The almighty Thanasin Kingdom, home to the greatest warriors in history, the giants. The average giant was capable of pulling a large oak tree from its roots. Their power was unparalleled in all fields, be it political or physical. Above them stood one man, The Great King Thanasi. An unrivaled warrior in his own right, King Thanasi was worshipped as the conqueror of nations, general of armies, and self-proclaimed divine sovereign.
Under King Thanasi's rule, the Thanasin Kingdom had stretched as far as the horizon. His political influence grew so monumental that he would proclaim any unconquered land as his, and without resistance, it was so.
One fateful morning, King Thanasi received news of a village far in the east that housed the finest cattle meat in the world. Upon hearing this, Thanasi set course for a voyage towards the village. To him, all the finest things in the world were his birthright, so the fact that there had been a luxury that was not already in his possession angered him.
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After sailing for two weeks, Thanasi and his troops landed on the shore of a remote island. They marched towards the village, and upon arriving to the village, the menacing army was greeted by a feeble elderly man.
"Greetings, travelers. I am the chief of this village. What brings you all here?" The elderly man asks gently to the behemoths before him.
Thanasi walks up to the man who measures halfway up his leg. "Do you know who I am?" He asks sternly.
"I must apologize. We are quite unaware of the dealings of the outside world." The elderly man responds.
"I am the almighty Thanasi!" the king claims with a thunderous roar, "I have received word that this village houses a delicacy that has not been offered to me. This has offended me a great deal."
"I see. You must have gotten word from the traveler that was swept into our village after a shipwreck." the elderly man says, "If you've come all this way to taste our cattle, we'd be happy to give you a taste. It is unfortunate, however, that we will not have enough to feed all of you men to your hearts content."
"You misunderstand," Thanasi threatens, "I hereby decree this village as mine. Henceforth, you will export seven hundred kilograms of cattle meat to my castle every month."
"I am sorry to say, young man, this is impossible." The undaunted elderly man replies, "We are a small village of 80 people. We cannot harvest that much meat even in a year. And even if we could, this village has housed us and our cattle has fed our people for generations. We are not interested in surrendering this on a strangers whim."
The King becomes furious. He grips the elderly man, his palm engulfing his entire body, and effortlessly picks him up.. "Do you understand what you have done!?" Thanasi growls, "You have blasphemed! And for that, the only suitable punishment is death!"
As Thanasi said this, he was shocked by what he saw. There was no fear in the old man's expression.
"You seem to be a very prideful man, and perhaps for good reason." The elderly man says, "but arrogance is not a trait favored by god. I urge you to leave this place and live the life of luxury afforded to you."
At this point, more so than the meat, Thanasi was concerned with a different matter - His so-called honor. The fact that this feeble man did not tremble at his presence had became and issue of respect in his mind.
"God, you say?" Thanasi responds as if insulted, "Can your god do this?"
Thanasi grips one of the houses with his other hand and rips it from the foundation and throws it across the village. "I am not afraid of your god! Your god is as insignificant as the wind!" Thanasi roars after the terrifying display, "and for this slight, I will raze this entire village to the ground! Unless you agree to my conditions."
Thanasi wanted to break this mans will, but all he saw was a look of disappointment take over the mans face. "I will pray for you then." the elderly man said. Infuriated, Thanasi burned the village to the ground.
-
On the way back to his home, the old mans words echoed in Thanasi's mind. The fact that a feeble man was not afraid of him had bruised his ego.
Upon returning home, he issued a summons for the entire army for the following week. He was going to announce a massive campaign that would conquer every unconquered part of the earth, making him the king of the world. He would no longer allow such a disparaging incident to happen to him again.
The week passed and the Thanasin army was gathered. Slight winds blew as the weather grew cloudy. Giant soldiers stood as far as the eye could see as they awaited their almighty ruler. And then, upon a platform walked Thanasi.
Thanasi began to speak charismatically as his voice echoed through the field, but as he spoke, the wind grew faster. It slowly began to muffle his voice. Soon, no one could hear Thanasi. Soldiers looked around in confusion as the wind continued to grow. It grew faster and faster. It had became so fast that the massive soldiers began struggling to stay upright. Thanasi had to plant himself firmly as the wind had began to push him over. He decided to wait until the wind died down to continue his speech... but it grew and grew and grew.
The wind had began to roar. The great castles of the kingdom began to collapse. The great monuments fell, but the wind only grew. It grew so vicious, that it lifted the giants off of their feet and flew them as high as the mountains. The vicious soldiers began to scream and beg for life, just as the many they had slaughtered for conquest. They cried and looked towards their god for rescue, but their god, The Great Thanasi, was screaming and begging alongside them. The great army plummeted to their death, Thanasi included. And just like that, The Great Thanasin Kingdom fell.
The world gasped. The world's mightiest army and the great king who's name was whispered in fear met his end. Not in battle, not by treachery, but by the insignificant wind - an indifferent reminder of his mortality. His once-glorious name becomes a cautionary tale of pride turned to folly.