Acclimatization

"I am who I am today because of the choices I made yesterday." - Eleanor Roosevelt

———

"Is he dead?"

"Worry about yourself. Go do your tasks."

"Yes father." Barely distinguishable voices came to me slowly.

"Wake up, boy."

As I opened my eyes, bright lights greeted me. "W-wha happen? What happened!?"

"As soon as you took a step, you collapsed…I had to carry you here." General Han steps into my blurred vision. "You were out for a day. A day longer and I would've left you in the streets to die."

I contemplate his statement. "Why didn't you?"

"Need I repeat myself? Get up and follow me." Once again ordering me to follow him.

My legs wobbled from the sudden weight put on them. 'Am I really this weak.'

"Coming." I force myself at his side, walking with him through lighted corridors. Art littered the walls.

"Paintings of his Majesty, God-on-Earth, as he rose to the heavens and joined his parents in prosperity." Han said with barely recognizable reverence while looking at them as we passed. "Made sometime before my birth."

"They're beautiful."

"Indeed." He says while he continues walking, until eventually my eyes meet the sky.

"Where are we?"

"You are in My residence. To stay in my residence, you must join the academy and excel. To excel in the academy you must be studious and hardworking, you must have a forged body tempered by a diamond carved mind. Do you understand?" He says with his back still turned to me.

I take a moment to realize my predicament, I have no money, no shelter, no food, no water, no people to help me, no idea where I am, no idea of the inner workings of society, and no chance of surviving on my own. "....Y-yes."

His eyes shift to me then back to whatever he was staring at. "I dont expect much out of you. Prove yourself worthy of my home. You may explore your place of stay, the academy, for you, begins in 2 years." He walks away to somewhere.

'I have to get my body to being healthy, which should take 3-4 weeks. Training such as…martial arts? I better learn if I want to eat.'

——

The days had gone by. It was weird to be a man in a child's body, which I had deduced to 10 years old. Over the course of 5 days, I engorged myself in history scrolls.

Tales of the 10,000 year reign of their demi-god. In the texts, Xiao Han is a demigod of superhuman strength who befriends the wild monkey Topu. Together, they embark on many journeys, most famously defeating Humbaba, the Bull of Heaven, who is sent to attack them by the Goddess, Miouxian after Gilgamesh rejects her offer for him to become her consort.

After Topu dies of a disease sent as punishment from Miouxian, Xiao Han becomes afraid of his death and visits the sage Utnapishtim, the survivor of the Great Flood, hoping to find a way to kill death. There he meets Tojuka, father of Topu and is granted esteemed power for befriending his son.

After having been granted esteemed power he kills himself to enter the underworld and kills Miouxian Goddess of the Dead.

Eventually he ascends to heaven after killing death and reunites with Topu and his godly parents.

An interesting read if I do say so myself. However, I couldn't help but notice the similarities with this and 'The Epic Of Gilgamesh' where Gilgamesh goes on a similar journey but doesn't end up ascending to heaven and instead fails to become immortal and dies.

"You are in here again?" Hanma says to me. Son of The General, Hanma is two years older than me and has been my main source of company these last five days.

"I never had a chance to read these texts, they're very interesting." Things is…..I don't know how I can read this language, or speak it.

"Interesting? Since when were these old dusty things interesting?" He says as he walks into the tiny library. A simple room with text on history.

"Since forever." Mumbling under my breath as I return to my reading of the Pearl Emperor's creation of the five forts. "Why were the five forts created?"

"Ahhh, if I remember correctly, The Pearl Emperor created them to defend against demons. Its been a long time since father made me read the scrolls." He leans on the doorframe as his arms cross over his chest. "No one really knows, but they were created for something."

"Something I intend to find out about."

He stops his thinking and looks at me excitedly, "An explorer? Braving the Cannibal Sands and the Grey Waste."

"Exactly."

"Perhaps when you have graduated." A strong voice interrupts us. Han.

"General."

"Father." We bow to him as it is customary. "I have finished my tasks and ask that Yama join me in the training ground for training."

I thought he would tell me to join Hanma but he surprised me when he said, "He needs more time to recover from his famine." He then looks to me, "In three weeks you will join Hanma in the training ground."

"Yes, General."