Adrienne arrived not long after Kai left with a plate of sandwiches for them. Apparently, Henry was on standby in the kitchen in case anyone needed anything.

Once again, Verdan was incredibly thankful for the two of them. Even amid all the chaos and everything that was happening, they kept the estate running.

Taking a few sandwiches on his way out the door, Verdan went to find Elliot. Barb had said that he’d gone to the mansion rather than the workshop, so Verdan started his search there.

Thankfully, Elliot was lingering in the sitting room, staring at his hands, so Verdan didn’t have to look through the whole building.

“Verdan,” Elliot said, acknowledging his presence without looking up.

“Elliot, how are you feeling?” Verdan asked, coming into the room and sitting near the other man.

“Disappointed, disgusted, ashamed, all the usual things a failure like me would feel,” Elliot said bitterly, his hands momentarily clenching into fists before opening once more.

“A failure?”

“Yes,” Elliot said simply, letting the word hang in the air for a moment before looking up at Verdan with a haunted expression. “I came close to finishing what that vespa started. I would have killed you without a second thought, only realising you were dead when I eventually came back to myself.”

“But you didn’t,” Verdan said, leaning forward to give his words emphasis. “Samuel got through to you, and you got it under control. You saved us, Elliot.”

“This time,” Elliot muttered softly, looking away as his hands curled into fists. “Next time, you might not be so lucky.”

“Is this why you avoid fighting?” Verdan asked carefully.

“I’ve never enjoyed fighting, not like Cullan does, and my Rage makes it dangerous for those around me, so I do my best to lead a peaceful life,” Elliot said, turning to look back at Verdan with a sad expression. “I understand what comes next; I’ve been through it many times before. I’ll be gone in the morning.”

“What do you mean?” Verdan asked, confused by Elliot’s statement.

“I mean that you won’t need to evict me; I’ll leave on my own. That’s why they’ve sent you here, right?”

“No, not at all. I was just concerned about you,” Verdan said, hiding his discomfort with what Elliot was suggesting. Had he been run out of towns in the past when he lost control?

“Oh,” Elliot said, seemingly at a loss for how to respond. “So, I’m free to stay?”

“Of course, you saved lives today. Yes, things could have gone wrong, but they didn’t, and that’s what matters.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Elliot shifted uncomfortably, some of the hurt and regret in his eyes fading as what Verdan had said really registered with him. “Thank you.”

“Please, it’s the least I can do,” Verdan said, waving aside the thanks a bit more forcefully than he intended. It annoyed him that this seemed to be the first time that Elliot had been allowed to remain after an incident, and Verdan doubted that the circumstances of Elliot protecting someone were unique. “If you are willing to talk about it, I would like to know more about this Rage you mentioned.”

“It’s a difficult subject, but I will try,” Elliot said solemnly. “Ask any questions you have, and I will do my best to answer.”

“Well, the first I have is what causes it; you seemed so in control at the start of the fight?”

“It was because I was trying to keep it at bay,” Elliot said with a bittersweet smile. “I even started to think I was going to be able to get through the fight without losing control. Then it threw me into the wall, and my control slipped. The Rage is brought on by anger and pain being mixed together, and the longer they mix, the harder it is to stave off.”

“So what exactly is it?” Verdan asked, his curiosity piqued by the strange affliction. “It seemed to change you physically.”

“It is an inherited curse on our bloodline. My siblings both suffer, though their Rage is less than my own. I don’t know how it began, only that it is passed from generation to generation in my family, and others of my people don’t suffer from it.”

“There’s a hex witch in the city; it may be worth asking her to examine you,” Verdan said after a moment of thought. “I have some experience with curses, but that seems a powerful one.”

“I’m not sure that she would be able to help,” Elliot said reluctantly. Verdan raised a brow questioningly, and the big man shifted uncomfortably in his seat before grimacing and rubbing his face. “I didn’t want to talk about this, but I suppose if we were ever going to get past it, now would be the time.”

“We can leave it alone if you’d prefer,” Verdan said after a few moments of silence from Elliot.

“No, Sylvie was right; I do need to tell you,” Elliot said, more to himself than anything. Turning to face Verdan directly, Elliot took a steadying breath. “I’m not human; I’m an Idrisyr, one of the descendants of Idris, the last of the giants.”

“I don’t understand,” Verdan said, staring at Elliot with confusion as he tried to understand what he was saying. Giants ranged in size, but the smallest adult that Verdan was aware of was twenty feet tall, roughly three times the size of Elliot. “Do you mean you’re a half-giant?”

“No, I don’t think there are any of those left. I’m an Idrisyr. Have you not heard of us?” Elliot asked in surprise.

“We’re straying into topics that would require a much longer conversation,” Verdan said at length, trying to coax his tired mind into the best way to deal with this. “Please explain what you can as though I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Well, most of what I know has been passed down through the generations, but Idrisyr live longer than humans, so there are less than you’d expect. What I do know is that Idris was a giantess who lived during the fall of the Third Empire, and she made some sort of deal with the god Brannoc so that her children could live among humans. There was a lot of upheaval and persecution at the time, and she was rightly afraid that some of that would fall on giants. Whatever the agreement, the result was the Idrisyr, human-sized giants with traits from both species. Most recognise us by our red hair and green eyes, which every Idrisyr has.”

“Wait, you have traits of a giant…” Verdan said, his eyes going wide as he thought back to some of the previous conversations they’d had. “Do you have their resistance to heat and flame?”

“Yes, but not many people know of that; most think of the resistance to magic and the legendary strength they are known for,” Elliot said, cocking his head to one side in interest.

“Consider me more knowledgeable about giants than the average person you’d meet,” Verdan said with a sad smile, part of him grieving for the loss of yet another part of the world he’d known.

Verdan wasn’t going to try and pretend that all giants were intrinsically good, but neither were they the opposite.

Verdan was likely the only person alive that had met a giant, and that was a horrifying thought. A shiver ran down Verdan’s spine as he tried not to wonder what else was missing that he hadn’t noticed yet.

“Well, you’ve taken this better than I thought. A lot of Sorcerers become wary around my people when they realise we are resistant to their magics,” Elliot said, eyeing Verdan carefully as he spoke.

“A lack of imagination on their part,” Verdan said with a dismissive sneer. “Defeating a giant is like fighting any powerful creature; it simply needs to be approached in the right way.”

Elliot gave Verdan a look of mixed surprise and concern, making the Wizard realise that his response perhaps hadn’t been quite the right one.

Giants were no doubt a thing of myth and legend now, which he was still struggling to wrap his head around. He probably shouldn’t talk about fighting them.

“I’m sorry, I’m quite tired from everything that’s happened today,” Verdan said, giving what he hoped came off as an embarrassed smile.

“No, no, I understand,” Elliot said, though Verdan could see some curiosity lingering in the other man’s expression. “Thank you for coming to check on me. I’m sorry that I assumed the worst.”

“I understand. It’s not a problem at all. I’m familiar with how terrible people can be, especially when they don’t understand,” Verdan said, his mind drifting for a moment as the two sat in thoughtful silence.

“Well, if I’m staying, I suppose I should make myself useful,” Elliot said eventually, a somewhat forced smile on his face as he focused back on Verdan. “You mentioned glassware and liaising with some of the blacksmiths before I left, but I’m sure a lot has changed since then. What do you need from me?”

“Well, the glassware is important, but what I really need is the housing making for a project of mine,” Verdan said, working to gather his thoughts as he laid out what he needed from Elliot and how it would need to work.

“So, at its core, you need there to be a rest for the arrow or bolt to go on and a hinged section that comes down to make contact with that arrow or bolt, which causes the effect to take place?” Elliot summarised after Verdan finished giving a rough explanation of what he wanted.

“Yes, exactly, and ideally, if you could make the whole thing cumbersome and unwieldy, that would be perfect. This is a dangerous piece of magi-tech, and I don’t want it to be easy to steal.” Verdan said, giving Elliot a hard look and making sure that he understood the importance of what they were discussing.

“I understand,” Elliot said with an earnest expression. “How soon do you need it?”

“As soon as possible, but at the same time, make sure it works properly; I can wait an extra day or two for a working model.”

“Right, let me see what some of the locals have available, and I can put something together for you,” Elliot said thoughtfully, his past worries momentarily forgotten as he focused on the problem at hand. “I’ll let you know when I have it ready.”

“Good. Tell me if you need anything to help, and I’ll see what I can do,” Verdan said, pushing himself up onto his feet and suppressing a yawn as he rubbed at his eyes. “I’m going to go sleep all this off. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” Elliot muttered distantly, his attention focused on something only he could see.

Satisfied that Elliot was at least dealing with the situation, Verdan trudged upstairs to his room and went to climb into his large and comfortable bed before hesitating. A part of him whispered that he could get more done if he stayed awake; just a single energy-giving spell and he could refresh his focus.

Could he really afford not to use every moment he had?

“Hyn,” Verdan muttered, casting a low-powered version of the spell that was just enough to give him some clarity.

He’d meditate and work on his spiral for an hour or so, and then he’d sleep.