[WIP] [ST 3: STROLL HOME]

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The rhythmic tremors of the giant's steps melds with the echoes of a forest that had to learn to coexist with the voluminous being. He walks upright, his right arm bent towards his chest, open palm upward where he effortlessly carries the human and his equipment.

Fortunately, the giant seems to have experience in carrying people in his hands, resulting in minimal turbulence for the little guy. Yet, it’s not enough comfort to prevent him from clutching his fingers into the fleshy palm of the giant. His closed eyelids barely contain the storm of thoughts assaulting him; he had not prepared in the least for this turn of events. He attempts to steady his breathing to calm himself, a challenging task given the sweeping movements of the walking giant.

Gradually, he becomes accustomed to the motion, opening his eyes to inspect his surroundings. In front of him are his belongings – his backpack, a borrowed tent and sleeping bag and his recording equipment – all looking minuscule in comparison to the massive hand holding him. Ahead and towards the horizon, he glimpses an endless natural landscape stretching into the ocean. If not for the vertigo he’s feeling, he would edge closer to see it better.

Yet, no matter where he looks, the panorama is utterly different.

On his sides, he encounters mountains and precipices of solid muscles. The giant’s robust left arm swings a few meters from him, unconsciously accompanying the colossus’s stride. The right arm bend to hold him, exposing a solid pair of biceps extending towards him, several times larger than himself.

Behind him lies a thick curtain of dark hair, the colossus’s furry chest, and through the occasional openings in the curtain, his pectorals. Two solid walls of compact muscle expanding and contracting with each breath the giant takes.

Lastly, rising above the wall of hair, stands the giant’s head atop his muscular neck. His baldness contrasts with a dense, ebony-colored beard that partially covers his face, a trait that has distinguished him among Guarida‘s citizens for centuries. His face, marked by conflict and the passage of time, exudes a sense of self-confidence and unwavering determination. Although his eyes, a dark shade of cyan, continue to radiate a jubilant sparkle.

The giant emanates a presence as imposing as it is inscrutable. The human is captivated as he inspects each feature of the colossus, who strides with determination, oblivious to the curious observer held in his hand.

He traverses the forest with absolute familiarity. His long legs surpassing trees, boulders and streams, imprinting their heavy foot into the gaps they find between the dense foliage. He navigates trough hills and mountains, stepping firmly on their slopes as if they were steps on a staircase. Each step accompanied by the reverberating impact of his weight on the ground and the crunching noises of anything unfortunate enough to end up beneath the colossus.

The humans feel like a passenger aboard the most powerful locomotive in the world, capable of making his way wherever it desires and crushing anything that crosses its path.

In the distance, a particular path comes into view, the giant seems to be heading towards it. Wide and dusty, the trail stretches for kilometers, branching off to strategic locations of Guarida. These paths originated from the giant's ceaseless walking along them and they allow him to move easily within his territory. They are popularly known as the "Giant's paths".

The scorching heat of summer offers no respite. The giant is sweltering, his body sweats incessantly. For him, today has been a long day of physical labor, both in the forest and the city, with no rest in between. Giants have exceptional endurance; they can work for days on end without pause, but that doesn’t make them immune to the effects of the weather.

The giant makes his way through the dense vegetation of the forest until he finds the trail he knows by heart. With assured steps, he descends the path towards the human settlements along the coastal areas of Guarida. The southerly wind makes its presence felt, coming from the coasts and penetrating the territory until it collides with the mountain range that runs through its center. The giant’s wide path functions as a conduit that allows the wind to circulate; the breeze becomes a refreshing breath for the giant’s sweat-dappled, semi-nude body.”

A resonant sigh of relief escapes the giant’s lips, reverberating so strongly that he fails to perceive what happens at chest height. As he continues marching along the earthen path that ascends and descends through the remaining mountainous stretch.

The giant’s sweat-drenched body exudes a pungent odor, a blend of masculine scents mingled with the piney fragrance of the forest. The wind collides with the giant’s furry chest and swirls unabashedly around the human, carrying with it the potent smell. The small one coughs in an attempt to regain some air, but his efforts prove futile; the intoxicating cocktail invades his lungs and seize his sense with an overpowering primitive charm.

He is compelled to acclimate himself to the smell that seems to permeate his entire being, although the experience proves arduous, he eventually succeeds.

Yet, in a strangely manner, that scent evokes a distant hint of familiarity within him.

At the crest of the final hill at the foot of the mountain, the giant halts for a moment to gaze at the landscape that unfolds before him: lush wooded hills transitioning into fertile meadows and undulating plains that stretch to the distant coastal lands of Guarida. The giant’s path winds before them, traversing the entire region until culminating in a city bathed in yellowish artificial lights. It’s [Suhr], the border town of Guarida located ad the southern edge of the territory.

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