Seeing and sensing no further threats to our lives, I let the hammer dissipate and began walking up to the wall, making sure to avoid the occasional puddles of blood and offal. It was time to talk to the slaves and those I had spared.
Before reaching my destination, it occurred to me that conversing with people from within a towering titan that had just butchered an army and skewered others, might not have the effect that I desired. Oh sure, the medieval, nomadic people who had never seen a monstrosity like this in their entire lives, would keel over and do whatever I asked of them. Overwhelming fear was a potent thing after all. On the other hand, I would only further reinforce their trauma for no other reason than to (literally) look down on them.
There was also something to be said about ground realities, and the reality was that I had killed a majority of the able men of this khalasar. The women and children were now without their protectors and providers, and the slaves were smack dab in the middle of Essos with nothing but the threadbare clothes on their backs. I was not a monster, so leaving them to their fate was out of the question. I was not a coward either, it was time to own up to what I had done and take control of the situation.
Now, how do I get out of this- oh. That's how. The titan flesh around my body moved, pushing me further out. I resurfaced in a burst of steam- torso first, legs still inside- the diamond-like substance strangely showing no resistance and parting like soft butter. Huh. I guess the flesh doesn't resist its master.
With one hand, I tugged myself free of the thin strands of pink flesh attached to the orbital region below my eyes and the one on my neck. My perspective shifted and the sudden loss of titan vision and senses caused me to sway, and I lurched forward, frantically trying to grab onto something so I didn't slip out and fall to my death. Responding to my will, the massive nape formed two solid handles for me to hold on to. So this… superpower… worked from outside the titan too. Interesting. God knows I wanted to dive into what this crazy superpower could do, but there was a time for tests and experiments and this wasn't it.
I looked down over my shoulder and closed my eyes tightly. Oh my God, that was a long drop! Shit! How did I manage to pilot a titan almost the size of the Eiffel Tower again? Oh right, I was it. Now I was back to being human. Ok. Stop panicking, Damian. Take a deep breath and grow back those balls. Yes, the same balls you used to fight off nearly a dozen men and kill them and then did all that crazy stuff afterwards. Just calm down, and imagine a way to get down safely.
I communicated my intent to Ymir, who agreed. I reached out for the power to control the titan and laughed like a loon when I felt the its arms and legs move. Why was I so happy about this? Because my nerves weren't even connected to my titan through those strands. This meant that the titan body could obey my commands through psychic channels alone. The image of an RC car and its controller came to mind and I chuckled. This was such bullshit. Bullshit that had so many possible uses, and I just knew I was just barely scratching the surface.
My titan got down on one knee and its right shoulder molded itself into solid stairs that led all the way down the length of the arm. I walked down the stairs, Ymir replicating my movements and doing the same. Standing on the palms of our titans, we looked over the walls and saw that a majority of the people inside were now conscious, awake and staring up in horror. I felt for them. It must be terrifying to see something so otherworldly and overwhelming, even if it was kneeling.
I tensed my legs and commanded the giant hand to lower down until it was only ten feet above the ground. They all gasped and backed away in fear and I wrinkled my nose and almost gagged at the disgusting stench of ammonia and fecal matter. If my aim was to appear less scary, I had successfully failed to achieve it. I sighed internally. Y'know what? Fuck it. I did what I could do to appear less aloof and talk to them face to face. I was not their mother or their psychiatrist.
I did not speak their tongue so I tried channeling the same magical energy that I had felt before into my tongue. The threads of Blue wove themselves into a passable auditory illusion. An Essosi slave who understood low Valyrian would hear it, while a Dothraki listening would hear their mother tongue being spoken with perfect clarity. Even things that had no word for it would enter their minds, though they would forget what it was.
"You wonder who we are," I began, my voice louder than it should've been, "you wonder what we are. The answers to those questions are quite simple." I prepared myself for a bit of self-aggrandisement. It was highly necessary in a land as obsessed with titles and grand tales such as this.
"As far as you lot are concerned, I am the Titan King and she is-" I mentally cringed at what I was about to say, but I had confirmed it with Ymir beforehand and she was fine with it (she was strangely excited about it though), so I plowed through, "-my Queen." She might as well be. We were linked through this power, and we certainly weren't siblings so that was what we went with. It still felt kinda weird calling a thirteen year old girl my queen.
I could see the look of acceptance, awe and respect amongst the slaves. Even the Dothraki women and children bowed their heads, despite the fact that I had killed their sons, brothers, husbands, and fathers.
I continued, "The practice of slavery is abominable in our eyes. You are all free, henceforth. Any here who wishes to defy our will?" I let the foreboding question linger in the air. None raised their head in defiance.
Then a voice came. "What shall become of us, oh Great Titan King?" A bold man asked. He was balding in certain places and his beard was beginning to show flecks of grey. Once perhaps a healthy man, he was now weak in body. His eyes were a pale blue, and he had dark circles under them, a sign of how little he had slept since he had been captured. He gulped and stammered a little when he saw that he had my attention. "W- we have no nowhere else to go, Your Excellency. The- the horselords-" He spat on the ground. "-took what we had and even if some of it were to be returned to us, we have no supplies to return to our lands. Some of us," he grit his teeth, "have no land to return to." There were murmurs of agreement.
I nodded. "And if I am to guess, you count amongst the latter?"
He bowed low. "Your Excellency is wise. Six moons ago, I was a cheese merchant in Pentos. I was doing well, until I lost much of my merchandise in a- fire." Ah, a malicious competitor by how angry the man sounded. "I lost my home, my wife was sold to a Lyseni slaver, and so were my children. I was given away to the Khal as an offering by the city council- a punishment for my unpaid debts."
"Your name?"
"Marius Legario, Your Excellency." He replied.
"I have heard your plea and sympathise with your plight." Dear Lord, how did politicians manage to speak like this with any kind of consistency? "I shall return whatever is left of your property to you, and do whatever is in my power to help any who wish return to their lands. If you do not wish to leave, you may serve me of your own free will. I will provide food and accommodations for you for a mon- moon, after that you must pull your own weight.
They all seemed quite shocked with that declaration and many looked at me with an emotion that made me distinctly uncomfortable.
"Remember," I added. "Should you choose to serve me- any lies, betrayal or treason will be severely punished. You have seen what we can do to those who defy us." I raised my left fist and clenched it, my titan's left hand mirrored the gesture. The point was made and it sunk in quite well from what the Blue whispered. Good.
"I wish to serve you, Great Titan King! Where you go, I go!" A bushy bearded fellow shouted, his eyes wild with fanaticism. Bit concerning, that one.
"Good riddance to the horsefuckers! They killed my man and left him to rot, then took me against my will. You have my loyalty, Titan King," declared a woman with torn clothes that barely hid anything.
My eyebrows kept climbing higher and higher as a majority of the men, women, and even children rose up and declared their allegiance. The Dothraki grit their teeth but said nothing.
"And you," I addressed the Dothraki prisoners of war, "Where would you go, should you be set free?" I silenced the few protests by raising my hand. The Dothraki people looked at each other, confused by the possibility of mercy.
One heavily pregnant woman amongst them spoke. "We would return to Vaes Dothrak. That is where widows and unclaimed women go."
"And where is this… Vaes Dothrak?" I questioned her. It was here that she hesitated and trembled. She blinked her eyes and answered.
"I do not recall, Giant King. I am with child and he has sapped much of my strength." She put a hand to her forehead and swayed in place.
I scoffed. Yeah right, bitch. "Is that so?" I looked at the rest of the wheat-skinned women and children, they fidgeted in place, unwilling to open their mouths. I smiled, "No matter. My loyal servants," they stood at attention, "Who amongst you is knowledgeable about the location of Vaes Dothrak?"
Marius and the wild-eyed man smirked. Almost everyone was, even those who were not previously knowledgeable about where certain cities lay. They all learned a thing or two from their captors, some even knew the basics of Dothraki by now. It was a long journey.
They pointed in one direction. North-east. The Dothraki paled and some even began sobbing.
"Their city is near, Your Excellency," Marius was grinning now, his teeth yellow from being unwashed for moons. "Only a few days' ride away."
"Wonderful." I clapped once and the Dothraki flinched. "I have heard that the Dothraki are gracious and welcoming hosts. Perhaps we should see how much truth there is to that claim."
The former slaves roared out their approval. And I could not fault them for the desire to see the backbone of the slave trade suffer.
The pregnant women hobbled in my direction and Ymir's titan hand rose as a warning. I raised my hand, stopping my supporters from grabbing and ripping the woman to shreds. She fell down before me, tears in her eyes and pled, "Please, Great Giant, spare them. Spare our people. Please!"
"Your people have wronged many, woman." I answered, my tone harsh. "But rest assured that no young children, babies or their mothers would be harmed, nor would I allow them to suffer the injustices that your people meted out." I turned to those who had given me their allegiance. "You hear that, my people? None of you will take anyone forcefully, nor will you enslave or oppress any other peoples. Any who do so shall face the Titan's wrath." With a harsh swipe of my hand, the spikes that held up the impaled corpses of hundreds of Dothraki retracted and their bodies fell like puppets with their strings cut. The woman sobbed and was ushered away by her equally distraught friends.
The wild man grinned and aggressively saluted by pounding a hand against his chest, while the rest bowed their heads. There were certainly some that did not agree with my decree but their internal grumbling meant less than shite to me. They will either obey or suffer the consequences. I will not have savages in my court. Hah! I was already thinking like a king. I looked at Ymir and smiled, she smiled back.
The Dothraki could not be allowed to exist as a nation any longer. This was clear to me. My newfound powers compounded my desire to bring some real civilisation to this wretched land and free its people. For what were armies and chains to titans that could shake the world?
Author Note: And now we get to destroying the Dothraki.