King Dracthor the Indestructible was bored

King Dracthor sat in his throne room, roaring in a mighty flame that brought down the stone pillars surrounding him. He laughed as his massive claws swiped through the rubble, simply to demonstrate his overwhelming power. After the rubble was cleared, he folded his arms and leaned back in his throne, letting out a long, disappointed sigh. <br><br>"I am...bored. When will the next worthy opponent arrive to perish at my hands? The hill tribes have long since learned their lesson, the High Elves are too busy with the wars at sea to challenge me, the Dwarven Clans have locked themselves in their mountains and will only come out at the behest of the gods. I am Dracthor, the Destroyer of Worlds. I will not be ignored!"<br><br>His courtiers stood silent. there was nothing to say. the last time one of them tried to donate his life to the great beast, Dracthor had only been more disappointed. <br><br>"Milord, perhaps there's a different way to-"<br><br>"Oh? Like that silly assassin that tried to poison me? Or the trebuchet crew that thought they could launch a boulder big enough into my maw to hurt me? Or perhaps the magicians who thought that they could turn my own fire against me? Bring me the greatest of the world's monsters, so that it might perish beneath my claws. Do that, and do it now, or you will burn like the rest of them."<br><br>The courtiers fled, and Dracthor was alone. He had never been in a worse mood. <br><br>It was a half hour before an ogre burst into his throne room, with a bleeding gash across its chest and a mighty wooden club dragging in the dirt.<br><br>"Bring...bring your greatest beast, for Gorthok the Unconquerable has come to claim your kingdom! I am the monster of the Umbra Swamps, lord over the the great Hill of Bones, defeater of the Blue Worm! I will not be challeneged!"<br><br>Dracthor looked over the intruder, then laughed. Of all the monsters in the land, the one that had answered his call was little more than a child with a scraped knee.<br><br>"Go back to wherever you came from, little one, for you are not yet worthy to die beneath my claws. When you meet a monster that intimidates you, and live to tell the tale, then and only then may you return to this throne room."<br>Gorthok roared and charged forward swinging his club, and Dracthor swiped at him with a single claw, sending him flying into the hillside. He slid to the bottom, and with a bellow he charged again. Dracthor swiped again, and the ogre was beaten into the mud. Again he charged, and Dracthor met him with a blast of fire that sent him tumbling into the jungle. <br><br>Finally, he stood up, covered in burns, scratches, and bruises. <br><br>"You...you may be the greatest monster, King Dracthor. But I will return, and when I do, I will claim your throne, your kingdom, and your life!"<br><br>Dracthor watched him go, then laid down on the rubble and fell asleep, dreaming of the greatest monsters in all the land. He knew they wouldn't actually threaten the great Dracthor, but it was better than nothing. <br>When he awoke, there was only a group of ants crawling through the rubble. <br><br>"I am Dracthor, the lord of all the land! Tremble before me and despair! for you are but inches tall, and I am the greatest monster to have ever existed. I have crushed dragons, devoured phoenixes, and drowned leviathans. I am fear incarnate!"<br><br>The ants continued to ignore him, carrying bits of leaves back to their colony. <br><br>Dracthor stomped his foot in a fit of anger, and the ants scurried away as the ground shook. <br><br>"I shall not be ignored! you will pay attention to me, or you will burn! Now, bring me your greatest warrior, that it might die at my claws!"<br><br>As the ground continued to shake, an ant scurried back out of the underbrush and stood on the rubble in front of the throne. <br><br>"I am Antenor, the greatest warrior our colony has to offer. I have fought the great spiders that lurk in the shadows, I have killed termites and pill bugs, I have fought against the rival colonies for our very survival. But none of those things frightened me as much as you, oh Great King Dracthor. And I am not afraid of you. You are a bully, and a coward, and you would only seek to crush me without cause. But I will say this, and mark my words: You would not be ignored. I proved that. And I will not perish like the mindless beasts you have already slaughtered. You will come to me, and you will beg for the right to stain your teeth with my blood. Until then, I will not see you again. Farewell, King Dracthor, and may you find the greatest monster of all."<br><br>Dracthor laughed at the tiny warrior, and Antenor marched off into the jungle, leaving Dracthor to sneer at the very idea of a brave ant. But when he sat back down in his throne, his claws seemed a little duller, his flame a little less warm, his kingdom a little more empty. After all, when the greatest warrior that the world has to offer is an ant, perhaps you aren't as great as you thought.