The story of Atrahasis

Renee continued on her way, now more at ease. Inside, she was considerably satisfied to have helped someone out of a situation she herself had been in.

"Hey, Moradin," the redhead said internally to her patron. "Thanks for helping me with this one too, man."

"What do you mean?" he replied.

"Well, I'm talking about the beating those idiots gave them."

"I didn't give them that beating."

"No? But... but I gave them a good thrashing, I was as strong and resilient as in any fight you've ever taken control of, you always do that."

"Indeed, I always do that, and this time when I saw those imbeciles harassing that girl I was just as furious as you, however, my help wasn't needed."

Renee stopped walking, confused.

"Let me explain," Moradin said. "Your body is adapting over time, becoming stronger and more resilient. As you align yourself with my ideals of protection, creation, innovation, and defense of the innocent, the less you will depend on me to ignite that fire within you. The more you exercise it, the stronger you will naturally become. I lit the spark, but it was you who saved that girl, only you."

Renee didn't quite know how to react, but she felt a shy smile come to her lips.

"You're proud," Moradin said. "And you should be. You did great."

Moradin and Renee continued walking. Still a little modest about what she had done, Renee tried to change the subject.

"Hey, Mora. This thing about the ice giants, why do they want to wipe us out?"

"They've hated humanity for a very, very long time now."

"And how did it start?"

"Ah, it was when the deities and powerful beings tried to help humanity. More specifically, a specific region, near the Middle East and North Africa. Some of us had already descended to share our knowledge about creation. At that time, I was known among men as "the one who sees" or Samyaza, and I had the form of a stone giant with a fiery interior. I taught men metallurgy and the use of fire, just as I taught you. Legends about the descent of the divine populated mythologies for a long time, from Prometheus to the angels."

"And the ice giants were in the middle of all this?" Renee asked.

"Yes, they were. They were passionate about humanity. They learned to take humanoid forms to interact more with humans. The problem was that humanity seized this knowledge and began to destroy itself rapidly. We tried to contain their advances in the wrong directions, but, honestly, it was disappointing to see them so hasty in plunging into wickedness and lovelessness."

"So... the ice giants hate us because they're disappointed. Am I right?" Renee asked, now understanding better.

"Exactly, that's how they decided to try to destroy humanity the first time."

"First time?" The redhead seemed surprised now.

"Yes, there was a previous attempt, a very effective one. The ice giants understand cold and water like no one else, and in a hideout that couldn't be found, they planned the construction of a weapon, a trident, so powerful that it could raise the water level and cause storms so powerful that they would flood the entire region. Once used, it would be impossible for us, the gods, not to feel its power and find the giants, but then it would be too late for humanity and all life in that region of the globe... It would be... if we hadn't acted."

"And what did the gods do?"

"Well... we had to start with someone, unfortunately most of the gods deserted to their own realms, but Pelor and I chose a human, Atrahasis, to be warned of the catastrophe. We helped him build a vessel where all the animals of the region stayed and where he went aboard with a few other people. When the storm arrived, Pelor protected Atrahasis and everyone on the vessel. I confronted the ice giants and their weapon: a new god, Poketnaru and carried their new trident. After forty days of confrontation, I finally triumphed and wrested the source of the storms from Poketnaru, becoming the god of storms myself. When I did, I sealed the source of the storms in the Brutal Pick and used it to stop the rains and reduce the volume of the waters. Pelor and I created a symbol of the alliance between us and Atrahasis, a colorful arc in the sky."

Renee listened attentively to the story as she walked, at the end of it she stopped walking.

"So...if the ice giants get the Brutal Pick..."

"Yes... You can expect a new flood..."