Prologue
A Dance of Giants
Rusted earth trembled beneath Ari’s feet, cracks in the thirsty ground glowing ember in the pervading darkness. The air burned against her cheeks as though she were stuck within a circle of invisible fire — her lungs oxygen deprived, her tongue thick and teeth dry. She blinked, disorientated, wondering where she was and how she had gotten there. Her arid and pained eyes found nothing to snag upon as they swept the vast emptiness around her. The arching, deep darkness of the starry night above her folded over on her in its infinite black.
“Hello!” she choked out, her voice hoarse and small as it echoed into the nothingness.
Where am I?
The thought had barely launched into the alien night, when a foreboding rumbling sang out from a great distance. It grew louder and more ominous as it was joined by crashing and crunching that shook the very ground beneath Ari’s feet.
“AAAAAARRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!” A war cry split the world into two as a mass of giant limbs flew past Ari and thundered to the ground, their impact blasting Ari off her feet. She took a minute to suck back in the breath that had been knocked out of her. She winced at the stinging pain as skin scraped off of her elbow, and as rocks bruised the back of her bare thighs. The shrieking, pounding, and uproarious explosions of violence that was met by rough, guttural eruptions of rage that she heard beyond, made Ari’s heart slam against her chest. The terrifying sounds made her forget to question where she was or why she was still in her pajama shorts and t-shirt.
“Holy fu-macaroons,” she caught herself, breathing the words of frightened awe under her breath as she scrambled to her feet. “Aah!” she squeaked, dodging a piece of flying earth that had been pounded out by the largest fist she’d ever seen. Before her, two Jinn fought. Two over-sized, forty feet tall Jinn. Even from the distance she’d been thrown, her neck craned back to watch the Jinn’s fight. Ari forgot to run, to find safety, to listen to her adrenaline. The sight was mesmerizing in its ferocity. Ari studied them. Bursting in and out of flames, the fire seeming to be physical evidence of both Jinn’s attempt at control as they fought manically. One was female, her long dark hair abused and bloodied near the forehead, her beautiful face, for the most part, unmarred. The male Jinn was worse off. Blood streamed from cuts on his face as the female made new ones every time the old ones began to heal. His own long dark hair was falling from its midnight braid as the female attempted to rip it from its hold. It occurred to Ari that the beautiful male Jinn was not trying to hurt the female, rather he was trying to hold her off.
The female lunged onto the male and the two collided to the ground, knocking Ari off her feet once more. Blood trickled down Ari’s arm but she barely noticed as she shakily hurried to stand. Her heart raced at the sight of the female Jinn’s sharp-nailed hand she’d wrapped around the male Jinn’s throat. He reached up, tugging at her grip. Ari’s breathing grew shallow with fear at the sight of the stunning gold circlet around his bicep. It was smeared with blood so fresh it matched the ruby inset in the middle. Afraid (but for whom Ari did not know) she let her gaze drift back to his face, and she watched as his dark eyes looked into the female’s eyes in mute sadness. The female froze, her hand still wrapped tightly around his neck.
Without thinking Ari took a step towards them, her heart tugging at the sight of the male and his hurt showing in his eyes. She wanted to ease his pain, to wrap her tiny self around him. She felt as if she knew him somehow. At the same time she was drawn to the female Jinn. To her desperate need. Her want. But for what? What?
“I’m sorry, brother,” the female Jinn whispered, a tear dripping from her luxurious eyes - eyes that matched his. “I must.”
Before she could execute whatever she ‘must’ the female was thrown by invisible hands and landed with an earth-cracking thump. This time, having expected it, Ari had braced her legs and only stumbled on impact. Her eyes widened at the massive female foot that rested before her; so large she could have climbed upon it as if it were a tiny boat. She gulped, mesmerized by the gold ankle bracelet that could have chained the boat to dock and the pretty gold toe ring that Ari would have been able to put her head through.
The shift of air and the unbearable heat that kissed at Ari’s cheeks like burning pieces of paper, alerted her to his advancing presence. The thunderous roar of giant footsteps vibrated through the ground as Ari turned and watched him approach. Her eyes travelled the enormous feet, the gigantic legs in the bluest of watery silk, to the tightly roped abdomen and upper body, and thick bulging arms with matching gold armlets…
… Ari squinted, the features of his face shadowed by the night as his head reached into the stars.
Swallowing hard Ari took a few steps back, her feet staggering on the moving earth as he kept walking until he stood braced over the male Jinn’s prone body.
“YOU WILL NEVER HAVE HIM, MOTHER OF MINE,” His voice boomed into the world and even the stars dimmed in awe at his words.
The female gazed up at him as she pulled herself into a sitting position. She was so beautiful that Ari was transfixed, not wanting to acknowledge the viciousness in the pretty turn of her mouth, and the madness in those velvety eyes. Ari had never known such wicked beauty.
“YOU WOULD PROTECT HIM FROM ME, MASTER?” Her painted words sang out in glittering ethereality and Ari found herself sighing along with the earth.
“I WOULD PROTECT YOU FROM YOURSELF.”
“NO!” Her shriek sliced the ether, shattering the stars into pieces. Ari’s hands flew to her ears as she was blown back off her feet for what felt like the fifteenth time, her mind trying to play catch up. What had she missed? What had HE said? What did it mean? Why did she feel such despair?