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pocket-ozwynn · 2 years

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The Colossus’ Cricket

GT July 2022 Masterpost: Day 2 - Different Era

Author’s Note: Inspired my some various Giant knight ladies drawn by @cloudwatchingtoday, @herebegiants, and @chamomile-g-tea. This AU (tentatively named the “Knight!” or “Colossus!”) takes in elements from some of my favorite fantasy settings while giving them a fun Dungeons & Dragons flavored twist! Big props to whoever can figure out the massive Easter Egg sitting at the very center of this one-shot. I hope y’all enjoy. 🥺💜

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[Knight Colossus!AU]

Word Count: 2298

CW: Light reference to blood

Alice never made it to bed last night. Though that was hardly surprising, he rarely ever did.

His impromptu pillow was a bestiary that he was in the process of penning–though he often fell asleep mid-sentence with his quill still in hand. Not that he found the subject boring, mind you; on the contrary, cataloging the magical creatures that roamed the hinterlands on behalf of the Oquirrh Lyceum of Arcane Arts was his dream come true!

But such an assignment was no small feat. Terrible things stalked the countryside, and some horrors were even bold enough to strike out in broad daylight. Most nights Alice spent transcribing notes collected from codexes, interviews with other arcanozoologists, and eye-witness accounts gathered from various sellswords and adventurers who frequented the highways and byways. Even after all that was done, he still needed time to include his own observations of these creatures. Because of the enormity of the task, it left Alice burning the wick at both ends.

Thankfully, he had big help collecting data.

Alice inhaled sharply as his desk was rocked. Around his study filled with trinkets and bobbles, everything shook for a moment. He jolted up in his chair–a few loose leaflets of papers still stuck to the side of his face. Alice’s eyes were wide, his hair was a mess, and his glasses’ frame was bent out of shape. He swallowed as he waited again…was it a Landshark? A Creeping Boomwalker?

Another tremble. This one was a bit stronger. He wetted his lips nervously as he waited. And then another–this one stronger still.

Alice’s heart began to race as a fourth tremor rocked him to his senses, then a fifth.

It was the familiar cadence of footsteps. Grand footsteps

The alchemist quickly swiped the papers off his face and quickly moved to rise from his chair; however, sharp pain jolted up his legs that seemed to yank him by the ankles. With a yelp of surprise, he promptly fell flat on his face. As he lay in a wiry heap, he came to realize his legs weren’t quite as awake at this moment as he thought. With a silly string of made-up words acting as “curses,” Alice rose to his wobbly, tingling feet and stumbled down the steps and out the door.

It was a surprisingly cool morning despite the heat of Highsummer. Alice could hear the chirping of doves mixed with sounds of businesses beginning to open up one by one…

…and, of course, the sound of titanic metal plating clinking against one another as a shadow fell over the sleepy hamlet.

The Knight Colossus had returned.

Ladened in heavy armor reforged from the hull from an Ogryn Dreadnought the size of a city, the Knight Colossus gleamed in the morning sun as she lumbered into Lakeshore. The tattered hem of her crimson tabard waved like lazy castle banners as she lumbered forward with her quarry.

Alice bit his lip as he admired her approach. Her titanic stature cut an impressive image on the horizon. Given her incredible strength and broad physique, she truly was a Giant amongst Giants. And though Alice was no stranger to seeing beasts great and small, and creatures from both the Heavens and the Hells, none held a candle to the sublime grandeur of the Knight Colossus.

Finding himself staring for far too long, Alice shook his head. He clicked his boots, felt the wall-walking enchantment activate, and quickly scampered up the side of his two-story, cobbled-together “research center.” He could hear the windows begin to rattle as the Knight Colossus’ heavy footfalls grew nearer and nearer.

As he finally got up onto the roof–and before he could even catch his breath–the sun was blotted out as her shadow fell over his eclectic abode.

“Good morning, my little love.”

Though the two story home sat on a hill, it barely came up to her waist. The monolithic maiden had a dragon slung over one bulky shoulder, and had pulled up behind her what could only be described as a sort of bizarre, living “library” as if it had been a child’s sled. Her massive sword, one carved from the heart of an Iron Titan, remained impaled through its chitinous belltower.

“G-Good morning, Lady Freyja.” Alice stammered at first. His cheeks flushed first by the exercise, but now also by the immediate sight of her as well. His eyes lingered on the eldritch architecture, but he moved his gaze up towards the dragon. “I-I-I can’t believe you brought me a DRAGON this time! And, um…” He was practically bouncing with excitement as he eyed the bizarre building that seemed to have muscles within the structure that twitched. “...and whatever that is…”

Lady Freyja, the Knight Colossus, threw her helmeted head back with a booming laugh. The casual way draped the dragon carcass over the roof not too far from Alice was like watching a fisher depositing their catch. She reached up and pulled off her helmet with one hand–her flaxen hair glistened under the morning rays. Alice frowned slightly as he noticed a new bruise on her cheek–one that was easily the size of a wagon. His heart slowed down as his brow knit with visible worry.

“You glow when you’re excited, my wren…how could I possibly resist bringing you a beast grander than the last?” Lady Freyja grinned. Her gargantuan smile was enough to make Alice’s heart racing back to a flustered tempo once more.

“Th-that bruise is new....” Alice stammered as he tried changing the subject to hide his twitterpation; however, that was easier said than done when it came to the Knight Colossus. “Are you alright, my Frey?”

Lady Freyja chuckled as she rested an armored palm on the pommel of her sword. “I’m well enough off, my dear Alice…a little bruise to the face is nothing new for me.”

“The bruise is bigger than I am.” Alice pointed out as he rummaged through his pockets for the correct arcane tools to begin the post mortem examination.

Lady Freyja exhaled as she took a heavy seat by the hill. With all that armor and muscle, it was little wonder why the earth buckled and shook in reply. Lady Freyja smiled and leaned against the hillside, her thick, plated arm reaching out and wrapping around the home as she scooted closer still. She wanted to get a better look at Alice.

“If you’re so worried about my bruise, my love,” Lady Freyja mused with a coy grin, “perhaps you can help me tend to my scrapes? I wouldn’t mind your gentle touch, after all.”

Her smooth words hit Alice like a shovel to the face. He squeaked as he fumbled and nearly dropped his tools over the railing. Lady Freyja had foreseen a possible fall, as she already had a hand placed at the roof’s edge. She knew how susceptible Alice was to her flirtations. Her loving laughter made Alice’s ribs rattle.

After a moment of catching his breath, Alice readjusted his glasses and swallowed hard. He sheepishly looked up towards his looming lover and quietly replied, “I…would love to help clean you up later, my love…”

Lady Freyja grinned widely. Her own cheeks now flushed with heat of their own as she bit her lip. “Good...I’d like that.”

Now in proper danger of cardiac arrest after seeing Lady Freyja bite her lip, Alice swiftly turned his attention to the slain dragon she had gifted him. The dragon in question was one of scarlet and beige scales, golden horns, and three tails that ended in curled, wine-colored hooks. It was perhaps only 50ft in length. ”Only” might seem like an ill-fitting adverb to describe a dragon of all things, but considering the fact the Knight Colossus herself was twice that the alchemist had a bit of a skewed perspective on what was “grand” anymore.

“This…is a Crimson Hooktail, if I’m not mistaken.” Alice pointed with one of his instruments towards the eponymous tails as he drew closer to the beast’s flank. As he spoke, Lady Freyja leaned in closer. Alice set to work drawing a vial’s worth of blood first; dragon’s blood was exceedingly rare, and chock full of precious, alchemical properties.

“They are more ambitious and cunning compared to other dragons–they’re far more willing to make deals and try to deceive mortals.” Alice topped off the first vial with a cork and tucked it into an elixir bandolier. He set to work on a second vial, with a third held ready between his free fingers for when the second was filled. “They seem to favor Tortles and Myconids as a staple of their diet; however, no one is quite sure why…”

Alice lit up and chirped like a songbird as an idea came to mind. “...perhaps it has something to do with coevolution? The Myconids and Tortles of the far east have shared the region for generations…perhaps there’s some innate magical qualities to that land that have infused both races with a magical nutrient that the Hooktails crave! I know the area is also frequented by Celestial visitors, so perhaps that has something to do with it as well!”

Alice furrowed his brow in deep contemplation. The Knight Colossus’ pale green eyes sparkled as she watched how Alice spoke so vibrantly at first, but now harnessed that same passion into a smoldering look of concentration.

After the third vial, Alice set to work on procuring some of the crimson, shield-sized scales. “Oh! I almost forgot, they have an adverse reaction to Orthoptera.”

Lady Freyja almost didn’t catch that last part. “Orthoptera?” Freyja tilted her head to the side with curiosity.

Alice blinked. “Oh! My apologies, my love. Those are things such as, ah…crickets, locusts, grasshoppers–things of similar likeness. Though only theories exist as to why, it’s unmistakable how much a Hooktail recoils and whimpers at the sight of them. Reports have indicated visible symptoms of distress, terror, and even nausea.”

After removing a fourth scale, Alice set the scale aside and leaned up against the bulk of the beast to catch his breath and wipe his brow.

“Isn’t it curious how such a mighty creature could be moved to fear by a little thing?” Alice mused as he licked his dry lips. “Imagine: a dragon cowing before a cricket.”

The Knight Colossus’ lips curled into a smile. Her low, rumbling chuckle caused her armor to shake. “Why, I don’t think it’s too surprising at all! In a way, I believe I can sympathize with the dragon.”

“Oh?” Alice blinked as he looked up at her. “You don’t have a fear of crickets, do you? I feel like I would’ve remembered that…”

“Well, no. Not quite,” Lady Freyja clarified with a coy smile. She reached up with her free hand towards Alice, and rested a curled finger the size of a man under his chin. His eyes widened at the touch of the cool metal plating. Wordlessly, he allowed her to tilt his gaze up to meet hers. Lady Freyja lowered her face till she nearly filled his horizon–her own eyes studied every detail of Alice’s enamored face. As she breathed in to speak, Alice’s breath was taken away–figuratively and literally. His hair and loose shirt moved with her breathing as if they were shafts of wheat in the wind.

Lady Freyja expression softened as the words rolled out like warm, Duskspring thunder, “However, I still am quite familiar with how such a little thing could rattle a mighty beast to its very core. And how, as you said, in the most inexplicable way, all of the beast’s attention is fixated on a single, unassuming thing...”

She paused, then leaned in closer still. Alice squeaked softly. Lady Freyja’s lips now brushed his face as she spoke. She smelled of teakwood and spices. “...I understand how maddening it feels to be, like the dragon, powerless of how my heart races seeing such powerful little creature…”

Her inhale ruffled his hair before she finally leaned in and simply kissed Alice across his face and chest. Lady Freyja could feel his heart racing against her–she could feel his little hands grip into the plushness of her lower lip as if it were a lifeboat. She felt the heat in his face. Alice tasted of lavender and honey; it was something she had missed for some time now. She couldn’t help but firm up her kiss

After a few, beautiful moments that felt like decades, the two finally parted lips. Parties both great and small panted as they sought to catch their breath. Their eyes never left one another. Their lips twitched into shy, flustered smiles–as if they were children who just experienced a kiss for the first time.

“W-Wow…” Alice breathed softly. “I-I’ve…I’ve missed you, my colossus. Truly, my heart yearns when you are away. I-I wait patiently to see your visage looming over the horizon, but even then I find myself-”

A gurgling growl. Something moved behind Lady Freyja.

The library.

Wasn’t it supposed to be dead? Also Lady Freyja NEVER explained what the heck that thing even was that she had brought him.

Alice gasped. “F-Frey-”

Lady Freyja pressed a finger to Alice’s lips. “Hold that thought.”

Then with a thunderous roar, Lady Freyja quickly drew a Kraken-tooth dagger from her belt and whirled about to tackle the writhing, screaming library. The ground rocked beneath them as the two leviathans wrestled at the foot of the hill.

Shaken now by both the kiss and the seeming self-resurrection of a sentient, living library, Alice walked over to the railing of the roof and rested against it. He couldn’t help but watch with loving awe and lip-swept hair as he marveled at the sight of his beloved: the Knight Colossus, Lady Freyja.

It was good to have her home.

#Knight!AU #g/t #giant/tiny #g/t writing #g/t fluff #ogtoc Freyja #ogtoc Alice #Knight Colossus #Knight!Freyja #Alchemist!Alice #I had so much fun with this one #GTJuly #GTJuly2022

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