One of a kind (Story of "Sep" the Kind)

He had been inside the temple as long as he could remember the best part of such accommodation was the constant presence of food. But the price paid for such treatment was rather heavy; he had yet to see any affectionate parent taking care of him or siblings to play with. There were many children present, all sharing similar backstories. However, no one felt upset about it, as if it had been the natural order of the world. Even the priest responsible for their well being never mentioned anything about the strange circumstances. Everyone chose to ignore the love of family, only focusing on the prosperity of the village.

He was different from them, at times he felt lost and abandoned. Thinking with himself, he would mumble: "I only know a name from my past, Sep, I don't even know if this name was given to me by my birth family or the guardian priests. Even though I haven't seen them, I still miss them"

Sep was unique, not only in his feelings but talent as well, being a spectacular swordsman. Soon he became the center of attention inside the holy grounds. The guardian would usually praise him on his accomplishments, before a scolding session would begin, intervening in his fantasy of finding affection. He was frequently told: "With your talent bringing honor and glory to your name would be a matter of time; concentrate on training, ancestors will surely bless you. Forget about trivial matters, not recognizing parental love is the way of our tribe"

Sep would listen and nod to show understanding, yet deep in his heart of hearts, he rejected such cold truth. This was indeed the way of heroes, staying true to their heart no matter the difficulty. Sep pursued his dreams, hoping to find his lost ones one day, his mind was filled with thoughts of finding his background, being deeply connected to the matter. After all, protagonists were not simply grown on a tree, they all had a rich history!

As he was immersed in such thoughts, Sep did not pay attention to his surroundings, just sitting on a stone, deeply frowning. This was a strange sight to witness, as the onlookers only saw a child very frustrated at some matter, the immediate theory would be some trivial issue like losing a toy. none could believe the comprehensive understanding this child had; if they were told, no one would dare underestimate this monster in child skin anymore.

Suddenly a soft voice of female broke his daze, it was Rev, his best friend, and confidant. She knew of his inner struggles, yet to his surprise she was always there, ready to lift him up. Sep never figured out why she was there for him, through thick and thin, but he was grateful, nonetheless. She was the sunshine in his gray world, each ray of light emitted would wash away some of the doubts and exhaustions he carried with himself.

Besides Rev, there were many others he had found around himself, a small group. They say we cannot determine where to born, but we chose who to call a family.

Tall and muscular Len, another one of his close friends came up to them, calling out:

"Hey Sep, you worry too much you know, we have your back; to the end of time"

Another beauty in their midst named Kol added: "Sep we are your family, as long as we have each other's back, we can do anything"

"As long as you lead, I am willing to follow you to the end of the land, where ancestors reside" A fat boy by the name of Jar mentioned, with sparkling eyes.

Sep was speechless for some time; he did not expect his friends to show so much support and love. His eyes tiered from gratitude he was feeling inside, Sep could not be happier at that moment; thus, he swore to protect his newfound family at all cost. However, he still felt a strong lingering concern, pulling him towards solving this mystery.

Meanwhile, the priest came to check on the youngsters, since the curfew had passed; all should have been resting now. But, checking their beds, contrary circumstances were discovered.

Once the silhouettes of the bunch were found, he walked towards them angrily, getting ready to fiercely scold them. Yet, he overheard some of the conversations; touched by the bonds formed, his heart softened. It was similar to a faithful encounter, as the pieces were all gathered in the right place and time.

Fate was a mysterious force, manipulating small details, pulling on everyone's heart to change their minds; all in order to get the desired effect. It was akin to someone fixing dominoes on the ground outlining a picture; in the end, a simple nudge was sufficient to drop the first piece, followed by second, third and etc. Ultimately constructing a marvelous scene, leading to painting the desired portrait. However, it also harmed many in the process, not caring for the cost paid by others. For a hero to rise there had to be an opposition, one that took the role of evil, degenerating from morals. Even their views would be tainted, no matter how glorious their cause, it had to be trampled by the main characters for their development.

Fate was a cruel hand, not caring who it crushed while helping someone up. Finally, when the mission was accomplished, the protection of such energy would be lost, leaving the survivors to fend for themselves. No matter how they danced to the tunes, trampling on feet was inevitable, making many animosities. This was the reason that the hero would choose solitude and peace after the game had been finished, or their enemies would find them for revenge. Even their old allies would turn on them for more benefits.

Sep touched by the sentiment of his newfound family declared to his close friends: "Today we shall swear to become brothers and sisters, in the future we will aim to raise in the hierarchy, making each other proud. Now, who is with me?"

The small bunch of teenage goblins cheered, then immediately controlled their volume, in fear of alarming the guardian. Yet, it was too late for such thoughts as one could see a shadow getting closer to them with firm steady steps. Contrary to their expectation of being scolded fiercely, the rector had a hint of a smile on his face. He then addressed the delinquent bunch:

"That is a very admirable goal, but how could you achieve it if you bunch of rascals don't sleep at the proper time? Once out of this monastery, gaining freedom is much easier but it comes at a great price, so you all need to strengthen yourself here as much as possible"

This sentence moved the goblin kids to their core, as they were inexplicitly gotten the approval of their priest. So, they apologized before obediently walking towards their respective sleeping space, on the ground. They all slept in the main hall, in one corner beds made of hey could be seen, they were mostly occupied, except for the five friends.

If one could see the ties of fate or karma, a thin thread would become visible, connecting the four and pastor to Sep. They were all played harshly by destiny, it may not have been against their will, yet they did not even have a chance to choose. If an opportunity was given, they may support the cause or go against it, or backstab the hero at a crucial moment. Due to all the possible undesirable outcomes, fate manipulated the pieces directly, making sure the plan went smoothly. But, did this mean that no one could fight this structure? Was fate truly invincible? Was everything predestined?

The answer to all the questions was a simple word, power; it was a short response but carried such depth of meaning behind it. If one did not have sufficient force backing him, being played to death was a natural outcome. The weak rarely had the luxury of choice, they would meekly follow the path shown to them, since they did not carry enough strength to break the restraints, building their own route. This predicament was similar to the famous quote "Rules are meant to be followed by the weak, while the strong write them"

The bunch slept soundly that night, not noticing the threads becoming more robust. They dreamt of food, glory and their eternal bonds made tonight. Sep, saw himself standing above his village, holding his sword high in the sky, as the rest slowly kneeled, pledging fidelity.

From that night forward, the pastor paid more attention to the bunch, giving them pointers on everything he had knowledge of. Many of such information was classified for those without any special social status. Sep was told about the existence of other goblin tribes in the area, about the fact that they held the highest standing between all of them. Being closest to the floor master's chambers. Showcasing their wealth, influence and might, being the unofficial leader of all the villages. They had Many Iron swords, bows, and spears. Although their tools were low level and not magically enhanced, compared to other communities, they were ahead by leaps and bounds.

The priest did not stop there, mentioning other races; kobolds, poisonous snakes, undead, slimes and etc. Many of which were not seen by his person, rather he had learned of their existence through his predecessor. As men of the cloth, they held a high position inside their communities, so being allowed access to more information was only natural. However, in an ironic manner, destiny had made use of such circumstances to give the child another advantage, knowledge.

The rector went on to explain a tournament designed to set a champion amongst all races, who would hold the greatest honor of all, becoming the boss of the floor. At the time Sep thought the position to be a risky one since there had been many competitions so far, but the advantages had to be sufficient enough to encourage big players to act.

He also diligently trained Sep and his little gang, giving them all the tools needed to succeed. Slowly, slowly the bunch grew to be formidable, gaining the reputation of having the support of ancestors. Which helped them in their endeavors but made them a sore sight in the eyes of chief. What leader liked a promising youth challenge their authority, they also seemed to have the backing of the holy ones. So, drastic measures were off limit, but giving out missions in the name of training and the good of the village was acceptable. The chief sent the 5 to hunt for food, accompanied by 2 expert hunters, loyal to the leader. The veterans were tasked to silently dispose of this annoying thorn by their chief's side.

The night before going on the expedition, Rev visited Sep where she found him to be cleaning his short sword. He looked at her, upon noticing her presence; for a short span of time, their gazes were locked together. An eternity later Rev looked away, her heart throbbing fast as if it wanted to jump out, declaring the undying love she had for the gullible green humanoid monster named Sep, who was now one of the tallest and most muscular members of the community.

She took some deep breaths, calming her turmoil of emotions, then looked at the eyes of the young goblin, which were now filled with confusion. Then Rev told him about her doubts in regard to their mission:

"I don't feel right about this expedition, the clan leader has been on bad terms with us since we left the temple to fend for ourselves. Such animosity will not be cleared overnight, you have to be extra careful tomorrow, I have a very bad feeling"

She trusted her gut, it was barely wrong and this time it was screaming for her to drop whatever she was holding and run away.

....

Sometime later.

Sep was standing over the corpses of the hunting members, body riddled with wounds, exhausted from all the fighting, but he had emerged victorious. If the chief knew of this outcome, perhaps he would send more men, assuring of his demise, or simply changed his tactic in dealing with this potential threat. However, he underestimated his opponent; a lethal mistake that many in power made, as they forgot their own beginnings.

Sep sat down on the ground, exhausted from the intense battle he was through, he started to silently weep. No one knew the reason behind this behavior, perhaps he was thankful for being alive, or mourned for the lives he had to take in order to survive. However, those who knew him better had a different theory, they found their sworn brother to be crying over the loneliness of the fallen hunters, as there was none who would grieve at their loss; thus, Sep had taken on the burden upon himself.

This was a substantial milestone in this hero's journey, the origin of his title, Sep the kind; later many other words would be added to this name, making it long and unmemorizable. However, this was the first of many, that captured the core value of this protagonist.

Sep turned to his followers, addressing them: "are we not all heroes of our own stories, then why would they become a steppingstone in mine? Something must be done, the old ways are too brutal and cruel, we should live in harmony and prosperity. But all we have now are infighting, food shortage and occasional external attacks by other races; someone must change it. If nobody steps up then I shall do it myself, even if I have to fight everyone I will do so; are you with me my sworn family?"

The few looked at one another, in each one of their gazes a yellow light could be seen, giving news of the sparks of the passion had been lit. As the saying goes; we started the fire, the fire rises; it could perfectly capture the zealous looks on their faces and passion filling their hearts. They all knew this path to be riddled with hardships, yet the fruit of their hard labor would make their legacy, promoting them to become legends in their own rights.

Immortality was a deep-seated desire in many lifeforms yet achieving this goal would present many troubles. Those who did not find the power to hold on with force would seek assistance from others with such abilities, without truly understanding the consequences. There were also many who built themselves legacies, having their names echoed throughout eternity, so all who cam after would know of them and their deeds.

Sep went back towards the village accompanied by now his zealous supporters; in this endeavor, he had turned his acquired family into a pillar of support. However, amongst the crowd an unhappy face could be seen, with eyes filled with complex emotions, the owner of this emotional turmoil felt her heart her distance becoming more. Rev was indeed deeply infatuated with her sworn brother, but she could see that he would rise far above all, leaving everything and everyone behind. She felt similar to a desperate fisherman who was unable to cast a net deep enough to hold an exquisite rare fish.

She could see the love of her life, flying high, soaring through the troubled sky to find them a bright future, he was the representation of hope for them. The northern star, guiding the lost souls towards prosperity, a beacon of optimism, a shining golden star; HER shining golden star. She wanted to hold him dearly, telling him of all the concerns she had, wanting to tell him to slow down his pace so she could catch up. Most nights she would dream of a happy home for them.

The journey back home was a long one, as the village chief did not want to be implicated in the murder of this group, so he had specially instructed his goons to lead them to a remote location. The group picked a spot for rest before long a fire was made to keep them warm; after all, a battle took a toll on all of its participants. Even the veteran soldiers could only keep their wits by overusing their released adrenaline, let alone a group of young adults with limited training. The phycological and physical pressure of such a close life and death call had all of them exhausted, so after allocating some shifts for night watch, besides the watcher, the rest fell into a deep slumber.

"Honey I'm home! Brough some meat, today's hunt was really good" the husband came in with a tired look, but after he saw the radiant smile of his wife, it was like a cube of ice being melted under the scorching sun, all of his anxiety was gone.

"It is great to have you back, as always you take good care of us, come in put the carcass on the table" the loving wife responded cheerfully, she loved her husband with every cell of her being. Her worst fear was losing her family, she would do anything to protect it, even sacrificing herself without a question.

"DADDY, DAD, dada is home" a petite child ran towards the door happily, the best part of the day for this little youngster was when the entire household gathered together.

The husband opened both of his arms wide, waiting for the enthusiastic little girl to jump up in his arms, once he held her, he wouldn't let go so easily!

The young girl was his pride and joy, the best thing he had done with his life; even though he loved his wife to the point of obsession, this child held a special part in his heart.

The wife looked at the passionate duo, with warm and gentle eyes, she could not be any more content at this moment. All she ever needed was under the same roof, as she was smiling her breath got ragged, she then slowly sat down with one hand supporting her back.

The husband saw some movement in the corner of his eye, turned around asking: "Are you feeling ok? Did the baby kick you again?"

The wife warmly embraced her bulged stomach, which was growing a fetus inside, then answered: "No don't worry, just got tired from standing for too long"

"You need to take better care beautiful, you do so much around the house, I'll try to take some of the load" husband added worriedly.

She gave him a reassuring smile, followed by light scolding her little girl: "Come on Lily, you know your father is tired you should go play outside for a while, let him rest, but don't get too far and be back soon, the food will be ready"

Lily jumped up, screaming out of joy, running outside; she knew her father would join her shortly once he rested.

The husband stood up, went ahead and tightly held his wife, he whispered in her ear: "Rev you are the best, I love you forever and ever" He then placed both lips gently on hers; kissing Rev passionately. A kiss that would showcase their madness called love, echoing throughout eternity; a drop of a tear like a radiant diamond fell from Rev's cheek. She could not understand why, yet a heavy sadness had suddenly gripped her heart; as if she knew deep down this was all but a dream. However, she did not want to wake from this heaven, she had indeed found her paradise.

Rev was dreaming of her life with Sep, without any ambition, they could live as normal villagers, he would hunt, she would gather, and together they would build a prosperous home. However, she knew this to be impossible; if he did not fulfill his destiny many great things would not occur in the future. She knew of the sacrifices they had to do for their people, for the future generations.

....

After a night of rest, the group packed up, starting their journey back, where a fight was awaiting them, a bloody battle that would determine the faith of goblins. Sep walked with determination, a strong resolve polishing his heart, taking out the impurities, forming a gem. He was strangely calm about this matter as if he knew nothing would be going wrong. An invisible silhouette of a mighty dragon slowly formed behind him; crowning this small green monster as the favorite child of destiny. The shape had more effects than just good looks, all the followers of this hero were going through changes, slowly being improved due to the presence of fate.

This was indeed the aura of protagonists, growing to become a sharp blade of destiny, hacking down all who dared to oppose the will of heaves. There was truly no honor higher than being the son of heavens; many would sacrifice all they had based on the command of such beings. That was the reason that the powerful attempted to control this phenomenon, yet this act had to be done with excess care or they would be targeted by the will as well, becoming enemies with the world. They would generally choose to support the heroes in their endeavor, only enough to show appearances and not truly invest all they had. Meanwhile, they incited the hero to take out their foes or secure massive rewards for them.

After the journey was finished and the legend formed, the supporters would immediately jump on the spoils gained, not caring about other matters. That was the best-case scenario for the main character, on many occasions, the former supports and followers would form an oppressing force to deal with their leader. Furthermore, they scared the public of their savior, claiming them to be too dangerous. These underhanded tactics would attack the main characters and all who are still standing by them, shaking their standing. Once fallen, they would gobble them up completely like hungry predators.

One had to know that protagonists had many lucky encounters, helping them gather a considerable amount of treasure and cultivation material; otherwise, how could they grow with the speed of light?

It was a rare sight to see the followers staying loyal after the adventure had ended; indeed, they had been borrowing the momentum. Through hardship, one's character developed forming a strong personality, one that was not afraid of taking action or making difficult choices. Through bloodshed one's greed would awaken, becoming dull to the value of life, finding meaning in objects instead. So, even though tenacious bonds were formed between them, they would break them instantly for the possibility of survival coupled with unimaginable wealth. Even the heroines betrayed their love in face of lasting glory, after all, they were attracted to the stars for their shine, similar o flies being attracted to light.

After all the world was always balanced, meaning the enemy they had worked extremely hard to defeat was not a terrifying force but a relatively small fly; otherwise, how could a small group with limited support come out alive? Let alone victorious.

After the campaign ended, the group had their eyes open to the harsh reality, that they were nothing but small-time puppets. If the powerhouses of the world desired the destruction of their mortal enemy, nothing would be able to save them. However, no action was taken by them, thus the frustrated heavens raised a champion for themselves; since they could not force the mighty, a small pawn was formed. How could the powerhouses allow the heavens to use them? How could the be called overbearing without any self-control?

The will of the heavens simply needed balance, as harmony guaranteed the survival of the weak; since the strong could fend for themselves destiny only cared for those who had no voice in the world. Fate favored the majority by pitting strong against each other, eradicating the threats. However, the ending of the tools used by destiny was never pleasant, how would one fly so close to the sun, like Icarus, and not lose their wings?

Protagonists would normally fall after their rise, very fast and brutal; their demise used to implement lasting change. As the only thing more powerful than a hero was a martyr; since they could not object to anything or needed compensation their backing would be heavily tempted to act on such arrangement.

Those who survived were a minority who knew their place, they hid away, not making a sound in fear of being publicly outcasted. However, the greedy fearful opportunists would not let such delicious pray escape, hunting them in shadows.

Even the royalty hated such existences; the ruling was a difficult job and no matter what decisions were made some people would be angry with it. Thus, it was very rare for rulers to be well-liked, normally those with a high level of support from the commoners were either misusing the ignorance of the crowd to scare them from a third party or distribute the wealth of nobles amongst their subjects. However, the later was proven to be fatal as the nobility was the backbone of a country if they were gone the civilization would stop growing until new ones were formed.

But none of these came to Sep, as he was but a cog in a large machine, such world views were far too complex for him to understand.

...

Sep stood in front of the chief of the village, he stood there silently not attempting to explain anything; they both knew the reasoning thus further explanation was not needed. He suddenly attacked, after him, his zealous followers took their weapons out and attacked the surrounding guards. A massive fight broke out between two groups of opposing sides, yet strangely it had been confined, so the village's leader did not receive any reinforcements. This feat had been accomplished by the clerics, as they approved of Sep, seeing the marks of ancestors in him; they had prevented other goblins to intervene in this fight. Otherwise, how would few hot-blooded youths challenge an old chief on equal grounds?

After a long battle, with some hidden assistance received from the priests, the revolutionary army came out triumphant. Sep, against the custom of his predecessors, did not take the head of the body, celebrating his victory; he had the bodies burned outside, living up to his title of the kind. Contrary to the poor villages, they would not resort to cannibalism, as there had been sufficient food for consumption. Before his command was carried out, he stood tall on the podium made of the bodies, looking at his people. This act was encouraged by clerics who insisted Sep to show his authority as well as kindness, letting his subjects know either treatment was possible.

He slowly scanned the crowd, looking at their savage faces, mostly looking doubtful; many customs were being broken in front of them on this day.

He addressed them: "My community, you have suffered enough, now is the time to say no more. For too long we have been subjugated by the tyranny of the chiefs, it is time to rise, shout ENOUGH, stand tall and proud of ourselves. We are not savages but we have been forced upon these circumstances by other races and the greed of our own. It is time to take what is rightfully ours, to bring honor and glory for ancestors. So, I ask you again to rise with me, we shall conquer, now who is with me?"

The speech in itself was rather immature and hopeful, yet with the assistance of fate, coupled with a lack of civilization amongst goblins, they became very emotional.

"HORRRRRAAAA"

"WE WILL RISE"

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

Shouts of excitement could be heard from all around, no one noticed the silhouette of the dragon becoming clearer.

From then on, the small group of the people managed the community diligently, while excessively training to evolve. As the ancient teachings described the possibility of transformation, similar to the story of fish becoming a dragon, these little green monsters wanted to soar.

With the help of fate energy, Sep broke through followed by Rev, Len, Jar and then Koll.

Suddenly their small community had 5 hobgoblins, and this made them eligible to know of a shocking truth; there were many villages around them!

The closer they were to the floor boss's den, then stronger their force would be. Such that the first community had many hobgoblins, with their chief being stuck one step from breakthrough to an unimaginable level.

This broke the young monster's heart; why was there such discrimination? Why could they not form a just civilization?

He had many questions that needed to be answered; feeling a strong responsibility on his shoulders, he made a decision. Sep had not been the immature youth as before, after years of leading coupled with his evolution, his mentality had matured. He gathered his sworn family telling them his decision:

"My brothers and sisters I have made a decision, I hope you can all understand and support it; I am leaving towards the first community!"

The news about the existence of other villages was given to them by an envoy of higher tired communities, as if they were waiting for the cream of the crop to show themselves, then tempt them to join their turf, strengthening their own foundation. Otherwise, how would they have many evolved ones, when the possibility of transformation was so low?

To his surprise, their eyes showed a bright flash of light, as if they had been waiting for their leader to start another adventure. They had formed good lives here but deep down they were not contempt, they knew the call of destiny had yet to be fulfilled. After showing their support, and promising to follow him till the end of time, everyone left except Rev, who silently looked at Sep. She did not say anything, yet her eyes showed the extent of her pain, she wanted to say many things but in the end, nothing came out. However, Sep was not the only one who had grown over this time, Rev understood that if she wanted something, taking it was the only way, their current village did not have appropriate mates for their mighty chief, yet where he was going, being an evolved one was not something special.

So, she walked up to him, held his shoulders and gave him a kiss, a long kiss, showcasing all of her affection; sometimes words were not needed to transfer a message. At this point she did not care if her feelings were not returned, she wanted to put her mind at ease, she had given it her all, no shame in defeat only in running away!

To her surprise, he did not turn away but returned the outburst of her emotions with his soft lips. Suddenly they both stopped, looked into one another eyes and smiled

...

From that day onward they all worked hard together, achieving greatness while passing the time in the well-established villages. They felt as if this was a dream, indeed for the runts of society such as them, who were not born in the best environment, this was like a wish coming true; they had worked hard, accompanied by miraculous luck to gain their foothold. However, now was not the time to slack off and forget about their goals, Sep had a destiny to fulfill, he could feel the pressure of the world on his back, holding him responsible for the future.

Time flew by in a flash, now Sep was the chieftain of the first village, being the most powerful goblin, both in physical strength and influence. Yet, he was deeply frowning, since he had just learned of another horrifying truth, they were not the only race in this part. They were kobolds, poison snakes, spiders, slimes and many more monsters; their community was surrounded from all sides, making him angry and disgusted. It was not fair, the reason they had discrimination was due to insufficient resources, or he would have attempted to merge all the villages to form a strong force. But he was instructed against such decision by clerics, who seemed to know more, against such rash move.

Otherwise, they would be ganged up by the other beasts, since they did not want the goblin community to be united. In addition, the food shortage would prove fatal to their unification goals.

Goblins, kobolds and giant spiders were the strongest forces of this power struggle; none of them had an overwhelming advantage to change the structure of this weakly held balance. However, this did not mean the participating parties were happy with their positions, rather Sep, as the new goblin leader was very dissatisfied. He had been through many hardships, shaping his mentality as a conqueror; thinking for the good of his people he wanted to exterminate the other races.

This was the inner demon of those in power, how far where they willing to go in acquiring resources for their kind?

Would they exterminate their enemy completely? Even the children and elders? or wait for the small foes to grow strong and mighty, seeking revenge?

Many leaders showed the slightest mercy, killing the able adults but sparing the rest. Then under the pretense of protection, they would subjugate the weakened society, raising them to be their own soldiers and cannon fodders. But sooner or later an uprising was in order when the slaves would skin their masters and drink their blood.

There were many methods of colonization, but not many were as effective as cultural attacks, changing the fundamental thinking manner of the entire civilization. But this method was far beyond the thought process of this young hobgoblin, as a matter of fact, the hierarchy of their community was based on power rather than strategy, thus, the chief was not necessarily the best person for the job!

The solution to his dilemma was simple, victory over the other chiefs in the upcoming tournament; where the leader of each species fought against one another. A battle to the death, giving birth to the ultimate powerhouse amongst all the races; one to lead them all, becoming the floor boss, bringing honor to the entire area.

The final ruling was absolute since the defeated were killed immediately, in fear of later sabotage. After the main boss was determined, each race would send some of their finest forces to guard the entrance of the boss's room. The massive hall allocated to the boss had the best accommodations, it was filled with exotic plants, shinny treasures, and sharpened weapons, and it was separated from the rest of the floor with an extravagant door. The entrance had many carvings on it, indicating the bloody history amongst the many beasts; until a centaur with toned muscles came out of nowhere to establish their system of competition, where the winner took all!

Sep was working hard, training until all of his body screamed in agony, yet he kept on going, he had much to lose, not wanting the sacrifices of his friends to be in vain. He had asked each one of them to help him in his time of need, and the followers of the dragon obliged. Sending them all away to strategic locations, in order to gain enough support to challenge the old chief took out a heavy toll from him. But in the end he was successful, sitting on his throne, he had the power to implement change; finally the day he would correct all the small issues was here. No more orphans, no more hunger or meaningless torture; no more favoritism of the ones with strength. He planned to build a society with virtue and justice, yet he was ruthlessly told it was not possible, that he had to climb even higher on the ladder to have such abilities. Thus, he trained tirelessly, all the time, to prepare for the next set of matches.

Just so luck would have it, the previous floor boss was killed by intruders, vacating the position shortly after attaining it. The short period was the reason for the lack of champions to compete over the position. He could faintly feel his destiny to be such an appointment, becoming the king of kings, the emperor. He was born to sit above all, doing as pleased. Sep felt as if an invisible hand has been guiding him, helping every step of the way, so that he could attain this position; feeling deeply grateful, he swore to come out victorious, defeat was not an option!

...….

Sep knew he had no chance of winning in his current status, he had to change. According to the head cleric of the first village, he had to transcend his current self, to become an Ogre. As the other champions were all of the highest tire possible. That was the reason behind his insanely hard-working attitude, and the lack of proper candidates to claim the title. Indeed, it was extremely difficult to evolve; there had never been two high tired beasts from the same race, or they would have massacred the others to be the sole heir to the area.

One day in the middle of training the chief fell to the ground, if bystanders saw this scene, they would assume the poor hobgoblin to have died from the pressure. However, upon close inspection one could see the faint breathing, proving the miraculous will of the new chief, for him even death was not an option!

Time passed quickly, yet strangely no one aided the half-dead warrior, as if they had known the sacred process of evolution, not planning to disturb their leader in his cultivation. Even his lover, Rev was waiting outside his chamber, eyes brimming with pride, she did not think for a second he would fail, having complete faith in her savior. Their small group had been distributed amongst a few villages and that was the cause behind the absence of their other companions to witness the making of history, the rise of another myth.

Sep slowly opened his eyes, looking around confused as he could not remember taking a rest in such a crucial period. He brought his hand up to slap his face, in hopes of rebooting his brain, yet he was shocked to find a different hand attached to his body. He quickly checked his body, only to find a new structure in its place, one with a much bigger frame and a red skin tone. He found a shield used as a mirror; excited about the new form, he looked at his reflection. Then with ragged breathing from excitement, the new ogre inspected every inch of himself. He had turned into a beast in comparison to his previous form; from the head priest, he learned this new states' name, an ogre!

A crowd had gathered around the chamber of the chief, they had been there since the beginning of his appointment, trying to carry favor or protect their chief. Since Sep avoided exiting his chamber, they were used to a routine of standing there with no news, yet now they were all shocked beyond belief. As a few seconds ago, a massive monster came out of their leader's living quarters, accompanied by loud shrikes of many. However, for those with a special bond, no disguise could hide one's true self, thus, understandably Rev immediately closed in to embrace her lover.

After a while, the newly promoted monster started to train tirelessly, increasing his proficiency with new strength gained.

The tournament was nigh and the stakes were the highest possible for this ogre with a heart of a dreamer.

Sep walked towards the ground where all the contestants had gathered; looking around he saw many monsters with massive builds and incredibly intimidating auras. He took a deep breath, looked into the audience finding his companions for some reassurance, and then released his suffocating intent for slaughter.

He knew deep within this battle to be the most difficult in his life to this day, as he faintly felt the favor of destiny on all other contestants. They were all raised to be heroes by fate, going through many hardships to form an ironclad character.

An investor wanted to see a return on their investment, thus fate had challenged its chosen pieces over and over, finding diamonds in the rough. It extracted all support from those who failed or did not move forward, putting the much-needed attention on the proper candidates, as they were many. No shareholder used one basket to store all their eggs, and destiny was a weathered banker, thus, there were many contestants for the ultimate glory. This was the ruthless way of the world, even the chosen ones were not any special in the end, being a mere clog in the working of a giant machine was their preeminent objective.

"We have waited long for this day, to find a new floor boss" A few elders of each species had gathered to form a group of judges, they unanimously shouted.

Followed by a representative of their council introducing the fights.

"For the first round, we have Sep the kind, a mighty ogre from the goblins against Lili the smooth a poisonous python from the snakes; let the battles begin" the excited agent started and loud cheers followed.

DAK DAK DAKKKKK

The sound of the giant door opening broke the flow of memories in the mind of a tired-looking ogre. It seemed as if his attention was needed since someone had opened the hall doors.

He thought to himself, sighing deeply.

Sep had come out victorious from the bloody tournament, killing all the other participants, a necessary sacrifice he mumbled. However, he was mortified to find out his lack of power, as he was unable to implement any change in races since he was imprisoned within the confines of his new room. How could he lead his people if they could not see him?

He pushed all the negative thoughts aside, proclaiming his desire to become more powerful, then break through the restrictions and bring glory to his people. This decision made him smile, he looked towards the opened door only to be surprised ….