Forest Kingdom Trilogy 3 - Down Among the Dead Men

them.
    A huge form lurched out of the darkness ahead. At first it was only a pale gray shape filling the tunnel, but as it drew nearer MacNeil gradually realized he was facing a giant. Standing upright, it would have been twenty feet tall and more, but in the cramped confines of the tunnel it was forced to crawl on hands and knees like an animal. Its skin and hair were milky white, and its great staring eyes were blind. It was entirely naked, covered with dirt and foulness and fresh bloody smears from the tunnel. MacNeil wondered sickly how long it had lived underground, and what it had found to feed on, crawling through tunnels under the earth like a vast misshapen worm. Its hands were huge and broad, the stubby fingers tipped with long curving fingernails grown into claws. Its teeth were long and pointed, and the great wide face held no human emotions. Saliva dripped from the snarling mouth, and the giant sniffed at the air, as though searching for the scent that had brought it crawling up out of the depths of the earth. Its shoulders filled the narrow tunnel from side to side. Its back rubbed against the ceiling, and its hand and knees sank into the bloodstained floor.
    Look at the size of it
, thought MacNeil dazedly.
Look at the bloody size of it
… .
    The crawling giant pulled itself slowly toward MacNeil and the Dancer, and they backed cautiously away as they realized it wasn’t alone. Behind it came another giant, and another. From farther down the tunnel came the sound of still more giants, hidden in the darkness. The giant in the lead raised its great head and howled like a hound, a horrid choking roar that echoed and reverberated throughout the tunnel. MacNeil and the Dancer winced at the awful sound, and the giant hauled itself forward with unexpected speed, the long muscular arms reaching blindly out for them.
    MacNeil stood his ground and lashed out at the nearest hand with his sword. The blade cut deep and grated on bone. The giant howled deafeningly and jerked its hand back. The sword stuck in the thick flesh, and MacNeil had to use both hands to pull it free. He staggered back, still dazed by the sheer size of his foe. The hand alone had to be a good two feet wide across the knuckles. He threw himself to the floor as the hand closed into a fist and swept ponderously through the air where he’d been standing. The fist slammed into the wall and the giant went berserk with rage, battering the walls with both fists as it tried to find its enemy. The Dancer moved in beside MacNeil as he scrambled backward out of range, his sword gleaming dully in the lantern light. The giant hauled itself forward, and the Dancer stepped inside its reach and cut both the creature’s wrists. A thick purple blood spurted into the air, and the giant howled once before swinging one fist with unexpected speed. The Dancer threw himself backward but couldn’t move fast enough. The giant hand just clipped his shoulder in passing, and the Dancer was thrown against the tunnel wall with numbing force.
    The giant pulled itself forward, the great white form filling the tunnel, battering the bloody walls and ceiling. Behind it, another crawling giant fought blindly to get past the first. MacNeil staggered to his feet, grabbed the lantern, and hacked at the giant’s arm. More blood flew into the air, but still the creature wouldn’t stop. MacNeil tried to reach the giant’s throat, but couldn’t get past the hammering fists. The Dancer moved forward to stand beside MacNeil, but even he couldn’t do more than slow the giant’s advance. Slowly, step by step, they were forced back down the tunnel. The giants howled and roared, the horrid sounds deafening in the enclosed space. MacNeil and the Dancer had almost reached the steps when the giant suddenly lunged forward. The left hand caught hold of MacNeil’s shoulder, and the right fastened onto the Dancer’s sword arm. MacNeil groaned as the huge hand crushed his shoulder in a vise-like grip, and the sword fell from his numbed hand. The Dancer’s face was white from the pressure on his arm, but somehow he still held onto his sword, though he hadn’t the strength to use it. The giant pulled them slowly forward, its mouth stretching wide to reveal huge, jagged teeth.
    There was a clatter of feet on the stairs behind them as Flint and Constance came charging down into the tunnel. Constance raised her hands and spoke a single Word of Power. A searing white light flashed down the