A Solution

BACK IN THE THRONE ROOM:

"Two weeks?! You didn't think to let us know that in the letter?!"

Those are the first words John hears leaving Bislea's mouth upon entering the throne room once again.

"I had no idea it was the curse until Erya told us. She came into our room ranting and raving about hearing the voice of the Giant Queen in her head. We had so many healers, sorcerers, and even Seers come to try and find the reasoning, but when she mentioned the words 'Giant's Eye,' I immediately realized what it was."

The group then turn to see John, and so Terra asks, "How's Erya doing?"

"She's okay, even under the current circumstances. Remar, would it be alright for you to take up some comfort snacks to her?"

Remar bows, "I shall."

Remar then leaves the room to accommodate Erya's request.

"It seems our daughter has taken a liking to you. She usually doesn't talk to many people," Holvaeth says.

"I didn't do anything spectacular. I just asked her how she was, and what she was thinking," John responds. He then asks, "So, what was this I heard about two weeks?"

"You remember when Father said that we had two months to make a decision?" Manai asks.

"Yeah?"

"Well, he just let us know that Erya has had the curse for two weeks already."

John is taken aback, "Well, shit. So, we've only got a month and a half to make a plan, and either get the Queen to get rid of the curse or get rid of her."

"Actually... I believe I have the beginnings of a plan," Holvaeth interjects. Everyone then looks back at Holvaeth, with even Myssera being surprised.

"I have an old friend that operates out of a northern town. He is a trusted ally, and I have a feeling that he will want to help with our situation." Holvaeth then looks toward the group, "Terra, you and your friends are adventurers, correct?"

"Well... technically, I guess," Terra responds.

"Would you all be willing to head up to Hynesgar to meet with him? I know that this is incredibly short notice, but time is not on our side."

"Why are we heading there?" Kyuala asks.

Holvaeth then explains, "Hynesgar is one of the closest settlements to the Skygrabber Mountains. Those mountains are the supposed homes of the giants since their relocation from Mulvenscroll. If anyone knows where they shall be, Braxxas is that man."

Terra immediately recognizes that name, "Braxxas? As in the mad man who went chasing ghosts in the Ash-Torn Valley?"

Holvaeth chuckles, "That's the one."

"Darling, as Terra said, Braxxas is a mad man. Are you sure he could be of any help?" Myssera asks.

"We are dealing with a curse from a Giant Queen. Something or someone crazy may just be the thing they need to prevail."

Virra then interjects, "Father, I believe I should go as well. I am also an adventurer after all."

"I know that, dear, and whilst your achievements are incredible, this is more dangerous than a regular monster hunt. In addition to that, you don't have a solid party. I hate asking your sister to do this, but Terra and her friends already have a bond, and have fought together." Holvaeth then looks over to the group, "I do understand if you all feel uncomfortable with doing this. It is a huge favour that I ask, and it is a family matter in the end. I will say, not to sway your opinion, but I would absolutely be willing to give you all compensation. Anything you could desire, I could do my best to help you with."

"Father, you do realize that saying you're not trying to sway their opinion, makes it sound like you're trying to do exactly that?" Manai comments.

As Holvaeth is trying to explain that he does, in fact, know that, the group look amongst one another. They all see Terra's eyes that practically beg the group to accept. The others all have a look which signals that they all are willing to undertake this huge task. John then clears his throat to get everyone's attention, "Uhh, well, after some silent deliberation with my beloved and friends, we are all in agreement that we were going to help you, even before the promise of anything we desire. That just acts as a cherry on top of the proverbial cake."

Holvaeth and Myssera both let out a massive sigh of relief with Holvaeth saying, "Thank you, thank you, thank you all! I do not have the words to express my gratitude to you all. I will make preparations for your departure immediately, is a couple days acceptable? I understand you've all been travelling for a week already."

Amilia then puts her hands behind her head, "A few days in luxury like this? Shit, they'll have to drag me out of here."

"I wish she were kidding, but it wouldn't be the first time," Kyuala adds.

The Tarron family out let out some laughs at Kyuala's response to Amilia's words.

"Anyway! We must celebrate this occasion! Ale, wine, whatever you drink, we have! What would you all like?"

A grin then appears on Amilia's face, "Oh, this place just keeps getting better."

---

OVER AN HOUR LATER:

After quite a few tankards and chalices full of wine, ale, and any other alcohol that the Tarron's had, everyone is having a fun time around the table.

Lani and Sofia are having a ball talking about demons, creatures in the Network, and just anything that interests the two.

Amilia is happily (and drunkenly) flirting away with Kova, Bislea and Naura. Terra is also there, but she is just rolling her eyes at each of the horrible lines.

Kyuala however, is currently involved in an arm wrestling match. The only difference from a regular match, is that Kyuala is currently going up against five women. The big green hand is currently being pushed, pulled and wrestled against by Kiera, Sydna, Virra, Diane and Manai who all are using two hands compared to Kyuala's one.

Beside them, John and Apollita are cheering on their respective teams. John is obviously cheering on Kyuala, but while Apollita is cheering for her sisters, she already knows who's going to win.

The sisters have separated into two teams to try and vanquish the beast that is Kyuala. Kiera, Diane and Manai are currently trying push Kyuala's hand forward. Virra is also pushing forward, but both of her arms are om the bottom of Kyuala's forearm. Sydna on the other hand, is on the other side of Kyuala's arm, and has both of her arms wrapped around the top of the gargantuan green forearm. Sydna is even trying to use her legs to give herself more power, but it doesn't seem to be working.

Kyuala is simply smiling during all of this. She laughs at the grunting and the strained noises that the five sisters are making as she simply keeps her arm in place. After a couple more moments of enjoying the situation, Kyuala decides that it's time to end it. So, with one clean, single motion, Kyuala brings her arm down, winning the contest, but makes sure not to hurt any of their hands. Sydna however, doesn't get the same treatment as since her arms are wrapped around Kyuala's...

She is flipped forward.

A thud is heard as Sydna lands, but thankfully it isn't too bad. Sydna lets out a groan, but the alcohol seems to have dampened any potential damage as she soon laughs about it.

The defeated sisters help their fallen ally up, and the entire table have a good hearty chuckle over the ending of the intense match.

"Bravo! Bravo! It seems the Titan of Reduna'zriam cannot be beat!" Holvaeth declares, "Shall anyone be able to step up to the challenge?!"

The room is silent for a moment before someone finally answers, "I will."

The room all turn, and that's when they see John cracking his knuckles before sitting directly opposite of Kyuala. The orc raises a shocked eyebrow, "Really, beloved? You wish to challenge me? I can already dominate you in the bedroom, so are you sure you want to add this to the list?"

The room is filled with 'oooh's' as Kyuala looks at him with a smirk on her face. John however, has a similar confident smirk as he replies, "Oh, don't worry. I know exactly how to beat you."

Kyuala is a little taken aback, but she keeps her composure, "Well, little lamb, let's see if you can back up the talk, or you'll have to face the consequences... later."

The two lovers, now opponents, place their elbows on the table, eyes locked onto one another as they do. Next, they outstretch their hands before slowly locking them. Just then, Manai then grabs both participants hands, "Alright, I want a clean, fair match. You both know the rules, and we expect you both to follow them. John, are you ready?"

"Ready."

"Kyuala, are you ready?"

Kyuala simply chuffs in response, the large grin on her face still showing as she does.

"Alright, when I move my hand, the match will commence. 3... 2... 1... Start!"

Manai quickly removes her hands, and the test of strength begins.

Cheers immediately begin to ring out with the room being fifty-fifty on their support. John immediately grits his teeth as he pushes Kyuala's arm. The orc is surprised by the humans strength, her arm is actually been pushed further than the five sisters managed, but this is mostly due to Kyuala being taken off-guard by John going all out off the bat. Kyuala's surprised face quickly turns back into a cheeky smile as she begins to pull John's arm back to the starting position. John is now the shocked one as he literally can't do anything to stop it.

"Are you still confident that you can beat me, beloved? I would be more than happy to accept a surrender, at the cost of grovelling at my feet."

As Kyuala proudly, and cockily laughs, but this just bolsters John's resolve. He then fires back, "I wouldn't be so confident if I were you, after all, I'm not gonna be the one on my knees tonight."

Another chorus of 'oooh's' ring out in the room, but John's comeback seems to have poked the bear. John's face is back to being shocked as Kyuala begins to slowly push John's hand down toward the table, and once again, there's nothing he can do.

Kyuala sees his look of panic, and just revels in the moment as she purposefully pushes John's arm down slowly, just to savour the impending victory even longer.

John sees that he is just a few more moments away from losing, and understands that this won't be the worst thing that happens to him tonight. He wracks his mind for anything to give him an advantage that doesn't break any rules. Nothing springs to mind, but he continues to think as he sees that he's around twenty seconds from losing. Tick after tick is heard in his mind, counting down like a shot clock. He then stops thinking about the rules, and just does the only thing he can think of.

John then quickly leans forward, locking his lips on Kyuala's, completely taking the orc by shock. As Kyuala tries to understand what's happening, John feels her arm almost lose all of its power, and so he quickly strikes. He pulls Kyuala's arm up as quickly as he can, continuing the kiss before bringing it down onto the table since the weight of Kyuala's arm increases the downward force.

As Kyuala's arm collides with the wood, everyone almost leaps out of their seats in shock while the ones who rooted for John let out a raucous cheer.

John breaks the kiss before celebrating his victory, and as he does, Kyuala realizes what just happened. Her face is a multitude of expressions, confusion, shock, and even anger mixed with a slight blush on her green face.

"Ah-ha! It seems the Hero has slain the Titan! We have a new champion!" Holvaeth declares, causing everyone to raise their chalice and tankards to the new champion. All except for Kyuala.

Kyuala, still in shock at losing, doesn't actually know what to do. She simply knows that she lost, and whilst she is usually competitive... she doesn't actually feel too bad about losing to John, especially in the fashion that she did.

After everyone has had a drink to celebrate the new arm wrestling champion, Sydna says, "Well, Kyuala, it seems like your beloved has bested you. I hope you're ready for a rowdy night."

Everyone has a good laugh, even Kyuala can't help but let out a little smile. The others also join in on the teasing for a bit, and some make Kyuala blush, but others give her some ideas for later. However, Kyuala does have one idea, and decides that now would probably be the best time for it.

Kyuala then grabs John by his collar, taking him by surprise before literally bringing him over the table, and onto her lap. John goes to ask what she is doing, but his words are immediately cut off as Kyuala plants her own, and much more intense kiss, complete with some tongue.
Everyone is taken aback, immediately averting their eyes from the couples "interaction." Some of the sisters sneak a quick glance or two, and a few surprised expressions are briefly seen before turning their heads back.

The passionate kiss does eventually end, but Kyuala keeps her face close to John's, "I think its time we retire to our room. What do you think, beloved?"

"Uhh, y-y-yeah... that sounds like a good idea."

Kyuala grins once more before getting up to her feet. She then picks John up with one hand and holds him close to her, "Well, John and I are going to retreat to our room for the night. Thank you for the food and drink."

Holvaeth responds, "No need to thank us. Enjoy your... rest."

Everyone chuckles, but Amilia then says, "Hope you've got some spare beds lying around, cause lets just say that those two aren't exactly... gentle."

Kyuala and John then walk out of the room with a hurried pace. The people in the room notice this, and laugh again before getting back to their antics.

Holvaeth and Myssera leave not long after the other duo, citing that they're not built for less than formal parties anymore. The others wish them a good night, but this is when the festivities get a little more... extreme.

A bout of drinking ensues, and Amilia seems to be the clear favourite. Kiera is obviously a bit more of a lightweight, so she bows out early. Manai is next, followed by Sophia and Bislea. The remaining competitors all eye each other up as their cups are filled with the golden liquid. Lani then counts down, and the girls drink. Amilia gulps her drink down in one, and Naura is soon after. Diane is a few seconds behind alongside Terra, but after Virra places her chalice down, Apollita waves the proverbial white flag, almost bringing the drink right back up.

The next round begins, and the finishing order is almost the same, but it would be Diane who bows out this round. The remaining four are all obviously wrecked by the copious amounts of alcohol in their stomach, but Amilia then ups the ante, "Alright, time to up the ante. Whoever comes last for the next three rounds, has to answer a question truthfully, and if you refuse, you have to run across the garden in nothing but your natural glory."

The other three look amongst each other before accepting the proposal. The drinks are then poured, finishing the second last jug of ale.

After another countdown, Amilia slams her drink down, and continues to look strong. Terra, surprisingly, is next to finish, but her face is beginning to look like a sea-sick sailor.

Naura and Virra are neck-and-neck, going gulp for gulp, but the pace has significantly slowed down since the earlier rounds.

The chalices are tilted, the gulps becoming less audible. It eventually comes down to the wire. Finally, a chalice touches the table, and it's Naura who takes third place.

Virra eventually drops her chalice, and sighs in defeat as Naura celebrates besting her sister.

Virra, is now face down on the table and slowly taps her hand, "Okay, I'm bowing out."

"Not before you answer a question, missy. That was the rule after all, was it not?" Naura says with smugness dripping from every word.

Terra then says, "She is right, Virra. Now, what is our question?"

"Oooh!" Amilia starts, "What's the biggest-"

"Amilia!" Terra interrupts, "That's a incredibly rude question to ask!"

"What? I was just gonna ask about the biggest beast she's seen. Is that so bad?" Amilia explains, but Terra's scowl shows her distrust for Amilia's words. Virra then chuckles, "The biggest beast I've seen is a mantha. It's a humongous creature with tusks like two merged spikes of a portcullis. Fortunately, they are easily tamed creatures, and I was able to pet one when I went with group of mercenaries to help a town destroy a dreagle nest."

"You went with mercenaries? I thought you only travelled with adventurers?" Terra asks.

"They were friends of mine. I had met them before during a dungeon crawl after they were looking for a stone for a sorcerer in Trailston. They actually invited me since they were down an archer."

Terra is surprised at her sister's story, but Virra then says, "And to answer your original question, Amilia. It was an orc I accidentally saw getting out of a lake."

Terra's surprise soon turns into disgust as she realizes what Virra meant just as Amilia begins to laugh.

"That's nothing," Naura starts, "I've seen a centaur at full length."

Amilia laughs again, "That's it? I've taken a few, and holy fu-"

"Amilia!" Terra scolds.

"What?" Amilia asks.

"That's highly inappropriate! You shouldn't be-"

"Shouldn't be what?" Amilia asks with an annoyed tone, "Shouldn't talk about getting screwed? Why? Because it's not regal and lady-like? Not proper conversation for such noblewomen like yourselves?"

Terra simply stutters in response, but Amilia just says, "Whatever, princess..." Amilia then takes a final drink before dropping her tankard onto the table, "I'm going to bed, g'night ladies."

Amilia then walks out of the throne room, and Terra immediately feels horrible about what she just did. Naura leaves soon after Amilia, but before Virra goes, she puts her hand on Terra's shoulder, "Don't worry about it. Amilia seems like a understanding person, she'll get over it. Just make sure you don't grovel in the morning. Grovelling to a hungover woman is simply asking for a slap."

Virra then walks off, leaving Terra to think about what she just did, and just how much she's going to apologize tomorrow.

---

A FEW HOURS LATER - UPSTAIRS:

John is happily resting after a wild, literal bed-shaking session of "cardio" with Kyuala, who is snoring away. He gently hums as he and Kyuala are having a second rendezvous with an almost insatiable Tally in the Everplane.

After a long hum, signalling his dream-self's climax, John is woken up by a knock at the door. He opens his eyes, and immediately notices that Kyuala hasn't even budged, signalling that she's keeping Tally busy whilst he's gone.
John then hears another knock at the door, so he responds, "I'm coming, give me a second."

John gets up from the bed, still feeling some of the effects from the earlier drinking. He eventually gets over to the door, successfully putting pants on before opening said door. As he opens up, he sees a shy-looking Erya standing there, "Hey Erya, are you okay?"

Erya takes a moment before meekly responding, "You said that if I wanted to talk, I could come and talk to you."

John remembers his earlier words, "That I did. So, what'd you want to talk about?"

Erya doesn't respond, instead, she just signals John to follow her. As she gets a little down the hallway, John lets out a small sigh before following.

As they walk a little further, Erya stops at a window, "Follow me."

Erya then opens said window up before quietly climbing out. John is a little confused, and frankly still too drunk to be climbing through shit, but he relents due to his promise to the girl. He then climbs through said window, letting out a small grunt of effort as he does.

John gets fully out of the window, and finds himself on top of a flat dormer. He sees Erya sitting down on, looking out at the horizon ahead. He then walks over, sitting down beside her as he says, "Pretty cold out here, huh?"

"Yes, it's a nice feeling."

John lightly chuckles, "So, what's up? You said you wanted to talk?"

Erya is silent for a moment, "I just wanted to thank you again, for earlier."

"You don't need to thank me, Erya. I told you, any sister of Terra is a friend of mine. Plus, if the roles were reversed, I think you'd do the same."

Erya smiles, "I'd like to think so, too."

The two have a small chuckle, staring out at the land of Mulvenscroll. After a few moments of gazing, John asks, "So, what else is on your mind? I don't think you would ask me to come out here just to thank me."

"You're a smart cookie," Erya says.

"Well, I try."

Another the duo let out a quick chuff, Erya then drops the bombshell, "I... have been the hearing the Giant Queen's voice."