Finicks Bay was like most cities, It had its good and bad neighborhoods. The city blocks past first street—the street closest to the ocean and beach, was a luscious area where people lived happily. Many great constructions such as the baron's mansion were there and the King's monument.
The second street area was what could be considered the average. No one of any renown lived there, either good or bad. Thus, nothing ever really happened there.
Third street was the worst of the city, and the closest to the wall. The poor, the unfortunate, and the criminal lived there. And in the third street area, was a place known as the blacklight block. This was where laws shrinked away in fear, and where pain and sorrow thrived. Many great law makers and enforcers had tried to destroy that place in idea and reality, but all of them failed.
And, consequently, it was the perfect place to find the mystery giant that Kimber saw the night before. When Kimber told Monte, his good and long time friend of the events of that night, Monte had realized too the importance and significance of what it might have meant.
It hadn't taken Monte long to acquire information that matched the description of what Kimber saw. A giant, vaguely humanoid creation with metal grafted into its skin was something that tended to catch the eye. What was even less surprising then that was where it had been spotted.
The blacklight block.
It was a place Kimber was intimately familiar with, and yet one he hadn't been to in well over a year. The area was visibly distinguishable from the blocks around it. That was even excluding the eight-foot-high fence that went around it. All the buildings were mashed into each other, their roofs creating uneven ground where yet more people had tents and fires cooking things many would rather not know.
He had no issue getting in as almost everyone knew everyone else. If you were something that they didn't want to be there, more than likely you wouldn't. And if you were, you should count yourself lucky to be alive.
The inside was a whole different world. There was no sunlight as the proximity of the buildings did not allow it, So instead, Magic items were used. These gave a plethora of colors that washed over each other and everything else. You traversed the Blacklight block through admittedly quite large ally's. These were places where the vendors, who would never show themselves in the light of day, went to sell their almost certain-to-be illegal items.
And now, he thought. The hard part will begin. He needed to understand exactly what type of giant he was dealing with, so that he could more accurately understand the breadth of Henry's plans.
He walked along the long, packed alleys as hooded figures watched him from within their cawls. He eventually took a sharp turn into one of the buildings. It had no signs stating what it was. Rather, it had one board that was lit by a dim floating light. On it were two words scratched into it; Stay Out.
Ignoring the warning, Kimber opened the door. As he had expected, he was greeted by a very long, and very sharp, sword. "Cousin!" The sword was pulled away. Jin Franks, Kimber's Uncle's first child, stood before him. One arm was missing, and his bright red hair was unkept as ever.
"Hello Jin." He waved. Jin smacked Kimbers hand away and embraced him in a slightly uncomfortable hug. Prying his cushion's arm away from himself, Kimber slid around Jin. His old home hadn't changed much, the old paintings were still as water damaged as ever, the corners of every room still covered in cobwebs. There was still that familiar scent of candles and dry rotted wood, and the back-and-forth yelling was still ear-piercing.
"...Maybe because you can't understand when you're getting ripped off!" He heard the end of a woman's arguing. He rounded a corner and an open door greeted him. Inside were the figures of what was left of his family. Aunt Mitty was at the center of the group. Her shoulder length black hair bobbed as her emotive body moved to accentuate her displeasure. She was short, but a trained body laid just beneath the shell of an exasperated mother.
The person at which her anger was focused sat in a wooden kitchen chair, an air of annoyance and unaccountability around him. Around them were several people, some of which he didn't recognize. Of those he did, a man by the name of Brian Franks stood behind Kimbers Aunt, watching disinterestedly. He was Kimber's Uncle.
It took a moment for Kimbers presence to be noticed, but once it did, the air in the room changed drastically, for better and worse. Aunt Mitty's face lit up and she rushed towards Kimber, embracing him warmly. Uncle Brian watched on, the faintest traces of distaste pulling at his features. The person—or rather, Boy—sitting in the chair was similar to his father, Brian, in way of his feeling towards Kimber. A few other cousins and nieces, a few many times removed, watched on with smiles and frowns.
"Kimber!" Aunt Mitty said as she squeezed him. Kimber tried to push himself free, but the woman was, unsurprisingly, quite strong. "Hello Aunty." He said begrudgingly. "Brave of you to show up here after so long, boy." Said Brian as he took several steps towards Kimber.
"Oh hush you old fool." Aunt Mitty said agitatedly. Brian said no more, but he continued to stare at his nephew with baleful eyes. With a final pat on his back, Aunt Mitty pulled away. "It is good to see you again, Kimber deer." She said truthfully. "But I must ask," She glanced at Brian, venom in her eyes. "For what reason have you come home?"
"Probably just here to ask for more money for his 'family.'" Said the boy sitting in the chair. "Adun!" Snapped Aunt Mitty. The boy shrugged, rolled his eyes and looked away. Shaking her head, she gestured for Kimber to answer. Kimber resigned himself to his fate.
"I'm here to ask for information." Brian and Adun both barked out laughs. "See?" Said the boy. "Adun, Brian. Silence." Came a growl of a voice. A man stood from the corner of the room, his bright white eyes shining in the relatively dim light from the floating sources of magic.
He was old, maybe 65, which only meant that he was closer to 90. The room fell deathly quite as he took a step forward. The two agitated men made sure to keep their attention keenly on the wood floors, and not the man.
"Elder." Said Kimber with a respectful nod. "Child." The Elder greeted. The Elder was the founder of the Franks family, and the oldest living member of his bloodline. All his siblings had passed away many years ago. No one even knew his name as it had been lost in the obscurity of time. and it seemed the elder had no interest in making it known.
"Speek." He said, or perhaps, ordered. It was a hard line to differentiate. Kimber steadied his mind, not wanting to make any mistakes. "I need information about a giant." He started. "He arrived here within the last fortnight." A fortnight wasn't a long time considering how rare giants coming into cities were.
Aunt Mitty hummed as she thought. "Perhap a detailed description?" She suggested. "There's been quite a few in the last few weeks." Of course there there had been… He thought. Just his luck. But there was an issue: He didn't trust his family. Not one bit. In fact, if not for his need to find this creature so urgently, he wouldn't have ever considered going back to his old home.
His family was rather prominent within the Black light block as they dealt with information. If you wanted to know where someone lived, or if you wanted to know someone's exact schedule, you could go to them and, more likely than not, find what you're searching for. The issue is that when you went to them with something sensitive and they thought that, just maybe, they could turn a better profit somewhere else, then you'd find yourself in a rather nasty situation.
That wasn't to say that his whole family was that way, because they weren't. He knew that Aunt Mitty, at the least, could be trusted.
Luckily for Kimber, The elder saw his plight. "Out." He said, and without another word, everyone in the room left. it was quite impressive actually; the level of control, or perhaps respect, that the man held over his family. For all of Kimbers time living at his old home, he couldn't remember a moment when someone questioned the old man. Except for himself, of course.
"Now," The Elder said as he dragged a chair to sit next to Kimber. "What is it that troubles you?" Kimber sighed, thinking about the reason he had come. "I believe the city is soon to be put in danger." He said. "We are always in danger, my child." Kimber shook his head. "Not like this."
Kimber stood and began to pace. He knew he was about to tell his grandfather more than he probably should, but even he couldn't help but trust him. "I believe that Captain Henry Carval has plans to take complete control of Finck's Bay." The man stared at Kimber for a moment before chuckling. "Your leader?" He asked. Kimbers hand flew up in acknowledgement of the absurdity and confirmation of his claims. Many great men had tried such a thing, but in the near hundred years since the city's establishment, there had been none to have succeeded.
The Baron had always made sure of that.
That was why many would doubtlessly feel that Kimbers suspicions, even if true, were nothing more than a naive and uninformed adventurer who shouldn't worry about the more political side of the world. But Kimber was no fool. He knew the history of his city, for he had a good reason to stay informed. And because of that, he knew that no one had tried to bring in outside help, or at least, not on the scale that the payment he saw the night before had insinuated.
He decided to retell theThird Street transpired, omitting nothing except his powers. The elder's face slowly lost its amusement as he listened, and at the detailed description of the giant, all playfulness had drained from his face, replaced by the cold calculation of an elder being. Kimber got the suspicion that the old man knew something about the creature.
"What is it, elder?" He asked. Lost in thought, the man jerked his head up towards kimber. "Oh…right." He said as if he almost hadn't heard him. "There are a few creatures that match what you saw, but I will not jump to conclusions." He sat up, going over to what looked like a large dresser. From it he pulled out ornate glasses and a bottal of blue shimmering liquid.
"I have heard of one giant that could possibly be the one you are looking for, but it will come at a cost." He warned. He poured them both a glass of the drink, handing one to Kimber who gratefully accepted it. "My debt." He stated. The elder nodded. "It is soon to be time for you to repay us, child. Although I give this information in the good faith that you will hold true to your end of the deal, the rest of the family is getting anxious that you are not planning to follow through."
Kimber stared into the glass of what he could smell to be Tint—an expensive beverage for only the wealthiest. He had every intention of repaying his long list of 'loans' from the family, but how he would do it was still uncertain. The Franks did not take money or items, but rather, they took deeds. What the deed depended on was how much debt one owed, and the person themselves.
a deed could be information, which was a popular course, or it could be an action that gains the family more influence. Kimber hated to think of the deed he would need.
"The giant was last spotted in block four of third street. That was around an hour ago. If you follow the trail now, you will likely find it to still be warm." Said the elder. " Thank you." Kimber bowed his head. He turned to leave, but stopped just short of the door. "I do plan to repay you, grandfather." The elder smiled. "I know."
Kimber crouched low as he walked along the rooftops of the third block of the outermost street. His eyes searched the allies below, and his ears listened for anything that could point him where he wanted to go. He felt more embarrassed after every minute he snaked his way along the unsuspecting buildings and homes of innocent people. They weren't meant to be walked on, and the trail of holes that he left behind proved it.
He had asked around when he got there, and it had quickly bore fruit. Which, in hindsight, shouldn't have surprised him when talking of Giants. They were as rare to see in cities as they were tall, and as sought after. There were many races that were considered giants. The Elkary, and Firn, the Ouks.
They were all derived from the same Ancient race of Dwarfs—As oddly named as they were—who are considered a "high race." Unlike the many variants of giant, High races were Almost non-existent. It is believed that all races of today came from them. Elves are considered the Great Fathers, as more modern races share the most with them than any other.
The great Tortonic's are believed to be the most reclusive, even amongst the high races. They are called the Great Rocks. Then there are the Dunes. They are mysterious beings, but what little people do know is that they are powerful, being known as Change bringers. Finally, there are the dwarfs. The Ancient giants. They once were as populace as humans, living deep beneath the earth in great cities that rivaled those of the land.
With that in mind, giants were almost always the talk of the town wherever they went. There was a chance that he didn't even need to go to his family, and instead he could have simply asked around the city. But not only would that take time he didn't believe he had, he also knew that it could have been inaccurate. And he didn't want talk of a Red Cross guild member snooping around in something he shouldn't be getting to Drake or Carval.
Then he heard something. He stopped, bending over the ledge of the house he was on and looking into the alley below. It was covered with tarps and canvas, but there wasn't anyone going into the alleyway to be making noise. He suspected that a giant wasn't particularly quiet.
He saw movement. Something was wading through piles of trash—the Third Street area wasn't known for its pristine condition. Once he thought it was safe to do so, he lept down. Using his third spell which allowed him to momentarily turn parts of his body into a liquid shadow state. It not only allowed him to land without worrying about injury, but even within the pool of rubbish, he didn't not make a sound.
Slowly, he progressed forward. He made sure to keep just far enough away that he wouldn't be spotted, but close enough so that when the bend they were in straightened, he would be able to see the creature up close. And it didn't take long for that to happen.
But what he saw confused him. There was nothing. No giant, no man, not anything. The only movement was beneath the trash. Damn pests. He huffed.
"A waste jumper?" A voice came from behind him. Kimber spun around, a short sword coming up to guard against any sudden attacks. "Good to know." It said. Kimber squinted to see the face of the speaker in the shadow-casting light. "Tay Mallor?"