Rixie had finally gone to sleep when Alex found himself awake inside her bag. The body heat from her clothes had long since cooled.

He listened carefully. He could hear that she was breathing deeply in her sleep. Cautiously, Alex climbed out of the bag and onto the floor again.

This time, he was pretty sure that there wouldn’t be any cleaning crew walking in.

He made his way to the massive bed that Rixie was sleeping in, and then over to the bedside table. After reaching the edificial piece of furniture, he began to make his way to the top.

When he got there, he sat of the edge of the table, legs dangling over the side and did what he often did while Rixie slept.

He watched her.

He could never get over how peaceful she looked when she slept, and how beautiful.

As it often did whenever he had one of these quiet moments, Alex felt his heart ache just a little. He knew, deep down, that he cared deeply for her, was in love with her, in fact.

And he knew that on some level she cared for him as well… but love him like he did her? Doubtful. How could she? He was the size of her finger.

In a perfect world, he’d be able to tell her all of this. Share his feelings with her, even if she didn’t reciprocate. But they didn’t live in a perfect world. In the world they lived in, Alex knew it wouldn’t be right to tell her. It wouldn’t be fair to put her in the position of having to deal with his feelings while she didn’t reciprocate.

Not to mention, he didn’t think he could take the look of pity in her eyes as she tried to “let him down easy.”

And that’s what it would be. Pity. She was beautiful, strong, intelligent… she could have any man or woman she wanted. Why would she ever love someone she could put in her pocket?

No… He would just have to suck it up and take whatever level of affection she was willing to give. It would have to be enough. And when the time inevitably came that she found happiness with a Titan, he would gracefully step aside. He would move to Avalon, perhaps, and try to make a life for himself.

And he would be happy for her.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Nick’s eyes opened and he found himself facing a tangle of dark brown hair. Pulling back he realized that he had been face deep in Sophia’s wild mane of chocolate colored hair. She snored softly in her sleep, encircled in his arms. He reached down to pull the covers up, but he suddenly found that very difficult.

He looked down and realized they were being covered not by a blanket, but by a giant hand. Nick blinked and slowly his sleep addled mind clicked back into place and he remembered where he was.

He looked up, past the breasts that obscured the Titaness’ face, to the mane of fire red hair. He and Sophia were laying on Brinn’s stomach. On either side of her lay the sleeping forms of two other titans, Zara and Taron.

Nick smiled and pulled Sophia in tighter against himself. He soon felt his eyelids start to droop as the warmth from Brinn’s hand began to lull him back to sleep.

The hand on top of him twitched and he felt the fingers gently stroking his skin and Sophia’s. Nick glanced up but couldn’t tell if Brinn was awake or not. A small moan rumbled in the chest underneath him but that didn’t tell him much either.

Nick closed his eyes, intent to go back to sleep when he suddenly felt a light pinch on his ankle. He had enough time to, briefly, wonder what it was before a sudden force jerked him underneath Brinn’s hand and he found himself dangling upside down above her body and Sophia, who was still sleeping peacefully and blissfully unaware.

Nick looked around, more curious than worried. The fingers that gripped him were tan and topped with dark blue-polished fingernails.

He was carried a short distance until he found himself hanging over Zara’s grinning and wide awake face.

“Hi.” She whispered, her purple eyes sparkling with mischief and delight.

“Um… hi.” Nick whispered back. “What are you doing?”

Zara smirked and lowered him down to her lips which puckered and pressed against him in a gentle kiss. “I just wanted to say good morning. I saw that you were awake.”

“You two keep yapping and we’ll all be awake.” Brinn muttered, yawning.

“Sorry Brinn.” Nick muttered with a grin.

The redheaded Titaness smirked and sat up in bed. “I was having a really nice dream too…”

“Oh?” Zara smiled. “What about.”

Brinn shook her head, her mouth a mysterious smirk. “Nevermind. Maybe I’ll show you someday…”

“It’s a good thing I have to get up anyway.” Taron mumbled from the other side of the bed, “Or I’d be very upset at all this yakking.”

“Why do you have to get up?” Brinn asked.

“Pryvani asked me to go to the Valhalla Platform and meet some courier who is carrying a message packet for her.

“Can I come?” Sophia asked sleepily.

“Sure, but why?”

“It gets me out and about for a bit, and because I’m interested in seeing it.”

Taron smiled down at the little woman. “Yeah, okay. I’d love to have the company.”

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

“I’m really glad we’re working together again, Rixie.” It was the next morning and Rixie and Vanser were waiting in the ship’s lounge for the docking procedure to finish so they could disembark, only to board another vessel. Such was interstellar travel.

“Me too Vans.” Rixie smiled. “I didn’t mind retirement, but part of me feels good to be back out in the field.”

“Just like old times.” Vanser enthused.

“Yeah.”

A moment of silence passed between them as Rixie took a sip of her drink.

“You know what this reminds me of?” Vanser continued after a moment. “That time that we were infiltrating that smuggling operation out in the Gamjez Cluster. And in order to get past their security, you had to put on that really tight-”

“Okay!” Rixie gasped, half choking on her drink. “I thought we swore never to speak of that again!”

“You swore.” Vanser reminded her. “I quietly filed it away for later blackmail purposes.”

“Right.” Rixie chuckled. “Don’t make me bring up the Tojero Incident.”

“You wouldn’t!” Vanser’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

“You sure about that?” Rixie replied with a smirk.

Inside of Rixie’s bag, Alex shifted uncomfortably, trying to keep his arms and legs from going numb. He had managed to get some sleep, but not a whole lot so he was feeling particularly grumpy. Listening to the two Titans laughing above him wasn’t helping his mood.

“Stupid Vanser. Thinks he’s such a bigshot.” Alex muttered. “What’s he got that I don’t? Besides height and being a titan and… imperial citizenship.”

The ground suddenly shifted underneath him as Rixie stood and lifted her bag onto her shoulder. The loudspeakers had just informed them that docking was underway and they’d be able to disembark momentarily.

Alex tumbled to the bottom of the pocket, landing on top of a folded shirt and a pair of socks.

“So what’s new anyway?” Vanser continued their conversation. “How’s working for Tarsuss going for you?”

“Oh, it’s decent. Pretty quiet really, not much goes on there.”

“Uh huh. Anybody new in your life?”

“Oh well there’s-”

“ATTENTION ALL PASSENGERS! WE HAVE NOW DOCKED AND ARE READY TO BEGIN DISEMBARKING. PLEASE PROCEED TO YOUR DESIGNATED ZONES.”

“Come on.” Rixie nodded towards the doors. “We’re over here.”

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

She’d been docked at Tatendi Station for less than a day and already Trell was ready to rip someone’s head off. The shuttle pilots had docked at the station, told them to wait for further instructions and- almost immediately- jetted off into space, leaving them behind.

Frankly, Trell was ready to just hop on the next shuttle and see what fate had in store for her. Unfortunately, in order to do so… she would have to cross Syon Fand. Fate tended not to have very nice things in store for people who do that.

So… she waited. Dorok and Greno had left for parts unknown together. Greno had decided he could “use somebody” with Dorok’s particular skill set, and Dorok had been too terrified to tell him no. The last Trell had seen of them they were boarding a shuttle heading for the Antares Rim.

But Trell was stuck, waiting. Like basically everything that had happened to her from the moment she;d jumped aboard that shuttle on Rura Penthe, she suspected that Syon Fand was both punishing and testing her. She was wasn’t particularly a fan of the idea, but there wasn’t much she could do about it, besides get more and more annoyed as the hours ticked by.

So she waited.

*.*.*.*.*.*

The gangplank thumped under Taron’s feet as he disembarked from the surface to orbit transport with Sophia perched comfortably on his shoulder. He passed through the crowds of people, mostly dust covered men and women up for a bit of rest from the mining sites of the planet below.

“I still don’t understand why we’re up here Taron.” Sophia asked somewhat petulantly, even as she watched the passing giants with interest.

“I told you, so we can pick up the message being delivered for Pryvani by the courier.” The Titan replied, checking his data pad for the location he was to meet the person bringing the message. “She’s a bit busy with other things at the moment, so I volunteered to retrieve the message for her.”

“No, I get that. I mean why did they send an actual person in the first place?” Sophia responded. “Why not just sends the documents electronically?”

Taron shrugged, using only the shoulder Sophia wasn’t perched on. “It’s tradition, I guess. For some reason this particular cultural artifact has managed to hang on despite centuries of technological advancement. Plus it’s supposed to be more secure. Supposedly, you know no one’s managed to hack or copy your data if it’s being kept in a sealed envelope and handed to you in person by another living breathing being.”

Sophia’s brow arched. “If you say so.”

“Besides,” Taron continued as he turned left down a side corridor to another sector of the docking station. “What are you complaining for? This got you off the moon for a little while anyway. I know you didn’t see much of Valhalla last time we were here.”

“It is rather impressive.” The small woman muttered. The station corridor wasn’t exactly packed tight, but this was still more Titans in one place than she’d ever seen before. It was rather intimidating.

Not for the first time, Sophia wondered what sort of future awaited her race if humans ever managed to reach the stars and join the rest of the Galaxy. Leaving aside the not-insignificant issues represented by their current classification within the Archavian Empire, (and, therefore among most of the rest of the powers in that part of space) Humanity still faced major setbacks due to the huge disparity between the size of most other sentient races and their own.

She’d asked Zara about it once and had been told that the next smallest sentient race that the Titans had ever encountered was still over forty feet tall.

While she had no doubt that Humanity could stand shoulder to shoulder with any other race in the galaxy in terms of raw intelligence, she wasn’t entirely sure that would be enough for her race to be granted the respect that attribute should deserve. If other sentient races were at all like humans (and after her dealings with Titans, she suspected they were) they were just as likely to judge on appearance as on anything else.

Her musings were interrupted as she and Taron entered the terminal where the courier’s message had said her shuttle was docking, and therefore, the designated spot to be meeting her. As they rounded the corner and entered the terminal, a young woman turned to face them.

She had brown hair and startlingly blue eyes. Her skin was pale and her face largely expressionless. She wore simple clothing of black and grey. Instantly, Sophia was reminded of several teachers she’d had over the years. The strict disciplinarian types. This woman appeared to be all business.

“Are you the courier with the message for Pryvani Tarsuss?” Taron asked as they approached.

The woman’s eyes flicked to where Sophia was sitting on his shoulder, and her brow creased only slightly before she turned to Taron to respond.

“Yes. I assume you are her appointed representative and have proper documentation attesting to that fact?”

Taron nodded and held up his pad, to show her the electronically signed documentation that said that yes, he was allowed to retrieve the documents meant for Pryvani in her stead.

“Excellent.” The woman nodded and fished her own pad out of the pocket of her jacket. “If you’d just place your thumb here we can…” She suddenly fell silent.

“Everything okay?” Taron asked.

“Oh nothing! I just… I- ACHOO!” Suddenly without warning the woman sneezed violently in front of them.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” The woman smiled apologetically, even though her eyes still looked cold and calculating. “Are you all right? I just have an allergy to humans.”

“Oh uh, that’s okay.” Taron muttered. “Here’s your pad back.”

“Okay well, it looks like everything is in order then. Here’s your package sir. Have a good day.”

She thrust the package into Taron’s hands and took her data pad back before retreating down the corridor attached to the terminal.

“That was weird.” Taron spoke. “I didn’t even know you could have an allergy to humans.

“I’m not sure whether to be insulted or not, frankly.” Sophia responded drily.

“Don’t worry about it, come on let’s go.” Taron turned and began walking back the way they came, towards the transport bay that would bring them back to the moon.

The courier watched them walk away. When they left the terminal she pulled her data pad and typed out a single-lined message and sent it to her employer.

“Package Delivered.”

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

As he looked out over the congregation, Brother Sulphur couldn’t help but feel a little smug. He’d always known that people were stupid and all it took were the right words to make them do whatever you wanted, but he never thought it would be this easy.

He watched as one of his men lashed out at a congregant with his whip, the coiled leather striking against the man’s back with a resounding crack. The man flinched, but didn’t cry out. His enforcer nodded, and then moved on.

Sulphur savored the undercurrent of fear he felt from the congregation in front of him. Word of how Khalin and his cult had escaped imprisonment had spread from one side of the city to the other by midmorning the next day. That fool in the temple had ordered the city sealed, no traffic in or out, but the damage had already been done. The cultists were freed.

That fact made people nervous.

“My brothers and sisters.” Sulphur murmured pleasantly, even as he finished delivering a sermon on the evils of the modern day, “Our worship has concluded. Go forth.”

There was rustling and muted muttering as the congregants rose and filed out of the makeshift chapel. Sulphur spent a bit of time speaking to a number of the people privately as he sought to reassure them they were on the right path, one of the chosen few, among the favored of the goddess.

And all that other nonsense.

After to room cleared, Sulphur walked to the back room where his personal quarters were located. He made a beeline for his closet where he pulled out a large metallic box, roughly the size of a trunk.

He ran his hands across the metallic grey surface reverently before pressing the button on the side. The box suddenly sprung to life, issuing a loud whirring noise. A lens flared open on the top of the box and a stream of colored light shot out of the box and up to the ceiling.

After a few moments, the light coalesced into the image of a regal looking woman with sharp grey eyes and long brown hair. The image looked down on Sulphur, who had reverently fallen to his knees, with a cold calculating expression.

“Yes?” She asked imperiously.

“My lady Fand.” Sulphur demurred. “I have done as you ask. Khalin and his people have been freed from imprisonment.”

“Good.” The barest quirk of a smile flitted across the woman’s aristocratic features. “I knew it was a good idea to leave a spy on Avalon when I departed and my foolish daughter took over.”

Sulphur shivered at the compliment, thin as it had been. While he was completely aware that Syon Fand was no real goddess… he was still in awe of her. When she’d left Avalon all those years ago, he’d been a young man. She’d left the odd device in his care and had charged him to keep her apprised of affairs on the moon. He had served her faithfully for decades.

“I suspect they’ve fled the city however.” Sulphur flinched, readying himself for a sharp rebuke from the Titaness.

“No matter.” Syon Fand purred. “Just the fact they have escaped will have my daughter chasing shadows trying to recapture them. What they do now is of little consequence.”

“What are your orders, my lady?” Sulphur asked with his face downcast.

“Carry on as you have. Report to me anything of interest.”

“Yes my lady.” Sulphur whispered as the image flickered and faded away.

*.*.*.*.*.*

Taron carefully walked through the streets of Atlantis. After returning from the orbital platform, he’d dropped off the message in Pryvani’s office because the heiress had been out. Then he’d left Sophia with Zara. Now he was down in the city hoping to do some repairs to the northwestern quarter.

The Titan knew that Dahntnee had “sealed the city” but Taron didn’t really figure that had applied to him.

The sentries at the gate hadn’t either.

So Taron carried his tool bag, and the team of masons and builders he’d been assigned to help over to a series of ruined buildings. Setting the massive bag and carefully unloading the team of men, he began to work.

“So what’s on the agenda today?” Taron asked, cracking his knuckles and picking a tube of sealant out of his bag.

“Well, figure we’ll start on the seamstress’ shop at the end of the block and work our way North. Sound good to you?” The gruff looking man, whose name Taron recalled being Gharlee shrugged his shoulders indifferently.

Taron smiled. “Whatever you want Ghar. I’m just here to help.”

“’Help’ he says.” The foreman rolled his eyes and walked away muttering. “As if he didn’t just carry my entire team across half the city.”

Taron chuckled at the small human, and then began digging through his bag for his tools.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Zara was talking about something. Or maybe to someone.

Sophia wasn’t at all sure just what the Titaness was talking about, or to who, or whatever… but she was talking about something. She was sure of it. She could hear the words just fine.

Comprehending them was something else entirely.

The only thing Sophia was really aware of at the moment was her own shallow breathing and the sound of her own pulse pounding in her ears.

Her stomach roiled and her vision swam as she fought to stay upright. What was happening to her? One second she’d been fine… and then…

“Zara…”

Sweat poured down her body and she leaned against the spine of a giant book for support. At least that’s what she thought it was. It was getting hard to-

“…Zara…”

The titaness kept muttering away, busying herself with whatever it was that hard her occupied. She might have been talking to someone… it was hard to…

“ZARA!”

The dark haired giantess finished her conversation with Pryvani and turned to face the dresser where Sophia was standing. “I’m sorry sweetie, I didn’t hear you. What did you need?”

“I…I…”

Zara’s brow creased in worry and she rushed over to where Sophia was standing, or trying to stand. “Sophia, are you okay? What’s wrong?!”

“I don’t… I don’t… feel very…”

And then Sophia lost consciousness.