Surrender, Lilliput

Chapter 4: Commanding the Armies of Lilliput

Chapter 4:

The king appointed a crew of six expertly talented military men, and sent them in a boat to Blefuscu under cover of darkness. When they got close to shore, they could see the light house where the captured Blefuscan officer had said the scientist named Sabio kept the Icosahedron that Galatcha was after.

They came ashore far from the light house, in an unpopulated area. Wearing black clothing, they made their way back to the light house, only to find it heavily guarded. There were at least twenty different guards surrounding the light house.

'What should we do?" a corporal asked the commanding officer. "Should we attack?"

"Twenty against six doesn't look good," said the commander. "I say we turn back and report to the king that they know the value of the device the young giantess is after, and are guarding it accordingly!"

The six men returned to their boat and pushed off, and headed back toward Lilliput.

When they reached the shores of Lilliput, they went straight to the palace, where the king was waiting for news of the operation. The men told him what had occurred at the light house.

"The best way to retrieve the Icosahedron is for Galatcha herself to attack, while a galleon of our soldiers storm the light house to retrieve it!" said the commander.

"I'll order General Pozole to train the giantess to command the armies of Lilliput tomorrow, so she can prepare to conquer the capitol city of Blefuscu. We might only need to send one ship with her to acquire the device from the light house that she needs."

"Excellent idea, your majesty!" said the commander.

The next morning, when Galatcha awakened, a thousand Lilliputians brought her breakfast in barrels and baskets. General Pozole was among them.

"We need to train you to help us strike the capitol city of Blefuscu!" said the general. "When you are done eating, the armies of Lilliput are awaiting you in the large meadow near the shore. You can carry me there with you so I can teach you how to command the armies of Lilliput!"

"So I will accompany a garrison to Blefuscu to attack them while your soldiers acquire the Icosahedron?" Galatcha asked.

"Yes," the general answered.

"When do we attack?" Galatcha asked.

"It depends on how long your training takes," said the general. "You might be an all-powerful giantess, but you're still a young girl, so we can't anticipate how long it will take for you to learn the ways of war."

"You need to ensure that the scientist who is the caretaker of the Icosahedron is taken alive, I need him to show me how to use the device."

"I will inform the king of your request, Galatcha."

After eating, Galatcha carried a ceramic water jug in one hand, and the general in the other as she walked to the meadow by the shore where the training would commence. She set him down carefully, then set the water jug out of the way and looked out at the vast number of the Lilliputian armies. There were thousands of troops, all standing in lines awaiting orders from the general or Galatcha.

The general briefly explained to her how to command the armies, and soon, she took to it like a duck to water. Galatcha stood at attention, with her arms akimbo, her fists on her hips. The troops marched in single file, and marched in front of the young giantess, beneath her and between her shoes, and in circles around her.

Iota came to the meadow to watch the military exercises. He sat on a rock on top of a hill overlooking the meadow. From a distance, Galatcha looked like an ordinary girl in her early teens commanding an army of toy soldiers.

The king rode up on his horse to overlook the spectacle. General Pozole informed him that Galatcha needed the scientist who was the caretaker of the Icosahedron to be taken alive. The king told the general to inform Galatcha that the utmost care would be taken to reserve his life.

After an hour of training exercises, the general let Galatcha and the troops take a break. The young giantess went and took a swig of water from her jug, and spotted Iota.

"How do you like commanding the armies of Lilliput?" Iota asked.

"It's like owning a horde of obedient toys!" said Galatcha.

"Just remember, what you're training for isn't a game. In order to invade Blefuscu, your life and the lives of the soldiers who accompany you will be at risk. You need to take this training seriously!"

Galatcha put the cork lid into the top of the jug and set it down.

"This operation involves conquering the troops of Blefuscu and forcing them under my command," said Galatcha. "I'm not training to command Lilliputians, it will be the Blefuscans who will fall under my power."

Galatcha and the troops got back to training. By the time of the mid-day meal, they were done with the operation. A large contingent of Lilliputians brought food to Galatcha, and the general declared the operation a success.

"Well done, Galatcha!" said the general. "The king had informed me that you have done well, and you may attack Blefuscu when you finish your lunch!"

As the troops dispersed, Galatcha took her food and went to the top of the hill where Iota was sitting and waiting for her.

"I'm so close to completing my mission!" said Galatcha. "I'm so happy!"

"I'm worried about you," said Iota.

"Why?" Galatcha asked.

"It's a dangerous mission, even for someone your size. I overheard some of the military officers talking about it, and they said you're too young and naive to understand the dangers they're putting you in. Even though you're 144 times bigger than a Lilliputian girl, the Blefuscans can still hurt you."

"My father was in the army before I was born," said Galatcha. "He told me the dangers of serving in the military. Besides, I'm a good swimmer."

"Just be careful," said Iota.

Galatcha shared some of her food with Iota, and looked across the bay toward Blefuscu. In the distance, she could see the vague outline of cliffs in the distance. She knew it would be more difficult this time, compared to stealing the ships like she did the day before. It was imperative that Sabio, the keeper of the light house, remained alive.

Galatcha returned to the cave to get changed. Her dress that she wore to attack the fleet was still drying in the sun, and she wanted to wear it so she wouldn't have too much wet clothing. When she was changed, she returned to the meadow and met up with the soldiers who would accompany her to Blefuscu.

The ship sailed off into the bay, and caught a good tail wind, crossing the channel with ease. Galatcha entered the water and headed off in the same direction as the ship. She overtook it, just as the general had instructed her to do, and swam toward Blefuscu.

When she reached the opposite coast, she spotted the light house where Sabio resided. There were no ships to counterattack the Lilliputian galleon, because Galatcha had collected all of them. Galatcha reached the beach and ascended up the cliffs. Blefuscan soldiers gathered as the townspeople fled in fear. Archers stood ready, until their commander ordered them to shoot at the young giantess.

The Lilliputian ship threw their anchor and awaited Galatcha's signal that the capitol city was contained, so they could disembark and storm the light house.

Galatcha used her left foot to swipe at the archers before they could fire their arrows at her. The armies of Lilliput and General Pozole had trained her so well, that she was able to do this without injuring the Blefuscan soldiers.

"I command you to surrender to me at once!" said Galatcha. "I will destroy all those who oppose me, but if you give me what I want, nobody will get hurt!"

She continued to sweep her feet at the archers. "I only want to retrieve Sabio and the Icosahedron! I don't want to hurt anyone!"

The Blefuscan soldiers refused to yield. There were some structures nearby, so the young giantess raised her right leg and stomped on one of them, utterly crushing it. The people who resided in that structure had fled long before she had arrived. Galatcha stomped on another structure, demolishing it, as well.

"I won't stop until I have the Icosahedron!" said Galatcha. She was so massive that she didn't need to shout to be heard, she simply had to speak and she could be heard for miles, according to the scale of the Blefuscans and the Lilliputians.

Galatcha could see the light house, and made her way there. She saw the twenty guards, and grabbed them. She walked to the edge of the bay, and tossed them in. They plunged safely into the water. The Blefuscan soldiers made their way toward the light house, but Galatcha stomped in the road hard enough to make an indentation deep enough to block their progress. She wrecked a couple of structures, then dropped the debris into the canyon she had created by stomping into the road way.

Galatcha turned and looked at the Lilliputian ship and aid, "Ahoy!"

This was the signal she and the general had agreed on to notify the Lilliputian soldiers that the area was secure. They came ashore in a life boat and headed up the cliff to the light house. Once inside, they went up the spiral stair case and captured Sabio, and collected the Icosahedron.

The Lilliputian soldiers brought Sabio to the life boat, and paddled to the galleon and boarded with him. The commander gave Galatcha the signal that it was time to leave. She followed them back into the water, and swam back to Lilliput.

Once they had returned, Sabio was brought to the royal palace, along with the Icosahedron. Galatcha stood there, still wet.

"I have an Icosahedron I brought with me from my world," said Galatcha. "The custodian of the Icosahedron on my world is a scientist named Mendigar, he told me that if it is united with the Icosahedron of your world, it will harmonize the orbits of the world of Lilliput and my world, making it possible for me to return to my world at any time, instead of waiting for the solstice."

"You must bring it to me at once, it takes time for their orbits to harmonize!" said Sabio.

"How long will it take?" Galatcha asked.

"I can't be certain until you bring it to me," Sabio replied.

Galatcha returned to her cave and changed into a dry dress, then set her wet clothing out to dry in the sunlight. She grabbed the Icosahedron and returned to the palace. She set it down next to Sabio, and he urged Galatcha to set him on top. She did so, and he held his Icosahedron in his hands and locked it into position on the top of the larger twenty-sided device provided by Galatcha. The two devices were designed to interact with one another. After shifting some gears on the larger device, Sabio was done.

"It looks like it will take a week before you can return to your own world!"

"Thank you, Sabio!" said Galatcha.

Count Champurrado stood their with the Lilliputian military leaders. "Tomorrow you can start digging the canal we asked you to dig for us, while you wait for your world and ours to harmonize!"

"I'll start immediately!" said Galatcha. "I won't wait for tomorrow."

"The king wants you to get rest," said the Count. "We don't want you falling ill from exhaustion, that water was cold! You need to return to your cave until the morning."

"I'll get some rest, thank you, Count Champurrado!" said Galatcha, and she rose to a standing position and returned to her cave. Iota was there waiting for her, at the mouth of the cave.

"So you're leaving us in a week?" Iota asked.

"Yes, or however long it takes to dig the canal," said Galatcha.

"Take me with you!" said Iota.

"Iota, I was only planning on taking prisoners with me back to Brobdingnag. They will be sold as pets!"

"You can keep me as a pet!" said Iota.

"I'll consider it, if you really want to go with me," said Galatcha.

When the Lilliputians brought Galatcha her dinner, she shared it with Iota. When she was done eating, the young giantess sat and watched the sunset from the mouth of the cave, with Iota on her left knee.

"You're a good companion, Iota. I would hate to see you mistreated, so I need time to think about whether or not I take you with me."

"Shouldn't it be my decision?" Iota asked.

"If you were the only Lilliputian I was taking with me, I wouldn't have a problem," said Galatcha. "But I will be taking prisoners with me, criminals who could hurt you when I'm not paying attention to you. I would have to keep them and you fed, and if they ended up getting access to you, they might try to hurt you, because I show you favor."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take," said Iota.

To Be Continued!