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Amity Blight, wearing her pink moon-patterned pajamas, didn't open her eyes, but she felt a profound emptiness. A cold, endless void stretched around her, an abyss devoid of light, sound, or sensation. There was no floor beneath her, no ceiling above. She wasn't falling or floating… she simply was in a vast, crushing nothingness. Panic, cold and sharp, began to prickle at the edges of her consciousness.
“Where am I? Where is everyone and everything? Luz!?” Amity called out, looking around the emptiness. She forced her eyes open, but there was nothing to see. Only an infinite grey, stretching forever in every direction. Her heart began to pound, a frantic drum against her ribs. She tried to move, but her limbs felt heavy and unresponsive. It was like being swallowed whole by the absence of everything.
Desperate, she squeezed her eyes shut again, then blinked them open, willing something to appear, anything to break the monotony. That’s when she saw it. Not above, not around, but down. Far, far below, a faint glimmer of color began to coalesce from the grey.
Curiosity, tinged with a growing dread, compelled her to look closer, to tilt her head and peer into the impossibly distant miniature world. It was a world she knew, a world she lived in. The Boiling Isles. But it was shrunken, laid out like a child's forgotten toy set across an infinite floor. The Clawthorne's tower was a tiny toothpick, Bonesborough a scattering of intricate dust motes, the Titan's skull no bigger than her thumbnail.
“It… it’s so small…” Amity whispered.
A horrifying realization dawned on her, chilling her to the bone. If the entire Boiling Isles was a toy, a minuscule speck beneath her, then how big was she? Her mind, still groggy, struggled to process the scale. Gravesfield, the Human Realm, the stars, all seemed to stretch out below her like a cosmic tapestry, impossibly vast yet impossibly small. It had to be a mile, at least, her mind supplied, the thought like a lead weight in her gut. She was definitely over a mile tall, an unthinkable, monstrous titaness gazing down upon her home.
The sheer, terrifying scale made her muscles lock. She couldn't move, couldn't breathe.
“What if I make one wrong step…” Amity whispered, clutching her hands to her chest as if she were catching her beating heart. Her eyes fixated on a particular cluster of tiny, ornate buildings nestled by a winding river. It was so small, so fragile. Thousands of people lived there, went about their lives, loved, laughed, grieved. And somewhere in that minuscule landscape, there might even be a little version of Luz, just living. A sudden, overwhelming compulsion seized her. She had to step over it. Not on it, but over it. To navigate this fragile world without disturbing it, to prove she wasn't a monster.
With painstaking, agonizing slowness, she began to lift her right foot. It felt like moving through a mountain range. Every muscle screamed in protest. The fabric of her pajamas, specifically the sock on her foot, felt like a colossal shroud. The heel of her socked foot detached from the endless void-floor, rising inch by excruciating inch. Her ankle creaked like a rusty gate.
Her breath hitched in her throat as the gigantic, white-covered foot hovered, an immense cloud eclipsing the miniature town. She could almost feel the displaced air, the shadow falling over the unsuspecting inhabitants. Carefully, she tried to guide it, to arc it gracefully over Gravesfield, to land it gently on the empty, featureless expanse beyond.
But then, an unseen, malicious force gripped her. It wasn't a push, or a pull, but a sudden, violent jolt that coursed through her colossal frame, stealing her balance and robbing her of control. Her careful, agonizing movement became an uncontrolled plummet. Her breath caught in her throat, a terrified whimper escaping her lips.
"NO!!" Amity screamed. Her socked foot, massive and unstoppable, dropped. It descended with crushing finality, a silent, white obliteration. The delicate, intricate buildings of Gravesfield vanished beneath the soft, unsuspecting fabric, compressed into nothingness. There was no horrific crunch, no agonizing screams, only a sickening, silent squish that resonated in her soul.
Her foot pressed down, holding the invisible, obliterated town beneath its weight. She stared at the pristine white sock, where just moments before, thousands of lives had existed. Her vision blurred with tears, hot and torrential, streaming down her enormous face, cascading like waterfalls into the endless grey.
"LUZ!!!" Amity sobbed. She knew, with a certainty that threatened to shatter her, that Luz had been in Gravesfield. Her beloved, vibrant, clumsy Luz, crushed because of her. Her heart tore itself apart. The grief was a physical agony, a gaping wound. She had destroyed everything. She was instantly classified a monster.
Amity then gasped, a sharp, choked sound that tore through the silence of the bedroom. Her eyes snapped open, wide and staring, fixed on the familiar ceiling. Her lungs burned, desperate for air, and she sucked it in, harsh and ragged, as if she had been suffocating. Her heart hammered against her ribs like a frantic hummingbird trapped in a cage, threatening to burst free. Sweat slicked her brow, her lavender hair clinging damply to her face. It took her several long, shuddering seconds to realize where she was. The dim light of the moon filtered through the window, illuminating the posters on the wall, the smells of leftover popcorn and soda pop from the movie night they had just a few hours ago. A soft groan escaped Luz's lips as Amity's sudden, violent movements disturbed her.
"Amity? What's wrong?" Luz mumbled, her voice thick with sleep, stirring slightly and blinking slowly as she began to register Amity's rapid, terrified breathing while straightening out her own pajamas (purple T-shirt and pink shorts). She pushed herself up on an elbow, looking at Amity’s distraught face, her eyes wide with concern. Amity turned, her eyes still clouded with residual terror, and flung herself into Luz's arms, burying her face into her shoulder.
"Oh my god, Luz…" Amity choked out, her voice trembling, tears already welling up again.
Luz gasped softly, her sleep-fuddled mind instantly snapping awake at the sheer distress emanating from her girlfriend. She wrapped her arms tightly around Amity, pulling her close.
"Whoa whoa… what’s wrong, Amity? What happened? Are you okay?" Luz asked. Her fingers gently stroked Amity's hair, trying to soothe the frantic trembling. Amity pulled back just enough to look at Luz, her eyes brimming.
"I... I had a nightmare. I was a true giantess… so big. Like, impossibly big. And the Boiling Isles was tiny, like a toy. And I was trying to be careful, so careful, but an unseen force... it made me drop my foot. My socked foot." Amity said. Luz listened intently, her brow furrowed in concentration, not interrupting.
"And I... I crushed Gravesfield. It was just gone. And I thought you were there. I thought I crushed you. Along with everyone else." Amity finished, a fresh wave of tears escaping. Her voice broke, a raw, tormented sound. Luz’s embrace tightened instantly. Her heart ached at the pure terror in Amity's voice, the genuine fear of having harmed her. She pulled Amity even closer, pressing a kiss to her damp hair.
"Oh, Amity, my sweet potato. It was just a nightmare, see? Look at me. I'm right here. Whole, and safe, and right beside you. And good ol’ Gravesfield, Connecticut, despite its warts, is still standing." Luz said. She gently pulled Amity back a little, cupping her face in her hands, making Amity meet her gaze. She leaned in, pressing her forehead against Amity's, letting their breaths mingle.
"You didn't hurt anyone. Everyone is fine." Luz said. She dotted soft kisses across Amity's forehead, her cheeks, her nose, before finally pressing a long, lingering kiss to her lips. It was meant to be comforting, familiar, grounding.
But Amity still trembled, her eyes wide and unfocused.
"But what if it wasn't just a nightmare, Luz? What if... what if it was a premonition?" Amity whispered, her voice laced with a lingering, insidious fear.
Luz pulled back slightly, her expression softening even further. She saw the deep-seated anxiety in Amity's eyes, the way her girlfriend often worried about the weight of her past mistakes, and the unpredictable nature of their lives.
"Hey, no premonitions. No crushing, no giant sock feet, okay? This was your brain being a silly goose while you slept, playing a really mean prank on you." Luz said gently, shaking her head and her thumbs stroking Amity’s cheeks.
"Your biggest fear is hurting the people you love, right? And your brain just took that fear and made it really, really big." she finished, giving a weak, comforting chuckle. Amity didn't smile, but the tension in her shoulders eased ever so slightly. She leaned into Luz's touch, finding solace in the warmth of her hands, the steady beat of her heart.
“Thanks for your words, Luz, but I still can’t help but wonder.” Amity said.
“Well, wonder some other time. You should get back to sleep. Try dreaming about both of us being big enough for the whole world to see our love.” Luz said.
“Heh heh heh… okay. Good night, Luz.” Amity said as both ladies made themselves comfortable once more. As Amity settled back down and pondered Luz’s playful words, it made her ponder what it would be like to be a giantess for real… and with Luz by her side too. Alas, there weren’t any magic spells that either of them knew of to alter their size. That didn’t mean there weren’t other means of achieving that possibility…
The next day, elsewhere in the world, Star Butterfly adjusted the glittery nail polish on her toes, frowning at the mirror in Marco’s small, cluttered bedroom. The iridescent star-shaped pendant around her neck caught the sunlight, winking at her like a mischievous friend. Marco, lounging on his beanbag chair, snorted as he scrolled through his phone.
“You’re obsessing over your toes like they owe you money. But yeah, you still look… y’know. Nice as ever.” Marco said. Star’s cheeks flushed pink, as pink as the hearts on her cheeks, her usual confidence dimming like a flickering disco ball.
“Thanks, Marco. You think I should’ve done my nails in purple instead?” Star asked. She held up the remaining bottle, shaking it for emphasis. Marco glanced at her, his brown eyes warm.
“Star, you’re a literal royal being from another dimension. Your ‘nice’ is like a galactic experience. But if purple nails make you happy, then yes. Go for it. Just don’t blame me when your toes start glowing again.” Marco said. She giggled, though a tiny pang of regret tugged at her. Marco always knew how to make her feel seen… but he hasn’t truly seen her. Not the whole her, anyway. Not the princess, the sometimes walking disaster, the girl who sometimes just wanted to be normal and fit in with the rest of Echo Creek.
Suddenly, the doorbell buzzed. Marco stood, stretching.
“That’s probably Jackie. Let me…” Marco started to say.
“I got it!” Star called, leaping to her feet. She jumped into her rhino boots and smoothed her green dress and purple and pink striped stockings (her usual outfit) and nearly tripped over Marco’s tower of comic books.
“Don’t want her waiting! You’re sure you don’t wanna come? We’re gonna get smoothies, maybe hit the skate park, and I promise no girl talk. No makeup tutorials. No poetry.” Star asked as Marco followed her down the stairs.
“Hey! Poetry is art! But I’m good. Janna’s making lasagna, and I need to survive that. You two have fun. This is a chance to bond together better, if you think about it.” Marco said. Star rolled her eyes but smiled, heading toward the door.
After the door opened, Jackie burst into the house moments later, her neon-green skateboard tucked under one arm and a helmet askew on her head.
“UP AND AT ’EM, PRINCESS!” Jackie bellowed, causing Marco to wince.
“Oops! Sorry, Marco. Didn’t mean to yell.” Jackie said.
“Heh… it’s cool… ummm… Jackie.” Marco said as he looked up and down at Jackie, who also wore her casual, skater-inspired outfit consisting of a green and white raglan shirt, cyan jean shorts, and green-and-white knee-high socks. She accessorizes this look with a golden seashell necklace and blue-and-white shoes. Her hair, as always, is platinum blond with a distinct aqua blue streak.
“Ahem… eyes up here, big guy.” Star joked as she poked Marco’s head back up to the two girls’ faces. Marco had made it no secret that he once upon a time had a crush on Jackie and was always thinking of the best way to get her attention. Over time, though, those feelings subsided as he started drifting between Jackie, Janna, and even Star herself. Talk about a love triangle, Marco thought.
“Anyway, see ya later, Marco.” Star said.
“Have a good time!” Marco shouted. The two girls zoomed down the sidewalk, Jackie’s skateboard whirring beside Star, who kept up with Jackie thanks to a little magic from her ever multitasking star wand. Spring air nipped at them, carrying the scent of cherry blossoms and distant pavement.
“So, you wearing that dress just to flex your royal vibes, or is there, like, a story behind it?” Jackie said, kicking her board into a sidewalk curb.
“I feel like it’s the new ‘casual monarchy’ trend. You know, where you look chill but also like you own the universe?” Star asked. Jackie snorted.
“You’re owning this look, Your Highness.” Jackie said as the two made their way into Echo Creek.
The afternoon sun cast long, lazy shadows across Echo Creek. Star Butterfly practically bounced beside Jackie Lynn Thomas, whose cool, laid-back demeanor was as evident as the worn grip tape on her skateboard. They’d declared it girl time, a rare and precious commodity in their increasingly chaotic lives.
“Okay, Jackie, we’re here! So, what’s the plan? We’ve got hours of epicness ahead of us! We could, like, conquer the world?” Star’s voice chimed, a little too enthusiastically for the languid atmosphere. Jackie chuckled.
“Maybe not conquer the world, Star. How about a more Earth-centric approach? We could hit up the skate park so I can show you my moves.” Jackie gestured with her chin towards the half-pipe where a few local teens were attempting varying degrees of aerial maneuvers. Star’s eyes lit up.
“Ooh, skateboarding! I could try that again! Remember last time? I almost landed a totally gnarly…” Star started to say until Jackie held a hand towards her face.
“You almost landed on the snack bar… but sure, why not? Might be fun to watch you try not to break anything.” Jackie finished with a wry smile.
They wandered over to the skate park. Star, with her usual overzealousness, immediately grabbed a spare board and, after a few wobbly attempts that involved more flailing than actual riding, promptly face-planted in the sand. Jackie, meanwhile, effortlessly glided across the concrete, executing smooth ollies and graceful slides, her movements a study in controlled fluidity. Star watched, a sigh escaping her lips as she brushed dust off her stockings and dress. It was fun, in a way, but the familiar pang of awkwardness, of not quite belonging, settled in.
Next, they ventured to the dimly lit, neon-drenched arcade. The symphony of electronic bleeps and bloops, the flashing lights, the competitive spirit… it usually entertained Star. She launched herself at a racing game, her fingers flying across the wheel, her commentary a rapid-fire stream of exclamations and strategy. Jackie, opting for a more chill rhythm game, tapped away on her feet with practiced ease. Star, despite her frantic steering, found herself losing spectacularly, her digital car perpetually spinning out. She managed a few rounds of a claw machine, fishing out a disappointingly small, slightly lopsided plush unicorn.
As they emerged back into the sunlight, an unspoken mutual understanding passed between them. Star fiddled with the hem of her dress, her usual sparkle dimmed. Jackie kicked at a loose pebble, her usual nonchalance tinged with a hint of ennui.
“So, this is… fine. But are you also feeling a tiny bit beige?” Star asked. Jackie let out a soft laugh.
“Beige is definitely the word, Star. I was starting to think my brain was going to turn into static.” Jackie said. Star’s eyes, however, suddenly lit up with a fierce, familiar glow.
“Beige? We are Star Butterfly and Jackie Lynn Thomas! We don’t do beige! We do rainbows and explosions and, you know, interdimensional adventures!” Star shouted. She reached into the back of her dress and, with a flourish, pulled out her dimensional scissors. The silver blades glinted, humming with latent power. Jackie’s eyes lit up.
“Ooooooh… those are those space-warping scissors Marco has been telling me about, hasn’t he?” Jackie asked.
“Yeah! If Echo Creek is feeling a bit… limited today, we could always expand our horizons. Dimensionally speaking, of course.” Star said with a wink from one of her eyes.
“Still, you think that’s a good idea, Star? We’re supposed to be having girl time...” Jackie started to say. Star waved a dismissive hand.
“Details, details! This is our girl time, Jackie. And what’s more girl time-ish than exploring every corner of the multiverse? Come on, it’ll be way more exciting than another round of ‘Whack-a-Mole’ or watching you try to catch that ridiculously elusive stuffed dragon.” Star said. Jackie considered it for a moment, a small smile playing on her lips. The boredom was undeniable, and the allure of the unknown, especially under Star’s enthusiastic guidance, was hard to resist.
“Alright, alright. You win. But no ending up in a dimension made entirely of sentient jelly beans.” Jackie said.
“Deal! Now, hold still!” Star shouted.
With a swift, practiced motion, Star unfurled the dimensional scissors and snipped the air. A shimmering tear, a swirling vortex of iridescent colors, ripped open before them, emitting a soft, humming sound. The air around it felt cool and charged with possibility.
“Whoa… that’s something else.” Jackie breathed, leaning closer.
“Here we go! Let’s take a peek!” Star shouted. They approached the portal cautiously, peering into its depths. The first dimension they glimpsed was a vibrant jungle, overflowing with flora that pulsed with bioluminescent light. Gigantic, feathered creatures with iridescent wings soared through the canopy, their calls echoing strangely. Star clapped a hand over her mouth.
“Okay, that’s officially way cooler than the skate park.” Star said. Jackie nodded, a spark of genuine curiosity in her eyes.
“Definitely. What else have you got?” Jackie asked. Star, with another decisive snip, opened a second portal. This one revealed a city made entirely of crystal, its spires reaching towards a sky filled with two moons. Tiny, winged beings flitted between the gleaming structures, leaving trails of starlight in their wake.
“It’s like a fairytale!” Star squealed. They continued, opening portal after portal, each revealing a glimpse of a world so bizarre and wonderful that it made Echo Creek feel like a faded black-and-white photograph. There was a dimension where the clouds rained liquid gold, another where immense snake-like creatures carved intricate sculptures from living rock, and yet another where the very air hummed with musical vibrations, creating a symphony of existence.
But then, Star tried to cut a portal that was… stubborn. She positioned the scissors, ready to snip, but the air simply resisted, refusing to tear. She tried again, a little more force this time, but it was like trying to cut through solid steel.
“Huh? That’s weird. This always works.” Star frowned, her brow furrowed in concentration. She pressed the scissors against the invisible barrier, trying to force them through.
“What’s up?” Jackie asked, stepping closer.
“This one… it’s like there’s something blocking it… it’s not opening.” Star explained, frustration creeping into her voice. She tugged at the scissors, but they remained firmly in place no matter how hard she tried to press them together. Jackie looked at the spot where Star was struggling. It looked like nothing was there, just ordinary, slightly hazy air. Yet, Star’s frustration was palpable. Star pulled back, her face a mask of confusion. Jackie examined the invisible wall, then looked at Star.
“You know, sometimes things that are really stuck need a little extra leverage. Maybe we could try together?” Jackie asked. Star looked at Jackie’s outstretched hands, then back at the unyielding dimension. A slow smile spread across her face.
“You know what, Jackie? That’s a brilliant idea!” Star said. They stood side-by-side, facing the invisible barrier that made the portal wobble.
“Okay, on three. We’ll push together.” Star said. Jackie nodded, a flicker of excitement cutting through her earlier boredom.
“One… two… THREE!” Star shouted. With a synchronized heave, they both pushed against the unseen obstacle. Their hands met the invisible wall along with the edges of the portal, and they strained, muscles tensing.
What they didn’t know was that the portal was not to another dimension, but to the other side of the country… specifically somewhere in Gravesfield. Luz and Amity, now wearing their everyday casual outfits (Luz wearing green pants, school jacket over purple and white striped shirt, red beanie cap, and orange sneakers; Amity wore her overalls look), stepped out of the Noceda household. They looked over at the clubhouse, their only connection between the two realms when it functioned, and saw it glowing. Amity was the first to see it and gasped.
“Luz, look!” Amity shouted as she pointed towards the clubhouse that glowed with light.
“That… that can’t be! We’ve been trying for months to open the way back to the demon realm and it just… opens?” Luz asked. What the two didn’t notice was that another portal was opening high in the sky, one that had the size to engulf all of Gravesfield if it wanted to. However, Luz and Amity were focused on what was happening with the clubhouse. As Luz raced forward and entered the clubhouse, Amity stopped when she looked up and saw the giant portal overhead.
“Oh spit…” Amity said.
Luz, meanwhile, took note of the portal inside the clubhouse. She squinted trying to see what was on the other side.
“Huh? What’s that? That… doesn’t look like the demon realm. It looks like… another city?” Luz said. She didn’t realize it yet, but she was, in reality, looking down at the California city of Echo Creek. It looked like she was looking straight down on it like she was looking down on a map.
“Luz! Luz! You have to come see what’s out… whoa!” Amity said as she rushed inside the clubhouse trying to tell Luz about the giant portal outside. However, she forgot about the stack of books still laying on the floor and bumped her boot into them, causing her to lose her balance and crash right into Luz’s back, causing both ladies to go falling into the portal.
“Amity… waaaaaaaaaah!!!” Luz said as she screamed, as did Amity, while they fell through the portal.
Meanwhile, out in Echo Creek, which also had a giant portal opening up high in the sky that everyone except for Star and Jackie was looking up at with trepidation. Star and Jackie, meanwhile, teetered on the brink of exhaustion, but they finally brute forced the portal to open. When they peeked inside, they saw they were looking down on what appeared to be another Earth city, as Jackie observed.
“Huh? That city looks… perfectly normal.” Jackie said.
“Yeah, you’re right.” Star said as she squinted her eyes, trying to see between the buildings that were coming into view. They were actually looking down at the Connecticut city of Gravesfield. Star then smiled.
“Hey, it is brand new! Why don’t we check it out together?” Star asked.
“Okay, sure! Why don’t you go first? It’s your portal.” Jackie said.
“Heh heh… I would be most honored!” Star said as she moved one of her rhino boots towards the portal, sticking it inside.
Just outside Gravesfield, the questions mounted, first as a soft murmur, and then the noise grew as the portal loomed more and more in the sky. People wondered what kind of object was going to come out of the portal. A UFO? An alien race? Something else that the government wasn’t telling them? Then out came the last thing anyone possibly expected. A giant boot shaped like a rhino.
The crowd gasped in unison as the boot emerged from the portal, its sheer scale sending people scrambling to get out of the way. The boot was gargantuan, easily the size of a skyscraper, and it seemed to be moving of its own accord. It lumbered and stumbled, as if it was still finding its footing in the unfamiliar surroundings.
Panic set in as people realized the boot was heading straight for the city. They ran in all directions, desperate to avoid being crushed beneath its massive sole. Cars screeched to a halt, and buildings emptied as the boot made its way down the main street, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
The first structure to fall was an office building, which crumpled like a paper box as the boot stepped on it. The sound of crashing glass and crumbling concrete filled the air, and the dust cloud that rose from the wreckage obscured the sun. The boot didn't seem to notice, or perhaps it didn't care… it simply kept moving, its rhino-shaped toe tapping out a rhythm on the pavement.
As the city descended into chaos, emergency services scrambled to respond. Sirens blared, and firefighters rushed to evacuate the area, but it soon became clear that they were no match for the boot's destructive power. It stomped through the city, crushing everything in its path… buildings, cars, trees, and power lines. One powerful step in particular made a huge crater in the city, also causing a powerful earthquake that knocked everyone off their feet.
Then the people watched as the portal opened even wider… and what some people already speculated was coming true before their eyes. There was a giant person attached to that boot, and she was coming through the door-shaped vortex. And the giantess wasn’t alone either. Two women, towering above the city at an incredible 200 feet tall, stepped out of the portal and into the streets of Gravesfield. Star Butterfly and Jackie Lynn Thomas, the two giant women, looked around in confusion, taking in their surroundings. They seemed to be just as puzzled as the people below them, who were running for their lives as the giantesses' massive footwear crushed structures and buildings beneath them.
“Whoa… where are we?” Star asked.
“I don’t know. Could it be some kind of dwarf world?” Jackie said as she pressed her seashell necklace against her chest to keep it from obscuring her view of the tiny people running from her cyan-and-white shoes. Star gazed down at the tiny people scurrying around her own boots. She let out a giggle, clearly amused by the sight.
"Whoever they are, Jackie, they're so cute!" Star exclaimed, pointing at a group of people fleeing from her massive boots. Star casually took a step forward, kicking a building off its foundation with her boot.
“Whoa! Maybe we should be careful, Star.” Jackie said, her deep voice rumbling through the air.
“Careful!? I mean, everything is so small here. The buildings, the cars, the people... it's all so tiny. I haven’t seen anything like it in a couple years. Maybe we warped to a different dimension or something." Star said. Jackie then looked towards Star and smirked.
“Hmmmm… for another dimension, it sure looks a lot like a small Earth city… er… no pun intended!” Jackie shouted.
“Hahaha! I got it, Jackie!” Star said as the two giantesses casually stepped around Gravesfield, curious to see more of it rather than just stand around.
Meanwhile, near Echo Creek, Luz Noceda stirred first, a yawn stretching through her, but it wasn't her usual sleepy sound. It boomed, a rolling thunder that seemed to reverberate off the very hills. She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the unfamiliar sharpness of the light.
"Whoa, that was a weird trip." Luz said, the words echoing back to her, strangely amplified. She tried to push herself up, her limbs feeling heavier, more substantial than just a few minutes ago before she and Amity fell into the portal. As her bare feet touched the grass, a sound like a distant earthquake rumbled. A massive, earth-shaking thud. Luz gasped, her breath a gust of wind that rustled the leaves of trees that had felt as tall as her. She stood, wobbling precariously for a moment, her body a foreign landscape of immense proportions. Her hands flew out, palms slapping against what felt like sheer rock face, when in reality it was the side of a mountain.
Her gaze swept across the horizon, and her jaw dropped. Nestled in the valley below was Echo Creek, but now a miniature metropolis. Tiny, impossibly detailed buildings, connected by threads that must be roads, stretched as far as she could see. Lights twinkled like scattered diamonds. It was a city, but one a dollhouse would claim as its own. Luz quickly figured she and Amity had to have stumbled in some other realm, one where everything is very small compared to her own proportions.
"Amity! Amity, wake up!" Luz said as she leaned down towards Amity and gently nudged her.
Amity Blight groaned, a sound just as boisterous as Luz's. She blinked, her usually sharp eyes wide with confusion. The air felt different… cooler and thinner. When she tried to sit up, the movement felt sluggish, as if she were wading through molasses.
"Luz? What's going on? I feel like I have a giant weight on my shoulders.” Amity said.
“Hohoho… try your entire body.” Luz said.
“Huh? What are you talking…? Oh.” Amity said. She finally followed Luz's gaze, her breath catching in her throat. The city. The sheer, impossible scale of it. She carefully maneuvered herself to a sitting position, the movement sending ripples through the ground beneath her. As she did, her eyes fell upon something near Luz's impossibly large foot.
"Wait… Luz. What are those?" Amity asked. Luz looked down. Near her right orange sneaker were tiny figures. Humanoid, but impossibly small, like ants. They were scrambling away from her colossal foot, their movements frantic and terrified. They were so small, their cries were inaudible over the thrum of her own heartbeat.
"Are those… people!?" Luz’s voice cracked, the echo amplifying her shock. She looked at her hands, her arms, her legs. Everything felt immense. She took another step, and another deafening thud shook the earth. The tiny figures scattered further, disappearing into the blades of ‘grass’ that now felt like towering reeds.
Amity, meanwhile, was staring at her own boot, then back at the minuscule people fleeing Luz's. A slow, dawning realization spread across her face. Her eyes, usually so keen and analytical, widened further. She looked at Luz, a strange mixture of awe and something else entirely on her face.
“Luz… I think we’re still in the human realm, but we’ve just grown gigantic.” Amity said.
“Gigantic!? But… what city is this?” Luz asked as she looked ahead at the rest of Echo Creek, seeing it spread out before her eyes.
“If I had to guess, we’re right around 200 feet tall.” Amity said. She suddenly didn’t look down with horror. Her gaze was fixed on Echo Creek. A genuine, unadulterated smile bloomed on her face.
"Actually, Luz, this is… kind of amazing." Amity said. Luz blinked and stepped back, causing a minor earthquake underneath her sneakers.
"Huh? Did you just say amazing?” Luz said. Amity’s eyes sparkled. She pushed herself up to her full, towering height, her form outlined against the brightening sky. She stretched her arms wide, a gesture that encompassed a vast swathe of the landscape.
"Mmmmm… I have a confession to tell you, Luz. I've always wanted to be really, really tall. Imagine all the things we can see! We can look over mountains! Everything would crumble under our footwear! Come on, surely you’re excited too!” Amity said with excitement building in her voice.
“Well, yeah… but… truth be told, I was hoping to still be normal-sized. That way I can ride on your shoulder while you go fee fi fo fum on the city.” Luz said with a smile.
“Fee fi fo wha?” Amity asked with confusion in her voice.
“Errrrr… it’s from an old fable here in this realm. I’ll tell you about it some other time. For now, we should introduce ourselves to that little city.” Luz said as she stretched out a hand towards Amity.
“Mmmmm… I thought you’d never ask.” Amity said with a light blush on her giant face as she offered her own hand to Luz. The two giantesses held hands as they approached the miniscule Echo Creek.
Within Echo Creek, the aroma of melted cheese, seasoned ground beef, and crispy tortilla chips still clung to the air around Marco Diaz and Janna Ordonia as they ambled out of Echo Creek’s premier purveyor of mountainous nachos. Marco, a proud warrior of the nacho arts, held his colossal platter aloft, a testament to his dedication to cheesy, savory conquest. Janna, no stranger to culinary challenges, mirrored him, her own plate a veritable Everest of toppings.
"Seriously, Marco, this is epic. I think this might be my personal best." Janna declared, her eyes twinkling as she surveyed the sheer volume of nachos before her. Marco grunted in agreement, his gaze fixed on his own mountainous creation.
"You underestimate the power of my appetite, Janna. This is just the appetizer to my final nacho victory." Marco said. He flexed a bicep, the action almost comically large given the weight of his cheesy bounty.
"Oh yeah? We'll see about that. I'm calling it now, I'm finishing mine first. My metabolism is a finely tuned engine of nacho destruction, just like my fellow Filipinos!" Janna chuckled.
"We shall see. My training regimen has been intense. I've been visualizing victory. I've been doing… well, I've been doing a lot of eating!” Marco said.
They continued their leisurely stroll down the sidewalk, each holding their nacho plates with a mixture of pride and strategic maneuvering. The afternoon sun cast long shadows, painting Echo Creek in hues of orange and gold. It was a perfectly ordinary, wonderfully mundane day… until it shattered with one solid boom. And then another, and another after that. A ripple of unease began to spread, not from the ground beneath their feet, but from the very fabric of the street. People, who moments before had been casually going about their business, were suddenly breaking into a run. A full-blown, wide-eyed sprint, their faces etched with an unmistakable terror. Marco and Janna exchanged confused glances, their nachos momentarily forgotten.
"Whoa, what's with the sudden stampede? Did they run out of churros or something?" Marco asked. Janna snorted, a genuine laugh bubbling up.
"Maybe! Or perhaps there's a massive, once-in-a-lifetime shoe sale happening at the mall. You know how these Echo Creek dwellers get with a good discount." Janna said, gesturing vaguely towards the distant shopping center. But the laughter died in Janna’s throat as a low rumble vibrated through the pavement. It wasn't the kind of rumble you heard from a passing truck. This was deeper. They both froze, their feet shifting slightly. Then, another tremor. This one stronger, making their nacho plates shimmy precariously.
"Okay, that's… not a shoe sale." Marco said, his voice now tinged with a nervousness that mirrored Janna's own dawning apprehension.
The tremors intensified, the ground bucking and heaving like a restless sea. Cracks began to spiderweb across the asphalt. The cheerful chatter of the town was drowned out by the growing medley of screams and distant crashing sounds.
"Yeah… I’m getting the feeling this is more than just an earthquake, Marco." Janna murmured, her eyes scanning the panicked faces of the fleeing populace. And then, they looked up.
The sky, which had been a placid blue, was now dominated by a sight so colossal, so utterly impossible, that it stole the air from their lungs. Two impossibly vast womanly figures were striding towards Echo Creek. Their heads brushed against the lower atmosphere, their colossal forms dwarfing the tallest buildings (which weren’t that tall to begin with!). Their movements, though slow from this distance, carried an immense, earth-shaking power. These giantesses, of course, were the 200 feet tall Luz Noceda and Amity Blight, but to the screaming and fleeing people of Echo Creek, plus those like Marco and Janna who stared up in awe at their monolithic forms, they were giant women possibly from outer space, especially with the lavender colored hair that Amity sported.
The sheer, mind-boggling scale of the approaching giantesses sent a shockwave of disbelief through Marco and Janna. The carefully constructed edifice of their reality, built on a foundation of interdimensional magic and teenage drama, shattered before their eyes.
With a synchronized, almost comical thud, both Marco and Janna dropped their plates of nachos. The magnificent, cheesy creations, so recently the object of their competitive pride, tumbled to the ground, their contents scattering across the cracked pavement. The sight of the fallen nachos was almost as shocking as the giant women themselves. Marco stared, his mouth agape, a stray piece of nacho cheese clinging to his cheek. His mind, usually a whirlwind of strategic planning and karate moves, was a blank canvas of utter bewilderment. Janna managed to find her voice, though it was a hushed whisper of pure astonishment.
"Okay, Marco… who in the heck are those giant women?" Janna asked. Marco, still reeling, could only shake his head. He found himself involuntarily scanning the skies, his heart aching for a familiar face.
"You know, I really wish Star Butterfly was here right now. Maybe they’re really big friends of hers…” Marco softly said as he and Janna watched the giantesses continue to close in, possibly only just a few steps away from smashing the outer edge of Echo Creek beneath their footwear.
Back in Gravesfield, Star and Jackie continued their slow and methodical walk around the city, watching people left and right dodge either Jackie’s sneakers or Star’s boots to keep from being crushed underneath them. Some buildings had already met their demise, either from a careless step from either of the giantesses or the shockwaves of their stomps brought them tumbling down. Star then quickly leaned down and plucked one of the tiny men between her fingers and lifted him up to her face.
“Teehee… he looks really cute, especially when he’s screaming!” Star said with a smile that made the young man rattle with fear. He didn’t feel any better when Jackie leaned in next, her blonde hair strands almost batting him from head to toe.
“Yeah, I agree. Maybe I should get his number!” Jackie said with a light chuckle that reverberated in the man’s eardrums.
Meanwhile, within another section of the city, Camila Noceda wandered outside not only wondering why the animals inside her veterinary clinic were acting so scared, but why the area was shaking so violently each and every second.
“Why is the ground shaking!? We don’t normally get earthquakes here in… oh!” Camila shouted as she looked up and gasped upon seeing the gigantic Star and Jackie seemingly stretch towards the sky. Suddenly, Camila heard a voice that sounded close.
“Mrs. Noceda!” the female voice said. Camila looked over and saw four familiar faces running towards her. They were Willow, Hunter, Gus, and Vee in her non-Luz human form.
“Oh! Thank goodness you’re all okay, but… where are Luz and Amity?” Camila asked.
“We don’t know. We’ve been looking everywhere for them, but there’s no sign of them.” Willow said.
“Not even Vee has been able to trace them down.” Gus said.
“And we Basilisks normally can sniff out almost anything, especially with magic!” Vee shouted.
“Who are those giant women? Are they from your world?” Camila asked.
“They can’t be… I don’t recognize them.” Willow said.
“Whoever they are, they sure are big. But I don’t sense any magic from the demon realm as the cause of this. It’s like they are native to this realm.” Hunter said.
“We have to get out of here… find somewhere safe to evacuate…” Camila started to say until Willow clenched her fists.
“No! We have to stop them! We already had to flee one realm and we’re not about to let this one be destroyed too!” Willow shouted.
“But… but how will you stop them!? Maybe we should wait for the military to come.” Camila said.
“Hey, we may be small… me especially… but we’re mighty. And Willow packs plenty of glyphs!” Gus shouted.
“And I’ve got a few tricks up my… well… I can say sleeve, heh heh!” Vee said. Camila admired the youthful and fighting spirits of all three and decided not to talk them out of seeking shelter.
“Well… okay then. What’s your plan?” Camila said as the five huddled together to weigh their options. When they were done discussing their strategy, Hunter stayed behind and rolled his eyes.
“We’re gonna die.” Hunter whispered before finally running after the others.
After Star and Jackie felt they had admired their tiny captive for long enough, they set him back down on the ground.
“Alright, little guy. Run along now before we change our minds and step on you! Teehee!” Star said as she playfully hovered her boot over the guy, who wasted not a second more in getting out of there. As Jackie watched the guy run, she set her sights on the nearest building to her feet.
“Hey, Star. Let’s see how strong my legs really are, especially at this size.” Jackie said. Her enormous sneaker hovered over the building. The laces, thick as ship’s ropes, seemed almost delicate against the sheer scale of the footwear. She gently lowered her right foot, resting the flat sole of her sneaker on the very top of the building. The structure groaned under the initial contact, its frame protesting with a screech like a wounded beast. Dust showered down onto the streets below as the top floor began to compress.
"Okay, phase one. Just a little weight." Jackie said, much to Star’s oooohing and aaaahing as she clapped her hands together and held them against her chest. She leaned slightly, shifting her immense mass onto that one foot. A fresh wave of groans emanated from the building. Windows on the upper floors began to crack, spiderwebbing outwards before shattering inwards with a delightful crash that sounded like a thousand tiny diamonds breaking. The entire structure sagged, the central core visibly bowing under the immense, yet still gentle, pressure.
"Whoa! It's bending like a noodle, Jackie! You're a natural!" Star cheered, clapping her massive hands together.
“Hahaha! I guess I am!” Jackie said with a smile.
Jackie’s brow furrowed in concentration. She wanted to feel the building give way, to understand its breaking point. She gradually began to add more pressure, slowly pressing down with her heel, then the ball of her sneaker-covered foot, distributing the weight with a deliberate, almost scientific approach. Floors began to pancake, one after another, releasing plumes of dust that momentarily obscured the lower levels. The once-straight edges of the building now resembled a hastily crushed tin can. Below, the few remaining brave (or perhaps frozen with terror) onlookers watched in stunned silence.
"Alright, now for the fun part." Jackie said. She lifted her foot slightly, just enough to gather momentum, before bringing it down with astounding force. It was a precise, controlled pound, like a colossal hammer striking a nail. The impact was deafening… a thunderclap that echoed through the very bones of the city. The building, already weakened and groaning, offered no further resistance. With a final, explosive crunch, it compressed completely, imploding downwards into a dense, dusty mound of rubble. It was a perfect demolition, executed with the casual grace of a giantess playing with a toy. A mushroom cloud of fine grey dust billowed skyward, momentarily engulfing Jackie’s lower leg (obscuring her signature socks) before slowly dissipating, revealing the flat, pancake-like remains of the office building. Star, her eyes wide with delight, clapped her hands together again, the sound now more like a cannon barrage.
"YES! JACKIE! That was awesome! Like a hammer to a nail! You totally… ummmm… nailed it! Ooooooh… I’m glad Marco wasn’t here to hear that." Star said. She punctuated her applause with a joyful, booming laugh that sent tremors through the ground, causing the remaining intact buildings of Gravesfield to shiver in fright. Jackie grinned, dusting off her legs with a casual kick.
"Pretty satisfying, right? Felt good to really put some oomph into it." Jackie said.
"Definitely! Come on, it’s my turn to step on a building in slow motion. Let’s see if we can set a new record for 'most adorable destruction'!" Star said, already eyeing a cluster of colorful houses.
By the time Camila Noceda, Willow, Hunter, Gus, and Vee caught up with the two giantesses by standing a football field’s worth of yards away from them, Star and Jackie had already done quite the number on Gravesfield. More buildings were crushed by the giantesses, especially Star, and the two ladies also teased stepping on several more people and picking them up and eating them as snacks. During the craziness and fighting their way through the panicking crowd, Camila managed to pick up a megaphone from an abandoned retail store along the way, which would prove important in getting their attention.
“Hey! Giant women!” Camila shouted into the megaphone. Everyone thought for a moment the giantesses wouldn’t pay any attention to them, but lo and behold, Star and Jackie stopped their stomping spree and looked at each other.
“Did you hear something?” Star asked.
“Yeah, I think someone’s calling out to us from ground level.” Jackie said as she and Star turned around.
“Alright, which one of you cuties is trying to call out to us?” Star asked.
“D-d-d-down here!” Camila stammered as she spoke again. This allowed Star and Jackie to look down right at them. Star and Jackie already were smirking and resting their hips on their respective waists.
“Well, well, if it isn’t a brave little family who climbed out of their home!” Star said.
“You all sure are brave, and you certainly have interesting looking children.” Jackie said as she looked towards Camila, who blushed at the giant Jackie’s comment.
“T-t-t-t-that’s not important! What’s important is that we’re going to stop you! No matter what it takes!” Camila shouted. Star and Jackie then looked at each other before bursting out into laughter, causing the immediate area to strongly vibrate.
“Pffffft… seriously, everyone! Look at us! We’ll crush you!” Star shouted.
“Yeah, and what could you do anyway? Stab me in the shoe? Pffffft!” Jackie said as she playfully gave the tiny group a raspberry. Hunter showed no fear and drew out his sword from behind his back.
“That’s exactly what we intend to do! Haaaaaaa!” Hunter said as he charged towards Jackie.
But unsurprisingly, Jackie easily thwarted Hunter’s foolish maneuver by lightly shifting her foot forward, knocking Hunter right back to the group as he tumbled backwards. She then reached down towards Camila, who tried to run away but ended up getting caught between the giant fingers.
“Waaaaaaah! Put me down! PUT ME DOWN!!!” Camila said in a frenzied panic.
“Hahaha! I love the way she squirms. It’s so cute… the little ladies look cute from this size too.” Jackie said.
“Hahaha! EVERYBODY looks cute when we’re giant!” Star said.
“Still, maybe I’ll keep this one as a souvenir, that way she doesn’t bother us anymore.” Jackie said as she moved the screaming Camila towards one of her shorts pockets. Camila’s screams became muffled as she was dropped inside the pocket, leaving Camila surrounded by two walls of denim and the smell of shorts that hadn’t been washed yet, which made her roll her eyes and stumble around in dizziness.
“Ugh… this girl hasn’t done her laundry yet… *cough cough*” Camila said. Meanwhile, Star and Jackie looked back down at the others in Camila’s group.
“Let’s just crush the rest already!” Star said as she lifted up her boot, making the group gasp. It looked like Willow was ready to counterattack somehow, but Jackie held an arm against Star’s chest.
“Whoa! Hold on, Star. They’re not worth crushing. Let’s just move on and crush some more of the city.” Jackie said.
Star lowered her boot back to the ground.
“Yeah, good idea. That’s more fun anyway!” Star said.
“In fact, why don’t we split up? You take one side of the city while I conquer the other.” Jackie said.
“Ooooooh! I like that! Go for it, Jackie!” Star said as she and Jackie, their minds in synchronization, playfully bumped hips together. As the giantesses turned towards the directions they wished to head in, Hunter took note of the closest of Jackie’s giant shoes, where her shoelaces were loose and flailing about.
“Okay! That wasn’t part of the plan, Mrs. Noceda getting captured!” Gus said
“Quick! We have to jump onto her shoelace and rescue her!” Hunter shouted as he sprinted towards the lace.
“Hey! Wait for me, Hunter!” Gus shouted as he raced after Hunter. Willow and Vee, meanwhile, looked up at Star as she started to walk in the opposite direction, already flattening a building or two underneath her boots.
“Clearly that leaves the other girl for us!” Vee shouted.
“After her!” Willow shouted as she and Vee went chasing after Star… no easy feat given the distance the giantess was putting on them with each step she took.
Meanwhile, from the dizzying vantage point of Luz and Amity, both 200 feet tall, Echo Creek was less a city and more an intricate, toy-like diorama. Its vibrant houses, its meticulously paved roads, its towering high school, all seemed crafted for goliath hands to rearrange.
Luz lifted one immense sneaker-clad foot, the soles of which could engulf a dozen city buses, and then set it down again, gingerly, as if testing the weight of the world. The ground trembled violently, and a row of small, identical bungalows buckled and then collapsed into dusty rubble.
“Wow! Did I do that?” Luz asked.
“Yep, and you did it so well.” Amity said as she lightly stroked Luz on the face, causing her to giggle. Amity, elegant even at this impossible scale, surveyed the scene with wide, awestruck eyes. Her black boots were already smudged with plaster dust from the buildings she’d unintentionally pulverized.
“Look at it, Luz! It’s like a model train set! But real!” Amity said as she took a cautious step forward, her boot compressing a city park into a flattened, muddy disc. The swing set snapped like a twig. Luz giggled, a sound like distant thunder.
“I know, right? It’s like we fell into a playset, but we’re the monsters!” Luz said. Her excitement was palpable, a crackling energy that vibrated through the very air. She shifted her weight, the movement displacing a massive volume of air, sending a gust that ripped awnings from storefronts and tumbled trash cans end over end. A particularly sturdy-looking office building stood in her path. She hesitated, then, with a mischievous grin, slowly brought her foot down. The building groaned, protesting, before its brick skeleton shrieked and twisted. The entire structure compressed, folds of brick and concrete collapsing in on themselves. When Luz lifted her foot, all that remained was a smoking, pancake-flat ruin.
“Man, this is wild!” Luz exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with unholy glee. She spun around, taking in the panoramic view of the terrified, fleeing specks below.
It was then that her gaze fell upon a bright red car, parked defiantly in the middle of an empty street, its siren blaring. She didn't mean to. Her foot, still giddy from crushing the office building, just drifted a little. The heel of her sneaker descended, slowly and inexorably, towards the tiny vehicle. There was a faint crunch sound, completely drowned out by the screams of distant witnesses, but perfectly audible to Luz in her heightened state. Luz froze. Her eyes went wide with a sudden, horrifying realization.
“Oh my Titan! Did I just…?” Luz started to say. Panic flared in her chest, a primal terror that eclipsed even the surreal joy of her new size. Had she hurt someone? Her heart hammered against her ribs, a drumbeat that shook the ground. She cautiously lifted her foot, revealing a flat, mangled scrap of metal where the car had been. But then, a small detail caught her attention. Through the mangled chassis, she could see nothing. No sign of a driver, no passenger. The car, it seemed, had been empty. A profound wave of relief washed over Luz, so potent it made her knees buckle slightly, sending another tremor through the city.
“Oh, thank the stars! Empty! It was empty!” Luz sagged, leaning heavily on a shopping mall, its roof groaning under her immense elbow. The relief quickly morphed into something else, something deeper, more complex. A sense of immense, unburdened power. The feeling of absolute, unchallengeable might, completely devoid of the usual high stakes. It was a stark contrast to the constant, grinding tension of her life in the Demon Realm. She kicked lightly at the remains of the mall, sending a cascade of debris tumbling, while looking over towards Amity.
“You know, Amity. This is actually a huge relief. All that time battling Belos, always on edge, always fighting for our lives, for the Isles. This is just… crushing problems without anyone getting hurt. It’s like… a superpower stress ball.” Luz said. She stomped her foot down again, more deliberately this time, completely flattening what was left of the flattened car and surrounding pavement. The surge of power, the satisfying thump and crumble, sent a jolt of catharsis through her. Amity, who had been watching Luz with a thoughtful expression, suddenly grinned.
“A stress ball, huh? Well, if it’s a stress ball, then I’m going to explore the entire thing.” Amity boasted with a smile on her gigantic face. She took another step, her boot landing squarely on a row of houses, turning them into artistic, if destructive, modern art installations. Unlike Luz's initial accidental crush, Amity's movements now had a distinct purpose.
Meanwhile, Marco and Janna were rushing after the two giantesses, not only having to keep an eye on them for any sudden movements that would put them in danger, but also dodge around any falling debris from the buildings they were crushing.
“This is like an action movie! And I love it!” Janna shouted.
“I’m not sure the feeling is mutual! Whoa!” Marco shouted as he and Janna dodged a big chunk of building before it landed on top of them. Then, Janna’s eyes narrowed, focusing on Luz’s left foot. A flicker of an idea ignited within her.
"Marco, look! That girl’s shoelaces! They're untied!" Janna shouted. Marco followed her gaze, his heart pounding. Indeed, one of Luz's massive shoelaces dangled precariously, its knotted end brushing against the shattered pavement.
"You think...?" Marco began.
"Oh yeah! It's our only chance! If we can climb them, maybe we can… I don't know, trip them? Get their attention?" Janna declared, her fear momentarily giving way to a surge of adrenaline.
“Errrr… one step at a time, Janna! Let’s just climb so we can get off the ground. All this shaking from their steps is giving me a headache!” Marco shouted.
Dodging a falling beam, they made their way towards Luz’s colossal sneaker, especially now that Luz paused to once again admire the view of the city destruction she was causing. The sheer scale of the shoelace was overwhelming the closer Marco and Janna got to it. The treads alone were the size of small cars, and the laces were thicker than ancient tree trunks.
"Okay, on three! One… two… THREE!" Marco said, grabbing hold of a loose thread on the dangling shoelace. With a synchronized leap, they grabbed the laces, their small hands digging into the rough material. The climb was arduous. The laces swayed with every subtle shift of Luz’s foot, turning their ascent into a terrifying, 360 degree rollercoaster. They scrambled upwards, their muscles burning, their lungs aching from the thin, dust-filled air. After making it atop the shoe and approaching the bottom of Luz’s pants, Marco kept glancing down, the city a terrifying diorama of destruction below, while Janna focused solely on the task of climbing at hand.
They finally reached the top of Luz’s sneaker, their bodies pressed against the worn fabric. The city spread out before them like a miniature model, and the other giantess, Amity, towered over them, a benevolent, albeit destructive, deity.
"We made it!" Marco panted, collapsing for a moment against the sneaker. Janna, however, was already looking around, trying to figure out their next move.
"Okay, now what? How do we get her to notice us?" Janna asked.
It turned out they didn’t have to wait long for that to happen. Only a few seconds later, Amity’s gaze drifted towards Luz. A small frown creased her colossal brow. One of Luz’s laces wrapped around a smaller building and yanked it off its foundation. Although it was an impressive display of strength and stability, Amity knew it was still a risk for Luz to be walking around with her shoe like that.
"Hey, Luz… your shoelace is untied. You're going to trip and you don’t want me laughing at you, do you?" Amity asked. Luz, her attention momentarily distracted from the city’s demise, let out a playful groan.
"Oh, fiddlesticks! Thanks, Amity!" Luz said. She began to bend down, her massive hand reaching towards her foot. Marco and Janna froze, their eyes widening in horror. They were still clinging to the laces, directly in the path of her hand.
"Uh oh! She's going to see us!" Marco stammered, his voice barely a squeak.
"Oh spit!" Janna muttered, her mind racing. Luz’s colossal fingers, each one thicker than Marco’s entire body, descended. She was reaching for the offending shoelace, but as her hand drew closer, Luz paused. Her impossibly large eyes, which had been focused on her foot, suddenly shifted, widening with surprise.
“Huh? What’s that?” Luz asked. The playful, destructive energy that had fueled her rampage seemed to drain away, replaced by a look of utter bewilderment, and then something akin to dread. Marco and Janna, clinging to the laces, felt a tremor run through the massive sneaker.
“Run and jump!” Marco said as he and Janna got up and tried to outrun Luz’s giant fingers. Alas, they couldn’t.
“Aaaaaah!” they both screamed as Luz pinched her fingers together with just enough force to keep the duo from escaping or moving much.
Amity wondered why Luz wasn’t tying her shoelaces back together, but when Luz was back to standing at her full height, it suddenly made sense. Luz opened up her palm and revealed the two people she captured.
“I found these two little rascals trying to climb my shoe.” Luz said.
“Wow… that was either brave or foolish of them. Then again, that’s something Hunter or Gus would probably do!” Amity said, prompting a chuckle from Luz.
“Please… don’t hurt us!” Marco said as he and Janna huddled together.
“Awwww… look how they’re hugging each other. I think it’s kinda romantic.” Luz said.
“I wonder if they’re dating just like we are.” Amity said.
“Ewwww! No way, giant lady! We’re just good friends!” Janna said.
“Why are you two doing this!? What has our town done to deserve this?” Marco said. Luz and Amity looked at each other, but only briefly.
“Errrrrr… just because it’s fun!” Luz said.
“And this town happened to be on the other end of that portal we came through.” Amity said.
“By accident, we might add.” Luz said as she smirked towards Amity, who blushed as she thought back to the trip that sent the both of them to Echo Creek.
“You’ll… you won’t get away with this! We’ll stop you… somehow!” Marco shouted. Luz and Amity looked at each other and chuckled.
“With what, exactly? You’re gonna need a billion glyphs to stop us… if you even know how to use them!” Amity shouted.
“Never mind them, Amity. Let’s keep them somewhere safe where they won’t bother us. And I know just the place!” Luz said.
“Oh!?” Amity said as she watched Luz reach towards her outfit with her other hand. She used it to stretch out the pocket at chest level of Amity’s overalls, leaving Amity to watch as Luz casually dropped Marco and Janna inside.
“Waaaaaah!” Marco and Janna screamed until they landed with a thud inside the pocket.
“There, you two! Nice and snug!” Luz said as she peeked inside the pocket.
“Hahaha! I never thought this pocket would be used for a home.” Amity said.
“Come on, let’s keep on rampaging around this city. I’m still under a lot of stress relief!” Luz said as the two ladies held hands and rampaged together once again.
Back in Gravesfield, as the rampaging between Jackie and Star continued (Star especially laughed when she knocked a fuel tanker over with her boot, resulting in a massive explosion), Hunter gripped a protruding seam of Jackie’s shorts with white-knuckled intensity, his boots dangling over a sheer drop of nearly a hundred feet. Beside him, Gus Porter was huffing, his face pale as he clung to the skin of Jackie’s giant leg.
"Don't... look... down," Gus wheezed, his eyes squeezed shut for a moment before he forced them open.
“Gus, you’re falling behind! Warriors like me don’t wait for anyone!" Hunter shouted back over the whistling wind.
“Well, pardon me, Hunter! It’s not every day I climb the leg of a giant woman and hope she doesn’t notice me!” Gus shouted. Hunter leaped, catching a fold in the fabric. He hauled himself up, then reached back to help Gus. The movement of the giantess was rhythmic but violent. Every time Jackie took a step, the world tilted forty-five degrees. The boys were like ants clinging to a swinging pendulum.
Finally, they reached the reinforced stitching of the pocket's edge. It was a thick, corded ridge of thread that felt like climbing over a fallen redwood tree. Gasping for air, they peered over the precipice and into the dark, swaying depths of the pocket.
"Mrs. Noceda!? Are you in there?" Gus shouted. A faint, muffled cry echoed from the depths of the abyss.
"Hunter? Gus? Is that you?" Camila said. Hunter leaned further over the edge, squinting into the gloom. Down at the very bottom, amidst a set of keys the size of broadswords, was Camila Noceda. She looked impossibly small, a speck of color against the fabric. She was stumbling, trying to maintain her footing as the walls of the pocket shifted and groaned around her.
The danger was immediate. As Jackie walked, the heavy denim of her shorts didn't just sway… it compressed. The inner lining of the pocket was folding in on itself with every stride the giantess took. To Camila, it was like being caught inside a trash compactor made of heavy rugs. The thick fabric would billow out, then suddenly slam shut, threatening to smother or crush her against the keys or phone Jackie was carrying. And heaven help her if that phone were to somehow ring…
"I can't get out! The walls! They keep closing in!" Camila yelled, her voice high with panic.
“Sit tight! I’ll get you out!” Hunter shouted.
Hunter didn't hesitate. He reached into his tactical arsenal, a pouch he’d spent weeks preparing for their stay in the human realm, and pulled out a coil of high-tensile rope. He anchored one end around a massive copper rivet that held the pocket together.
"Gus, hold the anchor! Use an illusion to reinforce the knot if you have to!" Hunter commanded.
"On it!" Gus slammed his hands down, blue circles of light shimmering around the rivet to strengthen the hold. Hunter dropped the rest of the coil into the dark.
"Camila! Grab the rope! You have to climb, now!" Hunter shouted. Down below, Camila saw the lifeline drop through the dusty air. She lunged for it just as Jackie shifted her weight to her left leg. The pocket tightened violently. The wall of the pocket, a slab of denim twenty feet thick from Camila’s perspective, swung inward.
"Move!" Hunter screamed. Camila scrambled up the rope, her hands burning against the fibers. She had never been an athlete, but the adrenaline of a mother fighting to get back to her kids (biological and ‘adopted’ in the case of Hunter, Gus, Amity, and others) gave her a strength she didn't know she possessed. She climbed desperately as the fabric hissed behind her, the two sides of the pocket meeting with a dull thump that would have flattened her instantly if she’d stayed a second longer. Hunter and Gus watched with bated breath as Camila’s head finally cleared the shadow of the pocket's interior. Hunter reached down, grabbing her by the collar of her coat and hauling her up onto the ledge of the pocket’s rim.
All three of them collapsed onto the thick stitching, gasping for air. Camila was shaking, her hair a mess and her glasses fogged up with dirt and sweat, but she immediately pulled the boys into a crushing hug.
"You came for me… I thought I was going to be lint." Camila said.
“We look out for each other, Mrs. Noceda.” Hunter said.
"Now, we just have to figure out how to get off this mountain without…” Gus started to say.
Suddenly, the world stopped shaking. The thunderous footsteps ceased. The trio froze. They slowly turned their heads upward, looking past the teal and white sweatshirt, past the seashell necklace that hung like a wrecking ball against Jackie’s chest, all the way up to the clouds. She was looking right down at them.
“Huh? I thought I felt something tickling my leg.” Jackie’s voice boomed. She squinted her gigantic eyes and leaned in closer.
“Wait… where do you guys think you're going?” Jackie said, obviously recognizing the trio. Before Hunter could even reach for his sword, a hand descended from the heavens. It was a vast, fleshy canopy, eclipsing the sky entirely. The lines on Jackie’s palm looked like deep canyons; her fingernails were polished shields of ivory. Hunter, Gus, and Camila scrambled backward, but there was nowhere to run.
Jackie’s thumb and forefinger closed around the edge of the pocket with terrifying precision. With a playful hum that rattled their ribcages, she scooped them up.
"Aahhhhh!" Gus yelled, flailing as they were lifted into the stratosphere.
“Not again!!!” Camilla screamed. Jackie brought her hand up to her face, holding them just inches from her nose.
“Star, look who I found getting too close with me!” Jackie said as she looked over towards Star.
While that was going on, Willow and Vee had been doing their own ascension, this time up Star’s towering form. Their climb wasn’t as tough as the one Hunter and Gus faced with Jackie since they had more solid ground to climb on in the form of first her boots, and then her stockings. That’s not to say it wasn’t a challenging climb, as both ladies almost flew off when Star made a sudden turn to crush another structure under her boot.
"Hold on, Vee! Don't let go!" Willow shouted over the roar of a collapsing chimney. Willow’s hands were glowing with a fierce emerald light. Thick, magically reinforced vines shot upward, lashing onto the embroidered hem of Star’s giant skirt. The vines acted as safety lines, hauling Willow and Vee upward as they continued the perilous trek up the giantess's back. Vee clung to a thick green stalk with white-knuckled intensity. Her tail, which she had partially manifested for better grip, wrapped around the vine like a coil.
"I’m trying! But it’s like trying to climb a mountain that’s having an earthquake!" Vee shouted. Seconds later, as they paused to catch their breath, leaning against the warm, towering expanse of Star’s dress, Vee looked out over the horizon. From this height, much of the city’s destruction was visible. The sheer power of Star’s movement vibrated through their feet… a rhythmic, pulse-pounding force that made the air itself thrum.
"Willow, do you ever wonder what it would be like? To be like her?" Vee said, her voice barely audible over the wind. Willow wiped a smudge of soot from her glasses, looking up the seemingly endless expanse of Star’s golden hair that draped down like a silken waterfall just above them.
"What? To be that big?" Willow asked.
"Yeah. To have the whole world look like a dollhouse. To be able to cross the entire woods in three steps. No one could ever hunt you, or lock you in a basement, or tell you where to go. You’d just, well, be the horizon." Vee said. Willow looked at her friend, seeing the vulnerability in the shapeshifter’s eyes. Vee had spent so much of her life small, hiding, and trapped. The idea of being the biggest thing in existence was a heavy thought. Willow looked at her own hands, then at the massive heel of Star’s boot as she lifted it before she slammed it down again.
"Actually, I do think about it. Think of the gardens I could grow. I could plant a forest in an afternoon. I could move mountains to make sure the sun hits the right valleys." Willow said. Vee managed a small, shaky smile, the tension breaking just a little.
"Maybe you should make some of that special plant food, but for people. One drop and poof! Willow Giantess Park, Protector of the Isles." Vee said. Willow giggled, the sound bright despite the chaos.
"I don’t think the world is ready for a 200-foot-tall me, Vee. I’d probably trip over the Boiling Isles and crush all of Bonesborough with my knee.” Willow said.
"Well, if you do, make sure I get a sip too. I’d make a very impressive Kaiju." Vee said.
“Huh? Kaiju?” Willow asked.
“It’s a term Mrs. Noceda taught me about giant monsters in movies.” Vee said.
“Oooooooh…” Willow said.
Suddenly, the two became unnerved as they heard the voice of the other giantess, Jackie Lynn Thomas.
“Star, look who I found getting too close with me!” Jackie said as she looked over towards Star. The reaction was instantaneous. Star Butterfly didn't just turn; she pivoted with the manic energy of a hyperactive teenager, and at the size she was amplified at, that meant really big trouble for Willow and Vee. The sudden, violent rotation of Star’s torso was more than Willow’s vines could handle. The centrifugal force was immense. Willow and Vee were tossed from their perch like ragdolls.
“Waaaaaah!!!” Willow and Vee both screamed. They didn't fall to the ground, however. As Star spun, her massive, waist-length blonde hair whipped around like a golden whirlpool. Willow and Vee were launched directly into the thick, shimmering mass of it. It wasn't like falling into a cloud. At this scale, Star’s hair was like a dense forest of polished, golden cables. Each strand was thick enough to grasp, but they were slick and scented strongly of magical strawberries. The two girls tumbled through the layers of blonde, frantically grabbing at the strands to stop their descent.
"I'm stuck!" Willow cried, her arms tangled in a knot of golden locks.
"Me too!" Vee was struggling, her shapeshifting instincts kicking in as she tried to make her limbs more elastic to slip through, but the sheer weight of the hair around her was pinning her down. Above them, Star felt a sensation. To her, it wasn't a struggle… it was a faint, nagging itch. Like a leaf caught in a breeze or a stray thread.
"Oooooh.. Hold on, Jackie. I think I got some gunk in my hair." Star said. Willow’s eyes went wide as she faintly saw Star’s giant hand fast approaching.
"Oh no. Vee, hold on to me!" Willow screamed.
Star’s hand, a pale, mountainous thing with nails painted like sparkling hearts, swept toward her own head. It was a blind, casual gesture, but to Willow and Vee, it was the approach of a falling moon. The fingers raked through the hair with terrifying speed. Willow braced herself, closing her eyes, but instead of being crushed, she felt a massive, soft pressure. Star’s thumb and forefinger closed around the cluster of hair where they were lodged. With a rhythmic whoosh of air, they were plucked upward.
Star pulled her hand away from her head, opening her palm slightly to see what she had caught. Willow and Vee tumbled onto the vast, warm expanse of Star’s palm. The skin was remarkably soft, the mountain-sized ridges of her fingerprints feeling like cushioned trenches. Willow and Vee scrambled to their feet, gasping for air, only to find themselves staring into Star’s enormous face.
“Huh? How did you two little cuties get in my hair?” Star asked.
“Ummmm… we were just passing by?” Willow nervously said as she and Vee braced each other and prepared for the worst, especially when they saw the giant Jackie approaching and Willow and Vee saw her holding Camila, Hunter, and Gus.
Then the five captives watched as they were lowered further and further away from the giantesses’ faces. Before they all knew it, they were back on the ground, looking up and trembling with fear as the giantesses’ respective footwear wobbled nearby.
“Okay, as punishment for invading our privacy, NOW I say we crush them.” Jackie said as she lifted one of her shoes up and prepared to lower it onto the group. Star did the same with her boot, slowly beaming with excitement as she got ready to crush more victims under her boots. The group clamored in fear, Camila especially as her eyes teared up and she muttered one quick phrase.
“Te quiero, Luz…” Camila said. Despite the softness of that phrase, Star picked up on it… and it strangely resonated with her. She set her foot back down, and it was her turn to hold Jackie back with her arm.
“Wait, Jackie!” Star said, forcing Jackie to lower her foot down near the group, the soft boom making their ears ring.
“Huh? Why?” Jackie asked.
“You know what, Jackie? I’m looking in that woman’s eyes, and it’s made me realize something… I miss my home. And, you know what? Look around. Maybe we’ve done more than enough.” Star said. Jackie did just that, surveying what was left of Gravesfield, which was unmistakably a convoluted and smoldering mess thanks to how much the giantesses moved around.
“Yeah. You’re right, and it’s almost dinner time anyway. My parents would freak out if I'm not home by then.” Jackie said. Star nodded, and after she and Jackie stepped away from Camila and her group (much to their relief), Star raised her voice for all of the city to hear.
“Well, little place, it’s been fun, but we have to return to our own place. Thanks for letting us have fun! Errrrrr… we guess!” Star said as she pulled her dimensional scissors out from her dress. This time, without any resistance at all, Star easily clipped open a portal that was big enough for her and Jackie to fit through. With one last wave, the two giantesses stepped through the portal and disappeared, but certainly not from anyone’s memories.
“I can’t believe how unbelievably lucky we were.” Gus said.
“And you said there was no such thing as luck, Hunter!” Willow shouted as she gently bumped Hunter on the shoulder.
“Oh, shut up.” Hunter said.
The destruction of Echo Creek was rapidly coming to an end, especially as Luz and Angel laid on their backs and spread their arms and legs around, creating a ‘snow angel.’ Of course, the angel wasn’t made of snow, but rather of their destructive spread, which they whistled over as they stood back on their feet and looked over their handiwork.
“*whistles* I can’t believe we just obliterated this entire city…” Luz said.
“Me too, but at least we did it together.” Amity said. Luz smiled as she looked straight into Amity’s eyes.
“Mmmmmm… I can’t think of anyone better.” Luz said as she leaned her face closer and closer. Amity smiled as she did the same. It was obvious to the few people that were still alive (including Marco and Janna inside Amity’s overalls pocket), that Luz and Amity were aiming to kiss each other.
But then, the two girls heard a thunderclap above and the sound of something being ripped apart like a sheet of paper. The two giantesses looked up, where they saw a giant portal opening up above their head.
“I guess that’s our cue to leave.” Amity said.
“Awwwww… I wish I could stay, and maybe see what other cities in this world can be crushed.” Luz said.
“I know, Luz, but everyone else is probably worried sick about us, including your mother.” Amity said. Luz nodded, knowing she couldn’t argue with that kind of logic.
“Well, thank you, everyone! Errrrr… for allowing us to destroy your city! No hard feelings?” Luz asked. Amity chuckled as she was the first to reach up and let the portal pull her in with Luz firmly in her grip.
As the two flew through the portal like they were superheroes wearing capes, they watched two other ladies passing by. These ladies turned out to be Star Butterfly and Jackie Lynn Thomas. They flew by before they could even ask them what they were doing in the same dimensional transway.
“Huh? Who were those two?” Luz asked. Amity merely shrugged her shoulders.
“I just hope we land back in Gravesfield.” Amity said as they saw the literal light approaching at the end of the portal tunnel.
After Star and Jackie sailed past Luz and Amity wondering who those two were, they suddenly found themselves plunging through the light, landing safely on the ground of Echo Creek and back at their normal size… or at least what was left of it after the near total demolition of it thanks to Luz and Amity.
“What… what happened here!?” Star shouted.
“Geez… it’s like a war broke out here. Even the skate park is gone.” Jackie said.
“Wait! Those two ladies we passed! You don’t suppose they were the cause, do you?” Star asked.
“I don’t know… sadly we can’t ask them.” Jackie said as she looked up and saw the portal they had traveled through was completely gone. Star then gasped as she realized something from looking over the wreckage.
“Marco! Janna! Where are they!?” Star said as she frantically ran towards a pile of rubble.
“Star, wait up!” Jackie shouted.
Meanwhile, in Gravesfield, Camila watched as something small and faint tumbled out of the gigantic portal that the giantesses Luz and Amity had walked through. Camila squinted her eyes and recognized it was Luz and Amity, both at their normal sizes.
“Luz! Amity!” Camila shouted as she and the others rushed towards them. As Luz and Amity stood up after their rough landing and the giant portal closed behind them, Luz suddenly found herself being embraced by her mother.
“Ooooof! Mom!” Luz shouted as she hugged her Mom right back.
“Amity… I’m glad you and Luz are still in one piece.” Willow said as she ran up to Amity and helped her back on her feet.
“Heh, me too. You wouldn’t believe where we wound up.” Amity said. Luz and Camila ended their hug with Luz looking around at the wreckage left behind by Star and Jackie.
“What… what happened here!?” Luz asked.
“Oh, Luz. It was awful. These two giant women suddenly came out from a giant portal in the sky and just laid waste on the town like it was a child’s sandbox. We were all lucky to escape with our lives.” Camila said.
“We were literally about to be flattened until they decided it was time to go home, and the one with blonde hair and a green dress and funny looking shoes literally cut a portal open with her scissors and left.” Hunter said.
“Did the other girl happen to have shorter hair, shorts, long socks, and shoes that looked like they belonged to a skateboard?” Amity asked.
“Y-y-yes, actually! How did you know?” Vee asked. Luz and Amity looked at each other.
“Errrrrr… just a lucky guess.” Amity said. Suddenly, Marco and Janna peeked their heads out from inside Amity’s overalls.
“What the…? Now what?” Janna asked.
“Did even more giant people show up? Oh man, Echo Creek is so done for…” Marco said. These voices were caught by both Luz and Amity, looked down and lightly gasped upon seeing their heads stick out.
“Shhhhhh…” Amity shushed as she gently pushed Marco and Janna back inside the overalls pocket. Luz and Amity looked at each other quickly, mentally understanding with each other that they forgot all about Marco and Janna and they ended up coming to Gravesfield with them, shrinking them as they returned to their normal size.
“Huh? Did you hear something?” Camila asked.
“Oh, it’s nothing, Mom.” Luz said as she and Amity laughed nervously. Luz gulped nervously. She knew her Mom wasn’t going to easily let something like that go and prepared for further grilling from her.
But that would never come. In fact, the destruction of Gravesfield never happened. Because Luz sat herself up on her bed with a gasp, her heart racing as she looked around the bedroom. It was all a dream.
“Whoa… it felt so real.” Luz whispered, trying her best not to wake up Amity… but alas, Amity stirred awake as she turned to face Luz.
“Mmmmmm… Luz, are you alright?” Amity asked.
“I’m fine. I just had a wild and crazy dream.” Luz said.
“Oh? What kind of dream?” Amity asked.
“Well… it’s a big one… almost literally. I’ll tell you all about it in the morning. Maybe.” Luz said.
“Maybe? Oh, Luz, you are such a tease.” Amity said as she went back to sleep. Luz lightly chuckled and did the same, although she couldn’t help but think about those other two girls she saw (Star Butterfly and Jackie Lynn Thomas). She had a feeling they were real and would be seeing them again sometime down the road…
Also waking up from dreaming about destroying a whole town? The sudden jolt rattled the entire bed, sending a ripple through the mattress. Star Butterfly, a wild tangle of blonde hair, sat upright, her eyes wide open, glistening with a manic glee. A soft, breathless laugh escaped her lips as she hugged her pillow tightly.
"Mmmph?" A groan came from beside her. Marco Diaz, ever the heavy sleeper and light of spirit, stirred sluggishly. His brow furrowed as he slowly blinked open his tired eyes, the faint moonlight filtering through the window illuminating his concerned face.
"Star? What's going on? Are you okay? Did you get attacked by a horde of tiny, but surprisingly effective, interdimensional dust bunnies again? Because I just swept the floor before bed." Marco said. Star shook her head vigorously, her hair flopping.
"No, no dust bunnies! It was even better! Marco, you wouldn't believe the dream I just had!" Star whispered. Marco pushed himself up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Better than fighting miniature dust-creatures? That's a high bar, Star. My dreams usually involve trying to remember if I turned off the stove or if I left my red hoodie in the dryer.” Marco said.
"I was HUGE! Like, really, really huge! I mean, I was towering over everything! Cities looked like little toy towns beneath my boots! And I was... I was just stomping all over them!" Star exclaimed, throwing her arms out wide as if to encompass her dream.
Marco's eyes widened, a mix of concern and bewilderment crossing his features.
"Stomping? Like, destroying stuff? Star, that sounds a little concerning. Are we sure this wasn't a nightmare you’re misinterpreting?" Marco said.
"No, silly! Not destroying! Well, maybe a little bit, but it was all in good fun! Like when you build a really awesome sand castle, and then you get to kick it down with a satisfying thump! It felt so powerful and... squishy! The buildings went crunch and splat! It was like a giant, super-bouncy trampoline park for my feet! I could feel the vibrations with every step, like the whole world was humming just for me!" Star said. Marco found himself involuntarily smiling at the absurd image of Star being a towering giantess with little regard for human life beneath her boots.
"Okay, that does sound pretty wild. So I gotta ask. Was I there? Was I big too? Were we some giant power couple, stomping through cities together, maybe fighting a colossal monster while simultaneously organizing the municipal recycling program with a single, massive hand?" Marco asked. Star tilted her head, a thoughtful finger tapping her chin.
"Hmmmm… nope! You weren't giant. Maybe next time! Next time we can be giants together! We can have giant monster truck rallies using actual monsters, or play giant hopscotch with continents! Or even better, we could make a giant nachos supreme the size of a mountain! With extra cheese! And guacamole!" Star said.
Star clearly was like a kid in a candy store describing her dream as best as she remembered it. With that excitement, however, came a raise in the volume of her voice, which was enough to stir awake somebody else that was sleeping in the room with them…
"Hey, you two. Keep it down. I’m trying to dream about crushing this place called Gravesfield, with Star alongside." The sleepy, low whisper of Jackie Lynn Thomas cut through the air, startling both Star and Marco.
“Oops… sorry, Jackie. I promise not all my slumber parties are this loud.” Marco said.
“Whatever. Good night… again.” Jackie said as she drifted back to sleep.
Both Marco and Star did the same, although Star stared point blank at the ceiling as one crystal clear thought swirled in her head.
“How did Jackie have the same dream as me? And… who were those other two girls who were in the portal?” Star asked, referring to Luz and Amity who flew right by her and Jackie.
Star could only shrug her shoulders and finally lay back in her bed, awaiting the arrival of the next unpredictable day in Echo Creek a couple hours from now.
END