunt monsters who use magic not drug dealers. Lily replied that not all monsters use magic. Susan searched the dead girl's room for a clue and found it as she got the scent of a human male. Sweat, body spray, and gun oil. She staked out a night club known for having the customers buy in the area. She couldn't see but she could smell the humans pass by not seeing the tiny girl on the ground hiding behind a trash can. Someone would walk by and she caught their scent. Wrong body spray, cologne, cigarette smoke, too old. Too young. Days passed as she waited and having to fend off rats in the meantime. And just before she began to regret even taking the assignment, she hit pay dirt. Two humans stood in front of her. The one on the right she took the scent. "Perfume. Leather, foot sweat, and alcohol. Female in her early 20's" she muttered. She took the one on the left. "Body spray, rubber, gun oil, and... cleaning powder" she muttered. She stood behind the man and used arcane to grow to human size.

"What?" the man asked wondering why the woman in front of him looked like she'd seen someone weird. Susan grabbed him from behind wrapping her arm around his neck in a headlock. "Get outta here" she growled to the woman. She ran off so fast she lost her heeled sandal. "Get the fuck off me slag!" the man yelled. "You sold tainted drugs which killed people" she said. "Fuck you on about?! My shit is legit!" he yelled. "You're lying. I can smell the lie on your breath. You left the stink of yourself on her shirt when you touched it. It's you I've been looking for" she said coldly. "Hey. I got cash. Got a thousand pounds on me right now and more at my loft. Just let me..."

She grabbed his right wrist as he reached for a gun in his pocket. He yelped as she broke it. "You knew it was killing people and sold it anyway" she muttered. "They were addicts. They'd die anyway eventually" he said. Susan understood what Lily meant then. With little emotion she jerked her arm up as hard as she could snapping his neck. She let go of his body and left the area. The cops found him within hours along with his stash. Took only a day to link him to the deaths.

Susan got close to her destination. "I know a thing or two about hunting monsters. God knows I do" she said parking the car not far away. She went the rest of the way on foot as it began to rain. She climbed a tree and shrank down to conceal herself as she looked into what appeared to be an abandoned village. She felt her power coming from a storehouse. The trucks confirmed that the kids were there as well. Rain obscured their scent, so she had to wait and count how many she saw. Two men every 50 ft. on the perimeter. Three more walking in the center. 11 so far. Her eyes say they carried AK-47's. She wondered who shot Keith and did they have just iron rounds. A snake behind her coiled up ready to swallow her whole until she stabbed it through the head without looking. The seven-foot python fell from the tree. She kept watching. They were no ordinary bandits. They did rounds. Kept the rifles tucked in their armpits. "Trained. Experienced" she muttered. Then a flash of light came from the storehouse. "What the hell? That was magic. Did Hope do something?" she asked herself.

Oddly, the men didn't seem to care. In fact, one brought in cages. Something wasn't right at all about this. She couldn't wait any longer and dropped to the ground. She got close and waited till one man was far away enough from his friend to move in. Susan jumped in the air and slashed his throat with her glaive. He fell to the ground clutching his bleeding throat gurgling for help. Susan looked dead at him and their eyes met. His look of confusion and shock to see a three-inch girl in armor holding a toothpick sized weapon staring back at him. Susan went about the other one. He turned to see his friend dead in the mud and went to go over. "Shrinking spell level two. Activation" she muttered as he got close.

The man barely had time to cry out as he quickly shrank down to the size of an ant. Susan walked up to him. She cracked a slight smirk seeing him mired to his waist in mud. "How many are you?" she asked. He went and fired his rifle. The little giantess stood there as speck sized bullets harmlessly bounced off her. The rifle clicked empty. "If you can't answer that than where are the kids?" she asked. "You're like the boss...I can't tell you. They'll kill me" he replied. "Boss? They know magic?" she asked concerned. "Just weird writing stuff. Supposed to use it to shrink the kids. Easy for transport" he replied. Susan grit her teeth realizing that flash was the shrinking spell. "How many are you?" she asked. "...13" he replied softly. With no mercy, she began pushing mud on top of his body with her sandaled foot. "Please! I answered you!" he begged. "What's your point? Shit in the woods gets buried" she said coldly as she pushed the mud coving him completely. She used her foot to compact it.

She made her way to the adjacent side and disposed of the men there. She felt satisfied shrinking them and watching them drown where they stood. She went to the other side and killed one man. His friend franticly looked around until he was shrunk. Susan almost left him to drown as well but caught a scent off him as the wind shifted into her face. He aimed his rifle at her as he was pinned between her fingers until Susan flicked it away. The smell of fear, late puberty, and youth radiated from him. "You're what 15? 16? You're still a kid yourself. What would possess you to enslave other kids?" she asked.  The westerner giantess who spoke perfect Thai glared at him. Susan squeezed her fingers causing him to scream out as his hip broke. "Make me understand" she muttered. He whimpered as he looked at her. Susan sucked her teeth as she tore away his clothing. He was slightly cute to her but that wouldn't save him. Susan felt her humanity slipping away as her stomach growled.

Nearing full power, Susan burned stamina every second which meant a shitload of calories. In fact, when she "ran out" it usually meant a dangerous crash of blood sugar. "Money? A chance to move up?" she asked twisting him around. "Who the fuck cares. You're gonna die like the rest" she hissed before shoving him into her mouth. His screaming rattled her teeth until she let him slip down her throat. Hungry, starving, her stomach acids were more potent than usual and within seconds has the shrunken Thai morsel sobbing in agony as his skin melted. His thrashing tickled her, and she cracked a smile as she decided to crank up her attack. Growing to human size meant the teen in her tummy was now a human bug in a sea of deadly acids. Acids that turned him into soup within seconds. Susan heard three pairs of footsteps closing in. No doubt the missing men had alerted the others.

"Hiya fellas. Made a wrong turn at Albuquerque. What? Not a looney tunes fan?" she asked seeing them draw on her. "So hasty. Never crossed your mind to capture me. White western girl in front of ya. My pussy is still tight. I'm bisexual and I just love having my toes sucked. Sounds like a good catch right?" she asked. The man smiled at one another and lowered their guns. "Condensing water. Condensing atmosphere. Pressurizing. Lemurian water spell level two. Water scythe" she muttered. A flat edge of water formed in midair within two seconds and went flying. The man on the right was decapitated instantly. His buddies stood in utter shock. "Condensing water, freezing. Lemurian water spell level two. Diamond Dust" she muttered. Again, within two seconds, she took the falling raindrops, froze them, and sent them flying. It was like being pelted by razor sharp hailstones moving at over 200 mph. The center man was shredded like cheese. The man left fired his rifle.

Susan deflected the most critical shots with the glaive until he ran dry. "Fast or slow?" she asked. He took off running shouting for help. "Slow it is" she muttered snapping her fingers. The man shrank full stride until he found himself slowed by mud. With a wave of her hand, Susan altered probability. A large frog brought out by the rain hopped through the village until it found something wriggling in the mud. The man heard a load croaking and turned to see the amphibian staring at him. It cocked its head. "No... not like..." he said before the sticky tongue ripped him from the mud and into his mouth. The frog swallowed his prey alive and hopped off. The man had thought he could make something of himself in this gang. Trafficking was good money and easy. Less dangerous than drug running. Now he suffocated in darkness among the fetid soupy remains of bugs, dank water, and baby worms. His family who prayed for him to be a good man would never know he was a meal for a common frog.

Five minutes earlier...

"Is it done? You better not have fucked it up" a man said. "We did it exactly as you showed us. This supposed to be magic?" another asked. "That's what my contact said. You little shits get into the circle" the first man growled. The man in the storehouse herded the kids into the large circle. "How much will we get for the white one?" one asked. "She's not going to the brothels. My contact has plans for her" the man replied. "How much boss?" one asked. "Enough for your greedy ass. Now get back" the boss said as he completed the arcane. There was a flash of intense light and when it was done, all 31 kids where perfectly shrunken down. Even the oldest was no taller than 2 1/2 inches. "Don't stand there you fools. Get the cages" he barked. The kids, crying and utterly terrified were shoved into the cages. The boss went and sat down in the corner leaving the others to stand guard. "Look at the white one. She's not even whimpering" one said. They looked at Hope.

"Weird. Even weirder we were told to slap that iron braided collar on her when we got her. What’s your story?" one asked her. "Why ask? She doesn't speak Thai" one said. "My father will come for me" Hope told them in perfect Thai. That raised an eyebrow. "This ain't the western movie Taken. Your daddy was shot in the chest with special bullets. He's quite dead" one chuckled. Hope flared up for a split second before she gripped the collar painfully. The lid on top of the cages was still open and one reached in and snatched her up. "I don't know how such a thing blocks whatever you do but it appears to work" he said grinning. "Not everything is blocked" she told him. Her glowing eyes stared at him. "I've seen your future. I've pierced your thoughts. You can lick me, suck on me, do bad things but you better hurry. You'll be dead in less than 10 minutes" she said.