Han was nowhere to be seen and Alduin was oblivious.

‘Where are you, you coward?!’ Alduin yelled out.

Suddenly, Han appeared in front of him, smiling, and disap-

peared immediately. Alduin felt someone patting him on the

shoulder from behind and turned around. No one was there.

This happened two or three more times. Before his patience

grew short, Han appeared about five meters away from him

with a chair in one hand and a book in the other. He put the

chair down, sat on it and began reading.

‘Stop playing games!’ Alduin shouted.

‘It’s not my fault that you’re so incompetent!’ Han replied.

This had infuriated Alduin who had grown tired of these shenani-

gans. He launched Vaurcarya at him, which was still floating

about. Han did not fret however, nor flinched. He remained in

place. The moment the blade seemed to have reached him he

moved his body ever so slightly to avoid it. Such a bizzare sight

to behold! No matter how many times he tried to slash him, Han

managed to dodge as if it’s no hassle. To add insult to injury,

he never once took his eyes off his book! On occasion he even

appeared to be jumping in the air while sitting cross-legged.

Out of the blue he threw the book at him at such velocity,

befitting of an arrow. Alduin caught it before it could hit his

face and glanced at it. The title was "How to befriend an Elf".

He threw it on the ground and raised his head to address his

opponent. Han got off his chair with his fists raised in a fighting

stance.

‘It’s time to duel!’ Han shouted.

‘What the fuck are you doing?’

‘Isn’t it obvious? I’m taking this incredibly seriously!’

Han started changing stances, all of them utterly unfamiliar to

Alduin.

‘I learned these from Bo Jim, he said Shaolin masters used

them for combat! Hyah! Hwooa! Hai-ya!’ He began imitating

monkey sounds while kicking and punching around.

Alduin sighed strongly and looked down. He was breathing

heavily, struck in anger and frustration. Han kept on with his

charades. But then after a few "minutes", he suddenly looked

serious.

‘Can you fucking sto-?’ Alduin started saying but it was

cut-off.

Han put his right leg a bit behind the left one and launched

himself in a step towards Alduin, with his right fist ready for

a punch. He reached him in immense velocity and instantly

backflipped away. Alduin was not left unscathed. To be frank,

even "injured" would be an understatement. He was outright

exploded. His outer and inner organs were splashed out and

scattered all across the earth. Only his head remained intact.

‘You claim I don’t take this seriously, yet look how quickly I

took you down!’ Han said.

‘I see how it is now...’ Alduin sighed and breathed slowly.

His body began regenerating itself back and in mere seconds he

was back on his feet, with a serious look on his face. Han was

surprised. He eyed him up and down. Curiosity had overtaken

him.

‘I’ll give you a chance to make this interesting. Approach

me and I promise not to move before you execute an attack.’

Alduin sighed but obliged nonetheless. He began walking slowly

towards him, his blade floating by his side. His eyes piercing

in a glare. An ominous look on his face. He finally reached him

and stood only a meter away. Han put on yet another stance and

signalled him to come with his right hand. Alduin sighed again

but then put on his own stance.

‘Are you sure you’re not going to use any weapon?’

‘I am sure,’ Han kissed his fists in approval.

‘Alright, then I shan’t as well.’

‘Why?’

‘One shall not use weaponry against an unarmed opponent.’

‘Fine, so you refuse to use your sword?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then you don’t mind me taking it?’

‘Huh?’ Alduin turned his head towards Vaurcarya.

The sword was not there anymore. When he turned his head

back at him, he saw him holding it but immediately dropping it

to the ground.

‘Ouch! What the fuck is this sword? It was eating the flesh

off my hand! Fuck, it hurts! Look, it even left a mark!’ Han

showed him the palm of his right hand.

It was scorched in the shape of the handle, bleeding rapidly. Han

made an unfamiliar chant with his left hand and then placed

them on top of each other. He showed him his hand again. It

was fully healed. Han stomped on the sword’s handle to launch

it in the air and then kicked it far, far away. He smiled and faced

Alduin. Both put on their fighting stance.

‘Let’s go,’ Han said.

Alduin nodded. They both put their right leg behind the other

and kicked themselves forward. They began charging towards

each other, their fists ready for combat. Alduin jumped and did

a front flip, readying himself for a vertical downward heel kick.

Han dodged to the left and immediately executed a right hook

to the face. Alduin put both of his fists in the air to guard but the

sheer force had pushed him back a few meters. He kept his cool

and immediately sprinted back, launching a series of fists. Jab,

cross, jab, cross. Han dodged every attack with ease. Then, he

smiled and vanished. Confused, Alduin decided to fly upwards

in an attempt to locate his opponent but Han was nowhere to be

found. He tried searching for his aura but it did not work, it felt

like Han was both everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

Maybe auras worked differently there?

After patiently waiting for a while he descended back to

the ground, to provoke a reaction. It worked. Han appeared

out of nowhere and unleashed a series of fast kicks from all

angles. Alduin dodged them all and actually managed to land a

punch straight to the face! Han was bleeding from the nose and

escaped a few meters back.

‘Okay, time to double it,’ Han says.

‘Double what?’

Han disappeared only to immediately reappear directly next to

him. He started punching him. Left hook, right uppercut fol-

lowed by an overhand... Spinning-kick, jab, cross, hook, cross

and a kick-flip. Alduin was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of

attacks targeted at him, from all angles imaginable. They were

all too fast for him to handle so he just raised his guard firmly.

Eventually, Han had successfully landed a swift spinning kick

with such force that it exploded Alduin’s hands right off. Han

noticed his opponent’s temporary handicap and immediately

followed up with a strong uppercut that launched him into the

air.

He began running in circles to gain momentum and then

jumped high enough to deliver a bicycle kick that threw Alduin

back to the ground at an incredible velocity. Alduin regenerated

from his wounds and got back on his feet. He called Vaurcarya.

‘Finally! Time to double it again,’ Han said.

Alduin made his sword cut off both of his hands. From the

pools of blood he summoned a few dozen non-pure clones of

himself. He refused to summon pure clones in a realm such as

this. To leave other ‘true versions’ stranded here, lost forever.

Han smirked and went full berserk, he was way faster now. He

defeated every single clone in a matter of seconds, with punches

that could demolish a great boulder. With speed that could not

be matched, one that Alduin had never seen before. Fortunately,

he had a few more tricks up his sleeve. He used Vaurcarya and

the clones to distract Han while he was casting the strongest

form of destruction magic known to him. It was the tornado

that he used against Gozo. He finally had a name for it too! And

as a means to tease Han for his continuous unnecessary need to

declare he was ’going double’, he decided to shout it.

‘Death of the Ice Giant! I call you!’ Alduin shouted, floating

in the air.

Thick snowy mist was forming around them as he began chant-

ing. Blood that was splashed on the ground seemed as though

it was being called to the center of the storm, like it was alive.

Han noticed the spell was taking longer than anticipated and

began running backwards to safety. He stopped a few dozen

kilometres away and was running in circles to create a ‘shield’

of energy.

‘Unleashed!’ Alduin shouted.

An incredible storm of snow and blood was let loose and with

it countless waves were sent at a remarkable radius. Han un-

derestimated the range of this attack but managed to outrun it.

Alduin descended back to the ground to face his opponent. He

was greatly irritated. It took Han about half a second to appear

in front of him, grinning, as if distance meant nothing. His

speed could race against teleportation. He let out a series of

more complicated attacks. Backflips with kicks, hit-combos of

more than twenty punches one after the other, spinning kicks

that led to more confusing kicks. Unable to dodge fast enough

Alduin kept getting hit, his body blown up to bits. Two, three, a

dozen, a hundred and a thousand times. It felt like Han’s attacks

were just as quick as his healing ability. He decided to try out

his very last trick, his ultimate form. He flew upwards, targeted

his hand tattoo towards himself and activated it. His flesh had

started melting as he screamed from agony and plummeted

down onto the ground. His skin turned pitch black. His face

could not be identified. He was breathing heavily, like a beast.

Seeing this, Han froze in place but quickly regained his cool.

Alduin, under the control of flames, noticed the presence

of Han and turned his head towards him. He was radiating

with killer intent. A lust for blood, for casualties. Screaming,

menacing, shouting and roaring like a monster of the night. He

tried to fix his eyes on Han, who was side-stepping in circles, but

failed to catch him in his line of sight. Han decided not to try and

hit him, for he did not know what a single touch could unfold.

He was set on evasive maneuvers, on dodging and surviving this ordeal. This ‘fight’, if could even call it that, went on for quite

some time until Alduin had reached his limit and collapsed.

Back to his regular form. Not knowing what this could entail,

Han continued on with his never ending marathon, waiting for

something to happen. When Alduin had finally regained his

consciousness and stood up, Han stopped in place and raised

his hands up high.

‘Stop!’ Han shouted.

Alduin, who was practically betrothed to the concept of honor

ceased his fighting and floated in front of him.

‘I am confused. Why are we stopping?’

‘Because this fight will have no end. It is just a waste of time.

Funny, since we practically have an infinite amount of time but

you get my point. You appear to be immortal and I appear to

be way too fast for your abilities to hit me. It will just never end

and I have grown tired of it.’

‘Now I am even more confused! You provoked me into this

fight! Explain yourself, mortal.’

‘Mortal, huh? Very well. The reason is simple. I have grown

utterly tired of this realm and wanted to leave it. When you told

me about yourself I grew excited from your potential to end my

misery.’

‘What in Munesa?! You could have just killed yourself then!

Are you insane?! A fight against a god?! For that stupid fucking

reason?!’

‘I cannot kill myself.’

‘What do you mean? You could just jump into one of the

holes in the ground! Of course you can kill yourself!’

‘It is not that I can’t practically, it is that I can’t mentally.

I come from a race of warriors. Suicide is disgraceful in my

culture.’

‘Would you finally tell me where you came from?’

‘Alright, alright! I am a Kathetican from the planet 0x382

which we call ‘Enceladus’.’

‘What? A Kathetican? Wow! I have never come across any

person of your race!’

‘Yes, becau-,’ Alduin did not let him finish.

‘Yeah I just remembered what my uncle told me about ‘The

Great Alchemical Slaughter’. I am sorry I made you think about

it. I know this subject must trouble you greatly...’

‘Wait, WAIT! What do you mean by that?! I was just about to

say that my race is very elitist and almost never leaves Enceladus!

Explain!’

‘I-Oh Munesa. What have I done... It happened a few years

after you were sent here... In 109 BDMW to be exact, so around

seventy years after you were put here... Uh...’

‘Go on!’

‘Fine. I will tell you but please promise not to despise me

for this!’ He exhaled heavily.

‘Spit it out!’

‘In 109 BMDW your ancestor ‘Mitori’ decided to conduct

alchemy magic in a large scale. Well, large isn’t fitting for how

large it actually was. In essence, he used the lives of solar-system

0x38, including planet 0x382, as source materials for it...’

‘0x382? But... But that is my home-planet...’ Han’s face

dropped.

‘I am so sorry. I really am sorry...’

‘It... I have an infinite amount of time to mourn anyways...’

Han sat on the floor and began sobbing.

Alduin patted him on the back and tried to comfort him. Even-

tually Han stood back up, wiped his tears, whispered something

and had a serious face again.

‘Continue talking. It seemed like you were in the middle of

saying something.’

‘Are-Are you sure?’

‘Please...’

‘I wanted to say that my uncle told me all about your people.

Come to think of it, he told me he met a Kathetican in one of

his travels and aided him. He told me he was an adventurer just

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like him. That he was supposed to be their ruler but decided to

explore the world to get stronger.’

‘What? Wait... What did you say you were again?’

‘A Snow Elf. Why?’

‘Hmm... How was your uncle called? No chance that he is

named Lial, right?!’

‘Yeah, that’s not his name.’

‘Oh. You had me excited for a moment. In my travels I was

accompanied by a drunk and extremely talented Snow Elf. I

thought it was your uncle for a second.’

‘No, no... His name is Ley. Not Li-,’ this time Han was the

one who did not let him finish.

‘Ley?! Wait! Yes, right! How could I forget! Not Lial, Ley!

That is the name of the man that I traveled with!’ Han’s eyes

sparkled from sheer excitement and nostalgia, like he forgot

about the tragedy that had befallen upon his people.

‘Is... What is your full name?’

‘Han Oridawn, why?’ Han was utterly confused by Alduin’s

question.

Alduin’s jaw dropped so low it could have hit the floor.

‘My uncle, Ley. Told me the name of the Kathetican he met

was ‘Han Oridawn’. This couldn’t just be a coincidence... It is

you!’

‘Wait, what? Are you sure?’

‘I am positive...’

‘Oh, wow! How is he doing?! I loved that man!’

Alduin’s silence was incredibly loud and he looked immensely

depressed.

‘Oh... Is he... Has he passed away?’

‘No, it’s... It’s more complicated than that. I don’t know if

I’d like to share...’

‘It’s alright.’

‘I’ll refrain from going into detail. Thinking about it makes

my head ache.’

‘You don’t have to tell me...’

‘I, I can’t. I’m sorry. Let’s just say that he wasn’t what we

thought he was... He hurt me deeply...’ He sighed.

‘I-I see... Don’t apologize, it is your story to tell. I’ll wait.

It’s okay,’ Han smiled.

‘Thank you.’

‘Mhm,’ he smiled again.

‘Have you any stories to tell me about your time with him?

He has only ever summarized them for me.’

‘Hmm... Let’s see... I guess I have a few to tell, do you have

the time though?’

Alduin rolled his eyes.

‘Kidding! I am kidding! Alright, I’ll begin with the story of

when Ley and I joined the great civil war of the giants.’

‘Sounds interesting. Have at it.’

‘During my time on planet Earth I heard rumors of a grand

arena in planet 0x406, the one the giants reside in. It houses

some of the strongest fighters in our entire solar system so I

decided to give it a go. Not only would I get the chance to fight

incredible opponents, I would also get paid handsomely for it!

It all sounded perfect.’

‘Huh. My uncle told me you were deemed to reign over your

race. How come you were looking for money then?’

‘I am glad you asked! Has Ley ever told you the reason why

I decided to set out on a journey?’

‘Not really.’

‘Basically... A certain event called the ’Battle of Kings’ was

coming up and I wasn’t nearly as close to being ready for it.’

‘The ’Battle of Kings’? What’s that?’

‘It is our, sorry, was our most important event. Every ten

years in Kathetican counting the entirety of Atlantis’s nobility

gather for a great clash of swords that tests it all. May it be brain

or brawn, the competitors must give it all they’ve got. The one who wins is then declared as the new ’Ruler of the Deep’ and

serves as king. Unfortunately, despite being very intelligent my

raw strength was severely lacking and I was urged by my parents

to gain power as fast as possible. Young and foolish as I was, I

obliged and sought adventures. I was hoping to become strong

enough to make them proud.’

‘Sounds like a really big deal if it made you leave Atlantis.’

‘It was! Anyway... Where was I... Oh, right! I was telling

you about the arena.’

‘Uh huh.’

‘So as I’ve said, after hearing about the arena I decided to

leave Earth and seek it out. I travelled to the region of the Ice

Giants but had no idea where it actually was. Luckily it was

extremely popular and merely asking people on the streets had

provided me with the location. I started walking towards it but

unfortunately the sun had started setting and so I crashed at

the closest tavern I could find.’

‘Hmm... Have I ever heard of it? You claim it is famous yet

I don’t recall hearing about an arena in the land of giants.’

‘Huh. In my time it went by the name of ’The Crystal Arena’...

Although, it wasn’t very ‘crystally’ when I think about it.’

‘Oh! I have heard of it! My father loved telling me of the

epic battles that are ensued in the ring. I was always so curious

about the glory of a gladiator.’

‘Yes, it is quite the arena! So... When I entered the inn

I was immediately greeted by a group of old giants shouting

variations of ‘Welcome to the Drunken Giant, friend!’. They

lifted their mugs in the air, took a big sip and slammed them

hard on the table, which was absolutely massive by the way! They

probably realized I was a tourist. The innkeeper approached

me and asked me what I would like to order; so I ordered their

finest alcoholic beverage... It had a very strong aroma, made

from a local fruit that smelled like a combination of wine and

blueberries! ‘Are you here to watch the grand finale?’ he asked

me; I shook my head and told him I was there to register as a fighter. He laughed at me and I said I don’t look like a warrior. I

assured him that despite being an adventurer I still appreciated

the thrill of combat very much. He smiled and said ‘See this

wooden fucker I have here?’, pointing at his prosthetic arm,

engraved with the word ‘Wolf’. The next line I still remember

clear as day, ‘I too used to be an adventurer until a bandit stuck

a sword into my bloody arm!’. I smiled politely, took my drink

and sat down at a table that matched my size. Finally, some rest

for my weary legs!’

‘How do you remember all this? To the point that you are

able to quote him.’

‘I have worked hard in my childhood to improve my memory.

Plus, I remember the essence of what he said and try to imitate

it. It isn’t necessarily the exact same version.’

‘That is still very impressive... Also, what did you mean by a

’table that matched my size’? Or by a ’massive’ table?’

‘It is a shame you weren’t there to witness it! The whole inn

consisted of tables, chairs and dishes in either human-size or

giant-size. Just a few meters away from me sat an incredibly

tall giant with a table that was almost twice my own height! His

fork alone was as big as my leg, it was crazy!’

‘Wow,’ Alduin’s jaw dropped from imagining the scene.

‘As I started drinking from my mug an Elf approached me;

He said and I remember it very clearly, ‘Hello there! You seem

like a foreigner, given your looks and choice of attire. Plus, well...

You are rather tiny by their standards, Nice to meet you. The

name’s Ley’ he said as he laughed. I introduced myself and in-

vited him to join me. ‘You don’t seem from around here either,

what is your story?’ I asked. He told me he also was an adven-

turer in the pursuit of new experiences and that his home-planet

had grown dull on him.’

‘Dull huh?’ Alduin said and began murmuring in angry gib-

berish.

‘I told him I come from the kingdom of Atlantis, in the ice

moon named ’Enceladus’. ’Oh! Han of Atlantis!’ he said. He liked calling me this way by the way. ’What got you coming all

the way here then, Han of Atlantis?’ he asked. I told him of my

plans to join the arena. He told me that he too came here to

register, to experience the glory of the arena. I recall him saying

‘The strongest foes in the galaxy, coin, women and a belly full of

mead!’.’

‘Sounds like him...’ Alduin said and frowned for a bit.

‘I wished him luck and we kept on talking. Eventually I grew

hungry and told him I was going to order some meat and asked

him if he’d like any. He stopped me in my steps and said that

Giants are vegan creatures and are quite sensitive when it comes

to meat consumption. He recommended me to order the local

specialty, made from locally grown vegetables and potatoes of

different varieties. It was called ‘Ktema’. I listened to his advice

and our conversation went on for several hours. Once the clock

hit midnight we decided to part and go to sleep. At sunrise,

Ley and I packed our things and departed for the arena. We

exchanged stories and jokes on the path. When we finally got

close a staff member started shouting ‘Tickets! Tickets! Tickets

for the grand finale! Buy them before they run out!’. When we

approached them they asked us with what currency we would

like to pay. Ley corrected them and said that we would like to

register as fighters. We passed the entry exams with ease and

got accepted. Fighting in the ring was an experience of no other.

We fought fighters ranging from giants, to humans, to beasts!

I have never witnessed such an incredible array of powerful

fighters. Ley and I quickly stacked up on wins. People shortly

nicknamed us the ‘Cold-Blooded Champions’. After months of

fighting in the ring Ley came up to me with some important

news, ‘Look at this’ he said and handed me a poster. It read

‘Mercenary? I want you! Join us in the civil war to protect our

rights for freedom!’. He asked me what my opinion about it

was. He claimed and rightfully so that we could probably make

more money out of it and in less time than we had currently

made. I told him it would sadden me to leave behind my status and fame, that I have worked so hard for; ‘Don’t you think we

have outgrown this boring place?’ I remember him saying. I also

remember him saying ‘This opportunity is NEW and EXCITING.

I love both of those things!’.’

‘Yes, sounds like him... Fucking Dunbar...’ Alduin said

and murmured again in angry gibberish.

‘Dunbar?’

‘Forget it, continue please.’

‘Mmm... Alright. I told him to give me a day to think about

it and I eventually agreed to enlist alongside him.’

‘What made you join him? To leave behind your reputation

and all that,’ Alduin was curious.

‘Curiosity, I guess? Ley was a very interesting individual.

Plus, we’ve become close friends by then.’

‘Ah. May I ask another question then?’

‘Go for it.’

‘What was the reasoning behind the civil war? Giants are

known for their friendliness and pacifism! Or at least, so I was

told.’

‘I am not really that well versed in their politics. From what

I have gathered from one of the commanding officers, giants

live under a king that controls the planet. That king had died

from an unknown disease, leaving two twin sons with equal

claim to the throne. They were both liked equally but shared

completely different political views. The highest boiling point

was of animal meat consumption. Giants that lived in extreme

living conditions, like Ice Giants for example, had insisted on

allowing the consumption of animals. After all, agriculture is

extremely complicated in the terrain they inhabit. The rest of

the giants, and especially the Forest Giants, refused to allow

such blasphemy to a point of no return... A civil war. And with

it, a gigantic amount of casualties...’

‘All because of such a silly debate?’

‘It is their culture and it was a real tragedy. At first the

fighting was gathered and concentrated near the borders that

were immediately filled with rotting bodies, reeking of death.

The worms that were feeding off those corpses were the only non-

humanoids I have seen in my entire time in that planet. After a

few months the battle quickly expanded, with childhood friends

murdering each other in the streets... Families slaughtering

their own kin... Famine started running wild with people eating

each other, dead or alive... .’

‘That sounds terrible... Wait... What do you mean by worms

being the only animals you’ve come across? Is there no fauna?

Doesn’t it just mean that they were all forced to be vegans?’ Al-

duin frowned.

‘There used to be animals inhabiting the regions but they

all died eventually due to unknown circumstances. The Giants’

culture prohibited them from eating meat so they just didn’t

care enough to do anything about it. Now there is no trace of

them left.’

‘That planet is just full of tragedies huh? Anyways, please

proceed.’

‘Uh huh... So... Where was I? Ah, right! Just when you

thought it couldn’t get any worse, a great plague had begun

spreading. Every hospital that wasn’t ravaged by outlaws was

filled to the brim with people, to the point of performing medical

operations out in the streets... It was extremely horrifying. Most

villages were erased as if they had never existed. The major cities

fell to their knees with collapsed buildings and destruction all

around... Orphans looking like nothing but skin and bones

searching for something to eat... There seemed to be no end to

the suffering and all of it for nothing...’

‘What do you mean by for nothing? One side must have won,

right?’

‘Both brothers eventually died from either battle wounds or

the plague, no one knows for sure. I greatly regret ever partici-

pating in that war. It has done nothing but hide my humanity under a veil of darkness.’

‘That is so fucking... So stupid! So much death for some-

thing as meaningless as the throne... I fucking hate politics! I

never asked to be born as the son of a clan leader. I would have

preferred a much simpler life...’

‘My father was once the ’Ruler of the Deep’. So... I feel you...

Believe me that I do...’

‘I... I guess so...’

Han told him a few more stories of his time together with Ley.

About their exploits and discoveries. About that time they found

a cave full of monsters guarding an incredible treasure. About

the cultures they had witnessed. About the languages they had

studied. Out of the blue, during one of the stories Alduin lost

consciousness. He suddenly felt arms embracing him as his

eyes opened back up.

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Author's note - I hope to get reviews and feedback. Thank you :)