Just struggling wasn’t getting Micaiah anywhere, but it was all she had. She briefly considered using Sacrifice again, to shrink herself small enough to slip out of the commander’s tight grip, but she decided not to. There was no guarantee he would not simply grip her tighter, so she could make herself smaller for no gain. And, now she was smaller than a mouse, she had to savor every last bit of height she had.
Stopping for a moment, Micaiah took in a deep breath. She looked for any sign of weakness in the giant’s grip. It was tough to see, for his hand swayed as the man walked, enough to make her feel queasy. She couldn’t move her arms much either, for his index finger was just below her shoulders. That meant all she could do was wriggle around. Her only option was to focus all of the strength she had into one motion and hope it would be enough.
With a squeak of exertion, Micaiah made her move. Her captor’s finger barely budged. She couldn’t be sure he even felt anything. He did react however, possibly hearing the noise she made. He lifted his hand back to his face, gazing at the miniature woman he held.
“Even when she’s in my hand, the silver-haired maiden can’t stop causing trouble.” He sneered. “Do you still think you can make any difference in your state? You’ve got guts girl, I’ll give you that.”
Micaiah just glared at him, knowing any words she said would only invite ridicule and nothing more.
“You are a bit too troublesome for my liking.” He said, raising his other hand close to her. “Just sleep for a little while.”
Something blunt hit her head, the last thing she felt before she passed out.
“Ugh…”
Micaiah’s head was pounding. She was cold and didn’t want to wake. But she knew she could not rest, for her friends surely needed her.
Unfamiliar surroundings greeted her when she opened her eyes. It was dark, like the alleys of Nevassa, but she couldn’t sense the cool air of the outdoors. As her vision sharpened, she could make out iron bars.
This must be a prison. But how… She suddenly remembered what had happened.
I was captured! By those soldiers. Did the others escape?
There was a low thud from nearby. Wondering what could have made such a noise, Micaiah glanced in its direction.
She didn’t know what exactly she was looking at. The best she could describe it was as a huge, white curtain. It seemed to stretch upward forever, towards the far-off ceiling.
This room is huge… Or rather…
Micaiah remembered. That huge hand that carried her, and her own small size.
I was tiny. No, I must still be small!
“You’re awake!” Cried a familiar voice.
“Laura? That’s you, isn’t it?” Micaiah asked after the face of the titan that lowered into view.
“Are you all right?” The cleric asked. “I couldn’t see very well from where I was, but it looked like he flicked your head…”
“That’s what that blow was?” Micaiah groaned, clutching the side of her head. “He knocked me out cold. To think, that was just his finger…”
“You poor thing…” Laura sighed sadly.
“Don’t worry about me. I hope the others escaped…” Micaiah said. It seemed like there were enough soldiers in the forest to mount some sort of ambush. They must have known that the Dawn Brigade were in the manor.
“I’m sure they are safe and secure, just as I’m sure the abbot got his medicine.” Laura told her. “I believe in them.”
Laura… She really could be one of us. Micaiah thought. She cares so much for others. Maybe, if we can escape…
She briefly wondered why Laura couldn’t just leave, before noticing more, larger bars beyond her own cell. It seemed like Micaiah herself was in a little cage, attached to the wall of the prison cell that housed Laura. And a few others, from the looks of things.
“Pardon me, but… What exactly are you?” A woman with black hair asked. “Were you born tiny? Or did some sort of magic make you this way?”
“Oh! Um, the latter.” Micaiah squeaked at the giant. She was a little intimidated by the size of the stranger, but she could sense that she meant no harm.
“Oh really? I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of such a spell.” The woman said. “Then again, the proof is right in front of me.”
Micaiah plucked up the courage to introduce herself.
“I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Micaiah.”
“I’m Aimee. I’ve been a lucky guest in this dungeon for quite some time.” The woman replied, gesturing over to a large shape in the dark corner of the cell. “On the behalf of myself and my snoozing friend over there, Ilyana, it’s very nice to meet you, Micaiah.”
Squinting into the dark, Micaiah could see the slumbering form of a purple-haired woman. The strange whirring noise she heard must surely be the quiet snoring of the sleeping girl. Next to her was another figure, though Micaiah could see little of them underneath the cloak they wore. They seemed to be less than talkative, so Micaiah focused on her present company instead.
“Why are you two in here?” She asked Aimee.
“I wish I knew!” Aimee answered, “I belong to a merchant caravan that was passing through, en route to the next market day. When we arrived here, we were brought to this charming prison against our will. Now we await the general’s pleasure.”
The general? Could he have been the man that captured me? Micaiah wondered.
“I see. Well, that doesn’t sound good. How unfortunate…” Laura sighed.
They’re imprisoning innocent people for no good reason. This isn’t good, there’s no telling what might happen to us should we remain here. Micaiah worried.
“Laura, can you get this cage open?” Micaiah asked.
“I’ll try!” Laura agreed. There was a small door in the little cage, complete with a lock. Micaiah expected Laura to try picking the lock, but instead she grabbed the door and tried to yank it open. However, the surprisingly sturdy bars easily withstood the might of the giant, not even bending slightly.
“Argh! I’m not strong enough!” Laura grunted. “Maybe… If I can pull a bit harder…”
“You should give up, dear.” Aimee said. “It doesn’t look like that door is budging anytime soon.”
“I’m afraid she’s right.” Micaiah agreed. “We’ll need to try something else. If I can just get out of this cage, I could slip through the bars of the cell.”
“Oh! Then you could find the keys!” Laura clapped. “We could escape!”
“Shh! Do you want to tell all of the guards about our plan?!” Aimee reprimanded her.
It is a bit odd. Why am I being kept down here, with the other prisoners? Micaiah wondered. Surely they could have found a way to keep me captive, closer to the soldiers. But that doesn’t matter, right now I’ve got to think of a way out of this cage.
She had seen Sothe pick locks countless times, so Micaiah wondered if some of his skills had rubbed off on her. Then there were the bars of her cage. They were too close together for her to slip through, but maybe if she were smaller, she could squeeze past. Micaiah really didn’t want to end up any smaller than she already was, but if there really was no other way…
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