There Be Giants!
“Hey, psst buddy, wake up.” I heard this coming through my sleep as I
slowly opened my eyes. “Where am I?” I asked softly. It was dark and I could
barely make out the movement between the flashes of light. “Buddy you might as
well be in Purgatory for all I know. You got here probably an hour ago, just
after dark. What happened?” I told him all I could remember; I said “It was
dusk, not to dark yet, but just enough for me to use my light. I was playing in
the woods not too far from this old cabin. I felt a whoosh of air around me and
everything went black, I felt this pressure against me as if the darkness just swallowed
me whole.” I was relieved to find that my light still flashed. It looked like
we were pretty high up on a branch. “Where are we?” I asked again. “What does
it matter?” a voice came from below, “You’re not getting out.” Between flashes
I could make out two eyes down below me. “Eventually you’ll grow tired and
fall, and then you’re mine.” Came the phantom voice filled with pleasure. “What
the hell is that?!” I started to shake, a bit startled from this new
development. “Some demonic thing that loves to torture us” my cellmate said, “There
were three others in here with me when I arrived and like he said, one by one
we’ve fallen to him.” I looked down and tried to make out more of him as mine
and my companion’s lights flickered on and off. He was large, on all fours and
maybe a tail. I’d be able to see it better if I climbed lower, but I didn’t
want to risk falling and proving him right. “What do you want from me?!” I
yelled down to this monster. “Well to eat you of course, why else do you think
you are hear my silly morsel?” The calmness in his voice as he casually
discussed my demise was truly disturbing.
I had to get out of here, no way was I going to end up on the menu for
that thing! I climbed to the end of the branch. It seemed to be wedged tight
against a wall, so I made me way to the other end. It was the same here as
well, both sides wedged in flush and suspended across an abyss with inescapable
death waiting below. The walls were smooth and cold to the touch but I could
probably climb it to the top. Guessing what I was thinking, my friend spoke up.
“I wouldn’t try that, the last one who tried almost made it and slipped at the
top. Fell all the way to the bottom and broke his back, that bastard toyed with
him for hours. Besides the top is sealed off, it only opens when the Master
drops more of us in here. They all usually fall right to the bottom, but I was
able to catch you.” I asked who this mysterious Master that imprisoned us here
was. “You’ve never heard of the giants?” he asked. “Of course I have, who hasn’t?”
The giants were a fairy tale, a boogeyman story made up to scare children. They
would come in the night and pluck you up. They would through you into cages and
watch you for their amusement. As the stories go, if you were lucky, they would
let you go after a few hours. Some of the stories didn’t have a so happy of
ending. A few would end with the abducted dying alone in isolation or worse,
being suffocated. My own great grandfather told me tales of the time he was taken,
said they kept him for three days with only grass to eat. Of course Grandpa was
old and again, they were just stories to scare us kids, right? The giants
couldn’t be real, could they? “So you’re trying to tell me that we were thrown
in here by some childhood nightmare? Is that what you’re telling me?” “That is
exactly what my appetizer is telling you.” Came the voice from below again. “You
know, I have eaten anything in a few days now and I am truly famished so could
one of you kindly come down here?” “If what you say is true, then you’re
trapped in here just like us. Why not work with us and get yourself free?”
Laughter boiled up and continued to travel up every hair on my body. “Why would
I want to leave, it’s cool, dark and I get fed my fill daily? Go ahead and
resist, it will do you no good. The Master checks every morning to make sure I
have eaten his daily catch. I can wait if you can.” I could see his grin in the
flash of light. Well if waiting is what I must do then waiting it will be. I
sat in silence for the rest of the night. A few hours before morning, my branch
company stared to sigh. I looked over at him, he said nothing. He lowered his
head and rolled backwards off the branch. He was gone before he hit bottom, a
tongue lashed out of the darkness and quickly drew him back to the beast. He
chomped with glee, all the while smiling at me as the first rays of morning lit
up my prison. For the first time I could see clearly around me. The dragon like
creature below me with his bulbous eyes stomped down the dirty beneath his
feet. He yawned and lay down. “I will be my pleasure to meet you up close in a
few hours.” He closed his eyes and went to sleep. I looked around, the walls
were completely see through, though a little distorted. It looked like I was
inside the old cabin. There was a rumble in the distance, I looked toward the
sound and saw it. I couldn’t believe my eyes! It was indeed the stuff of legends;
it was in fact a giant coming towards me! He was large, pale and ugly. It
lifted up my cage and held it up to his face. He shook it violently, but I was
able to hang on to the branch. He placed his hand on top and I could see it
move, I could hear metal scraping. “NOOO!!!” the monster shouted with rage. I
knew this might be my only chance, so I leapt towards the top. Just as my
captor opened the top, I spread my wings and flew as fast as I could! I was
out! With a quick scan I saw the trees through the large opening in the wall; I
could feel the morning air. I beat my wings as fast as they could carry me. The
giant voice was thunderous, “Don’t worry boy, I’ll get more fire flies for you
tonight.” Not this one I thought to myself, I couldn’t wait to get home and hug
my granddad. I think I’ll ever go out
after dark again!
