Have you ever heard the phrase "Don't wake the sleeping giant"? Most people listen to phrases like this but don't think about them much. I was different. I had thought about that phrase since I was a kid.

It's not like it was the only thing on my mind, but it took up space in my internal filing cabinet. It was constantly at the back of my mind. I finally turned 25, and I still thought about it. I got a job after university, but that one phrase stuck with me: "What was the sleeping giant?"

You might call me crazy, but one day, my coworkers told me about the legend of the sleeping giant in the mountains. I just had to go and see it for myself, so that's why I went.

It was a cold December night. The wind was howling and threatening to push me over. The snow had yet to descend on the mountaintop, but the chill was biting my exposed neck. "I should have brought a scarf. I thought this thick jacket would be plenty…"

I looked down at my thick brown fur coat. My breath came out as a visible mist. "Damn, it's freezing, but the legend says the giant only hibernates here in the winter months."

The wind blew harder as I climbed higher. I was gasping from the cold and the lower pressure. My lungs were on fire, but I had to keep going. My younger self would never forgive me if I stopped now.

I tracked on even as the incline grew steeper. It had become so dark that I couldn't make out the trail in front of me anymore. I pulled out my phone to light the way, but the dead battery symbol was the only thing to pop up as I pressed the power button. In tiny letters beneath that, it simply said: "Charge your phone."

"Damn, I am an idiot!" 

I kept trying to turn it on, but soon, even the symbol wouldn't appear. My phone was done for, but just as my hope for even a faint light was beginning to vanish, I saw an orange hue further up the mountain. "There is light up there!"

Despite my burning lungs and the wheezing, I ran. I ran as fast as my legs could carry, the cold biting further into my neck like a creature of the night. I ran as the hue grew and grew. After turning around a bend, it was before me. "The cave of the sleeping giant…"

I whispered the words into the large cave. It was tall enough for two semis to fit stacked on each other, and its width was more extensive than a California highway, or at least half of one. What startled me the most, though, was the fact that the orange light was coming from within.

On the walls going further down, there were torches. They looked rather old. The sconces were black, and the light coming from them was dim. They seemed to go down forever. What's more, was that the cave had steps. The steps weren't giant-sized; instead, they were human-sized. Even those seemed to go down forever. "There is no way a giant would live down there. What kind of person would even…"

The better part of me told me my quest would be over here. I should have known it was a mission failure by all rights, but I was curious. My curiosity had utterly won me over.

I steeled myself. With my heart pounding loudly, I took the first steps down. I instantly wanted to retreat. The first steps had echoed further in. "Why am I so loud?"

Even my whisper was pulled into the place by the wind, and as it reverberated, I covered my mouth. I would no longer speak. I still had a chance to flee but braved my fear, taking more unsteady steps.

Before I knew it, I had descended into an abyss. I placed a foot down one after the other. I never turned back around. I had no phone. I had no watch. I couldn't tell you how long my descent lasted, but eventually, the steps were no more.

I finally turned around only when I reached the bottom, but when I looked up, I couldn't see the exit. There had to be at least a thousand steps, but it was hard to know. If a human had made this, everyone would have known about it. No "legend of the sleeping giant" would exist in that case.

After meditating on that thought, I returned to the large hallway. It was long, and I could faintly see a large black door at the end. Everything was screaming at me to run from there.

My legs were shivering. I couldn't tell if the cold or the fear was causing it. My teeth chattered away, causing an annoying echo that only fed into my building dread. I clenched the coat tighter around myself as I walked forward.

The door grew larger and larger. The hallway was suffocating me from all sides. When I finally reached the large black door, I wanted to cry and collapse. The door didn't have any patterns, but on either side, mounted bats were above it. They matched the door, but they were polished. Was it obsidian? Was it marble? They were upside down, just like a real bat would sleep.

I gulped as I looked back at the large entrance. Entrance to what exactly? I didn't know, but the doors lacked any handles. It also looked like it weighed more than a ton. I placed my hand on one of them and pushed. If it didn't open, I would've finally turned back. To my surprise, however, it opened with ease. I gulped as I gazed out into the large room. It was larger than any room I had ever seen, and towering stone pillars held it all up. On each pillar were large basins of fire facing the center of the room. At the very end of the room were steps. At the top of those steps was a platform and, on that platform, a throne. And in that throne, there was someone—something. I saw red eyes as the door slammed behind me, and the lights went out.

"Who…who's there!" I whipped out my phone,  but in my panic, it flew from my hands. I knew it had cracked from the fall. I knew because that sound bounced off the walls for a while. Or maybe I just wanted to hear that sound?

"My, my, my." A sweet-sounding voice surrounded me. I should have been even more terrified, but strangely, it calmed down my rapidly beating heart. I turned every which way, but I couldn't find the source of the voice.

"You know it is rude to trespass on someone else's property? Isn't that so?" Her voice was sweet but laced with venom. I didn't know if she was toying with me, but I knew I shouldn't anger this person.

"I am sorry, miss. I will leave if you open the door." I could occasionally hear her feet touching the stone, but I couldn't find her anywhere I looked. It was too dark.

"Nope, not going to happen. Maybe you will get to leave if you tell me why you are here. Or maybe not." My heart picked back up. My body was full of adrenaline, but there was nothing I could do. Somehow, I knew I couldn't run from her. Then, there was only one option. I had to confront this. I had to make it out alive at any cost. "Well… I'm waiting…"

She whispered so close to my ear that I could feel her cold breath. Her breath landed on my neck, causing me to shiver yet again. My heart wouldn't stop pounding, but my stomach was becoming warm. What did it mean? I didn't know, so I decided to answer.

"I- I wanted to find the sleeping giant." 

Her breath against my neck vanquished, and I could no longer feel her presence. I knew she was still there, and that thought proved correct. After a few seconds, she answered.

"Well, you will no longer find those here. They are gone. None of them have a home here anymore—soon, not even me." 

Despite myself and despite the situation I was in, I sighed. I was disappointed. I felt like this person would know. Could my dreams end this way? Was this the end of my sleeping giant delusions?

"You don't have to look so down. I told you they have gone, but I know where they are." 

As my head shot up, I met her eyes. The red was more beautiful than any velvet cake. I could hardly see the rest of her face, but I saw her devilish smile and the fangs that came with it. A lump formed in my throat, but I managed to speak.

"You know where they've gone?" 

She stared into my eyes, never blinking. I could feel our breaths overlapping, but hers was so cold. I couldn't feel any warmth coming from her body; nonetheless, we were so close I could almost kiss her. My stomach started to feel warm again. She ran a hand over my neck. I felt her nails on my skin. Her hand was colder than I could imagine. Causing me to shiver even more, but I couldn't turn away from those eyes. Finally, she responded to my question.

"I know where all of them have gone—all of the giants, all of the dragons, all of the—well, that last one isn't important."

 I went blank. "Did she say dragons? Do dragons count as sleeping giants—I certainly wouldn't want to wake up a sleeping dragon…" 

"You are speaking out loud, you know?" 

I needed more focus. The thoughts that were supposed to be internal leaked, and I couldn't believe my eyes. It almost looked like she was pouting, with her cheeks inflated. She was so "Cute…"

I watched her cheeks go red. My heartbeat increased. I thought she would be angry, so my heart skipped a beat. My stomach became all warm again.

"Anyway, you ruined the mood…but…" 

I ruined the mood? I had no idea what she meant, but I was comforted that her voice had become so casual.

"But… I can take you there." 

I was so distracted by my internal torment I had forgotten what we were talking about. "Take me where?"

She sighed, holding her head in exasperation. "I can take you to the place with the giants. I can take you to a different place. My place."

"You mean it!?" I got loud as I grabbed her hands, jumping up and down as I held them. "I want to go! Please! I will do anything!"

The girl's cheeks became red again. Once my excitement finally calmed down, she stared into my eyes again. More seriously, she asked, "Do you mean it?"

"Of course! It has been my life's dream to wake the sleeping giant!" 

She smiled at me, but this smile differed from the others she had shown me. There was no hidden meaning. A bright smile sent my mind into even more of a frenzy. Before she finally said, "Will you become mine?"