The cold north wind howled around the man's face. He pulled up his furs and continued to push forward. The ice was bitter this time of year, and thick enough that even Thor's hammer might be able to lay on top of it and not crack it. Steel was not comfortable in this weather, no matter how many furs you were wearing. His helmet froze to his face and ice coated his beard. Yet the man continued to push forward.
At a certain point on the ice, he felt a slight tremor, then another one, almost as though something was grating along the bottom of the ice. Taking out his blade, the man stabbed downward at the ice and felt his blade stick into something soft. The ice cracked around him as massive black tentacles shot out from the surface, covered with slime. They suckered onto the ice sheet around the man and went taught. The sword was pulled to the hilt in the ice and then was liberated from whatever was holding it. In front of the man, a massive black head emerged from the ice, It sat floating for a bit, then sagged backwards as the rest of the head emerged from the ice, revealing both a beak, and two massive eyes, glowing as though the inside of the creature was filled with gold and the eyes were merely portholes. The man drew his sword from the ice and charged.
Max stood aboard the icebreaker Progress towards the north pole. It was out in these cold reaches that some rarer beasts could still be found. The ice stung on his face while the hounds of Winter bit at his toes. He watched the ice split in front of him as the earth itself seemed to groan. Suddenly, a tentacle shot out from in front of the ship and suckered onto the hull.
The man ran along the ice, slashing at the massive tentacles. Liquid like oil leaked from each slash, before the wounds quickly healed over. The ice itself seemed to be healing the beast. The eyes of lava fired beams of light, melting ice where they hit, and warming the man. Finally getting mad, the man began to hack furiously at one particular tentacle, spilling the black liquid everywhere. The ice itself turned blacker than Jet, and his armor turned from white to black faster than a cotton shirt in tar. Finally, he managed to sever the limb. A shriek louder than a million banshees shattered the glass still air, the ice itself seemed to weep in pain.
Max knew this was his chance to strike at the Kraken. Quickly he activated the arctic dive function on his battle suit. Grabbing the cable next to him, he jumped into the water, jets propelling him downward, following the tentacle. Finally, he hit the beasts head. The Kraken was even bigger than the tales described, with eyes seemingly being made more of ruby than molten gold. The massive orb glowed in front of him. Quickly, Max stuck the cable into the beasts head. Waves of electricity coursed across the creature, stunning it for a time. Taking out a sword, Max cut through the eyeball, jumping through the cut, and finding himself in an elegantly crafted chamber.
The man opened his eyes after the scream. Making sure he still had his sword, he looked at the Kraken. The beast's eyes turned red and glowed at him, like miniature suns on the sunless reaches of the northern reaches of the world. The tentacles nearest to him unsuckered and began to move towards him. The man prepared himself before running at one. Jumping, he stuck his blade into the appendage and used it to provide an extra boost. Now on top of the beasts noodly appendage, the man slid down it, aiming his sword in front of him before throwing it and sliding of the tentacle.
The man watched as his sword flew through the air, hitting the beast in the center of its head glowing, as the beast sank below the now black waters of the arctic.
Max got up inside the chamber and watched as the water drained out of it, as the hole he had made in the eye disappeared. In front of him, there was a very tall creature, with eyes of light and skin of coal. The creature seemed to notice him, simply nodding. It spoke a moment later "It appears you have found my little secret human. Welcome to my home." Max looked around before saying "You live in an octopus?" The being simply laughed "Nay, it is but a golem I constructed long ago, but we needn't talk about that boring subject. We both know why you are here." Max replied "If I had a dollar for everytime someone said that line... Anyways, yes, Dread, I am here to destroy you, even as you are one of the more neutral members of you race" The being laughed in front of him "So sure..." She shook her head before grabbing a mysterious package from behind her. She said simply "If you must kill me I won't stop you, but I do ask that you take this and answer me but one question. Why do you hunt us?" Max grabbed the package and turned to the now open door, leading to the surface. "I don't want to hunt you. But there is only room on Earth for one intelligent species to be dominant, and none of them deserve it. As such I must side with my kind. I must side with the great warmongers and worshippers that make up the Human race. You can learn a lot about a race by their literature... Humanities greatest book is The Art of War. Yet I cannot betray my own species. As much as eradicating humanity would do good for my soul, It would burn it more to kill my kinsman. The ancient rule that all species use when fighting an interspecies war. The worst among your kind is the one who abandons you. Earth is Man's world, and I am its subjugator."
Walking towards an island near him, the man rejoined his expedition party, before placing a pole. On it, he carved his name.
Max found himself on the same island after exiting the Kraken. He found the pole and he found the name. One word. One which meant more to him than anything. Galahad.
