Page 66 of Nexus
“The axis-gate was created five thousand years ago,” he reminded me. “What type of creature could possibly live that long?”
“Dragons?” I mused. “Aren’t they immortal?”
“I have no idea. Lord Gilden is the only dragon I’ve ever met, but he’s a shifter. I’m not sure how long true dragons live for.”
“Where’s it hiding?” I asked in frustration as we moved closer to the scroll. There didn’t seem to be any tunnels branching off back here. As far as I could see, the cave ended just beyond the pile of rocks.
Ruen tilted his head back to see if anything was clinging to the ceiling. Aurora was peering around, probing the darkness. She spotted something and brushed her wing across my cheek.
“What is it?” I asked in a hushed whisper. She pointed at an object lying at the base of the rockpile. I moved closer to the gray lump, trying to make out what it was.
“Is that a foot?” Ruen asked incredulously.
“It can’t be,” I scoffed. “It’s got to be six feet long.” The lump twitched, then moved. It split apart at one end to form five long sections. It took me a second to realize they were toes. “It’s definitely a foot,” I said in dismay and began backing away.
“It’s too late,” my undead minion said in despair. “It’s awake and it knows we’re here.”
The rockpile shuddered, then the guardian of the scroll sat up. I’d already figured out that he was a giant, based on the size of his foot. The long gray beard that clung to his craggy face gave his gender away. He wasn’t actually made of rock. He was just covered in huge gray lumps.
“I don’t think my club is going to be much use against that thing,” I said, glancing dubiously at the branch in my hand.
“I highly doubt any weapon will be strong enough to penetrate the giant’s hide,” Ruen agreed.
The guardian ponderously pushed himself to his feet, then stretched as if he hadn’t moved in decades. None of the bones were fresh. He’d been in hibernation until we’d come along and had woken him up. Easily four times my height, he was tall enough to reach up and place the scroll on the shelf.
“Maybe we don’t have to actually kill it,” I said craftily.
“Why not?” Ruen was doubtful, but willing to listen to my hastily formed plan.
“How good are you at climbing?”
“Very. In this form, I seem to excel at it even more.”
“Awesome. Here’s what we’re going to do.” Both the leech and the bird leaned in to listen to me as I whispered instructions. The giant was slowly becoming more aware of his surroundings. Soon, he would notice us. When he did, I had no doubt that things would get interesting. “Are you both clear on what you need to do?” I asked.
Aurora nodded and Ruen eyed the guardian speculatively. “It might just work,” he murmured. “Are you sure you can pull this off?”
“No, but I can’t think of a better plan.”
“Neither can I,” he said with a fierce grin. “I’m ready whenever you are.”
“Let’s do this,” I said grimly, then my team raced away from me, leaving me to face our humongous foe alone.
Chapter Forty-Nine
“HEY, YOU!” I SHOUTED to get the giant’s attention. Looking around owlishly, he didn’t spot me until I waved my arms. “Hi, there!” I exclaimed, just in case he was friendly. “I don’t suppose you could reach up and hand me that scroll fragment, could you?”
His response was to bellow in rage and stomp towards me. Joints that hadn’t moved in ages creaked loudly and dirt and rocks rained down from him. As naked as the ogres who’d tried to claim me, it was impossible not to stare at his genitals. It was mesmerizing to see his junk swinging with each step he took.
“Move, Saige!” Ruen hissed, snapping me out of my daze.
Instead of sprinting away from the oncoming monster, I raced towards him. He bent down to swing a hand at me and I easily dodged it. “Ha, ha! You missed me!” I jeered.
Large brown boulders and rocks were scattered throughout the cave. I spied Aurora hunkering behind one as Ruen crept closer to the back wall of the cavern. The giant made another swipe at me, moving slightly faster this time. His body was getting used to moving again and he was becoming nimbler. We had to get this done before he got up to full speed.
My plan would have been a lot easier to pull off if I’d been in my human form. I expended a lot of energy getting the guardian to chase me around. I was panting for air by the time I maneuvered him to where I wanted him.
“Keep him there!” Ruen said in a loud whisper from his hiding spot in a crevice in the wall.