I stood in the commentator box, and laughed when I saw the 12 fighters for the Championship matches.

Most of the Upper Class Loki Familia members who fought without magic were in the group.

Bete, Finn, Garett, Tiona, Tione, and even Ottar was back.

I laughed gently, and sat down. "I knew this would happen..."

The announcer handed me the microphone. "You can make your announcement, sir."

I nodded and cleared my throat. ""

The crowd protested, and I chuckled. ""

They cheered again, the fickle bastards. ""

Confusion spread slowly, and I continued to clarify. ""

The crowd roared with enthusiasm, and I handed back the microphone to the announcer.

""

The competitors filed into the locker rooms, and I smiled, leaning back and getting comfortable, though I watched the field like a hawk.

""

---

I stood across from Finn, the winner of the tournament, and donned my armor, then activated Juggernaut's main-skill, but leaving my Dexterity where it was, knowing I would need all the help I could get.

As soon as the announcer signaled our match to begin, Finn disappeared like a wisp of smoke.

I grunted as his leg slammed the square of my back, breaking even as it flung me away.

Without the defense of his body, his strength was enough to break his own bones easily, especially when he wore no armor.

I landed on my back, but got to my feet quickly, and faced him. His leg was already healing, so I pressed the small advantage, slamming my shield into his next attack.

His forearm folded like paper, and he growled in pain, but his left leg still found its way upside my head, breaking as a result.

I stood slowly, stilling my shaking vision, and approached him cautiously.

When he surprised me by leaping at me, his spear swinging in a deadly arc, I ducked and brought a knee into his chest, breaking ribs.

He fell, and on his way down, my heel cracked his temple, sending him to sleep.

The medics rushed to heal him, and I saluted the roaring crowd, my fist proudly pressed to my heart.

---

Tione wouldn't stop giving me dirty looks, no matter how many times Finn said it was okay, because it was during a duel.

We were gathered in the tower, and discussing the plan to get down to the 55th floor, collecting magic stones and drop items along the way.

I had brought one of my wagons for Finn's perusal, and he seemed happy with the giant bronze bulls that pulled the carts, so I replaced the wagon with a giant cage, for whatever monsters I tamed and brought back to the surface for the Caesar Games.

Once all were settled, we began down the path into the Dungeon.

---

We rested, our small group, (one of several spread throughout the 9th floor,) sitting around a campfire that I had made using magic and Dungeon stones.

We spoke of nonsensical things, mostly about what they had missed while in the Dungeon, or what I had missed while in the City.

Suddenly, the topic changed to the War Games, and why Loki would ruin my Trick by sending all the gods back to heaven.

"I wonder why Loki hated Freya so much in the first place? I know they were rivals, but..." Lefiya asked softly.

Before Riviera could respond, I spoke in a lilting, story-telling tone. "You speak of the Tragedy of Loki and Freyja, Little one. It goes as this;

"

Rivera blinked slowly. "How could you possibly know that legend? It's nigh-taboo amongst the gods to talk about their pasts in Heaven."

"In Midgard, that's all we have. Legends, and Stories... tales of Heroes and Warriors from times when magic existed, though we never believed them. The gods left us all to wither away slowly in the grey world they abandoned to its doom. They didn't even bother with an apocalypse." I said bitterly, and and leaned against my rock seat.

Johnny gazed at me for a moment, and then pulled a hand-made guitar out of his bag, assembling it swiftly while the others stared, interested.

He strummed a simple melody, and then started singing in a hauntingly deep voice, filling the tunnel.

"

..."

Riviera, whose eyes had closed as he started singing, smiled a bit. "Your native language is quite beautiful."

"Sì, it is a language of Romance and Music, same as Spanish and French... you should hear German. Built for ." I chuckled.

She blinked slowly. "So many..."

"That's not all of them. Every country has its own language, and there's hundreds of countries... hell, some countries have several, such as china and South Africa." I grinned.

She nodded. "And do you know them all?"

"Not nearly, just the European ones. French, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian, and a little bit of Polish and Arabic." I hummed, scratching my cheek. Then I grinned. "And, of course, I'm fluent in Tengwar 2nd Era Elvish."

"Neeeerrrrd." Johnny snorted.

I kicked his knee. "Shaddup! Drawing that language got me through second grade!"

"I don't understand... you said there were no elves in your world." Riviera asked slowly.

"Well, there aren't in real life... but there were always books, you see? Tengwar was a language, designed for a story. A Hero/Bard named Tolkien wrote many stories of ancient elves and hobbits and all sorts of races fighting dragons and finding treasure in dungeons..."

"Not unlike the current situation." Johnny snorted.

"-true,- but he didn't have languages for them, so he simply created them. The languages, and the Stories, they were all his creations. Very well articulated, of course, and fully speakable, writable... I could translate an entire book into almost any one of his hundred languages, had I a dictionary, though I wouldn't need one for Tengwar." I shrugged.

Riviera hummed. "This man must have been be very extraordinary..."

"Yes. He died only 44 years ago, at age 81, but his works are still heavily acclaimed as the premier fantasy works of the modern age." I grinned. "He's something of a personal hero to a poet like me."

Bete snorted, and I kicked him as well. "Don't knock it! That poetry casts magic that could smite your judgmental ass to pieces!"

Finn laughed, nodding. "True."

Riviera smiled, then frowned. "But if his legends and stories weren't real, why learn the language?"

I hummed and leaned back, looking at the ceiling. "I always wanted to be in a place like this. Free from... well, never mind that... but as a kid, I skipped grades, excelled in my studies to a level that my teachers repeatedly became enraged by."

"Why would they be angry at you succeeding? Isn't that the goal of teaching someone, that they learn?" Lefiya asked naively.

"I passed my instructors in intellect when I was still only a young child. I could speak several languages before I could walk on my own two feet, I could do math they only dreamed of by the time I was actually in school. By 5 years of age, I was one of the most intellectually gifted people my teachers had ever had the honor to speak to, and I knew it. I was... how to say it..." I hummed.

"You were an arrogant, pompous little asshole, even if it wasn't on purpose." Johnny smirked.

I chuckled. "Yes. I was. I grew up, gifted, and my aunt and mother are just as gifted as I, so I never had contact with people that couldn't keep up with me... until school, where even my teachers weren't as smart as me. It made me arrogant, made me feel superior. Add my attitude in with simple jealousy, and my peers and teachers alike hated my guts, within days of knowing me." I explained.

She blinked slowly. "Oh!... that's rather surprising. You don't seem that way now."

"You don't have to lie, I know I'm an arrogant jerk with a massive superiority complex, as well as a morally crippling Nihilistic view of the world." I said dryly.

She blushed, and Riviera hummed. "But if you know that, why not change?"

"Did you miss when I said ''? I don't to change. Sure, I'd like for people to like me, but I won't ever change myself for them. I don't think morals exist, and that puts me at odds with anyone who thinks different." I grinned savagely.

"Morals? What do they have to-... . You don't believe in Honor or such things, like Loki." Finn nodded.

"The basic Nihilist Point of View, yes. Morality is a man-made creation that wants nothing more than for people to conform to their idea of right and wrong, but if you think about it, what is right and wrong? Why should someone else's views of what's wrong effect me? As a Nihilist, I don't believe it does. As a Moralist, you and most others, do." I shrugged.

He hummed. "I'm not arguing that with you. I wouldn't win with Loki, and I suspect you're just as bad. As long as you protect your Familia, I don't care what you think while doing it."

I chuckled and nodded. "Logical man, here."