the wasted earth, a dota 2 short story

	There is an eastern myth that speaks of a mountain who uses the earth as his stool. Sitting upon the vast countryside expanse that makes up his seat, his crown stretches into the sky and uses the clouds as a pillow, upon which he sleeps. Rarely does he wake, and terrible is his ashen morning breath.

	Docile though he may be, throughout the eons many foolish travelers and explorers have sought to climb his crown, and during their ascension to the peak beyond the skies, they have been swallowed whole by the mountain. Some, unable to find shelter upon his snowy shoulders, found a chilling end. Others were met with peril by the spirits of ancient beasts, guarding the mountain's secrets. And still others fell into the deep crevices that lead to the mountain's gullet.

	There was a traveler who, upon reaching the foot of this mountain, decided it would be faster to scale it than to travel around. He did not heed the many warnings along the path to turn back or abandon all hope, nor did he remark the trees adorned with nooses and empty clothes. He was not a clever man, but he was a determined one, and he would see his way through the mountain.

	A treacherous pass stood before the man and his destination. Before him, a rickety old bridge with several planks missing and constructed of rotting rope covering an expansive crevice that, when looked upon, there is only blackness-- and the eerie feeling that something is staring back at you. On the other side of the bridge, a large black den mother bear can be seen guarding her cubs. The skies were churning and harsh wind was blowing, threatening to send him hurdling off the edge of the cliff. Even so, the traveler would not be shaken. Steeling himself, he gripped the edges of the bridge, and took a single step across.

	The moment his foot grazed the first plank of the bridge, several things happened. First, a large bird had crashed into the mountain's face, similar to him in sensation to a fly bothering you while you are trying to sleep. The mountain groaned and tooted a cloud of ash from his crown, which made it quite difficult for the man to see. The brewing storm in the distance made its way closer and the bridge rattled and shook, its instability ever more apparent. The bear's eyes were transfixed upon the traveler, and it began to make threatening noises at him from the other side. Even so, the traveler would not relent, and took his second step across.

	The blackness below the bridge soon became the blackness above and around it. All around him, the world had disappeared, and all he knew was the abyss, the bridge, and a growing sense of hopelessness. He took his third step across. Whispers from the depths could be heard, wispy words of long dead spirits threatening him with their spite. Shadowy hands reached from the darkness and gripped him, tearing at his clothes and his hair. He took another step, and the bridge snapped.

	What happened then, no one is for sure. The traveler ceased to be, that is for certain. However, a few days later, the mountain gurgled and its insides churned. A creature covered in stone emerged from the base of the mountain, digging its way out of a hole in the earth placed, queerly enough, at the mountain's backside. It was a moving, sentient rock, shaped like a man, and wearing the traveler's clothes. It is said that then, he wandered the countryside, and everyone who laid eyes upon him was terrified of his sickening parody of the human form, and the thick earthy smell of his being was enough to bring tears to the eyes. No one accepted him, and no matter how he cleaned himself, he could not be free of the feeling he was a pile of earth waste... nor the smell that indicated he was.

	"He's not a pile of mountain shit, Meepo. I know you don't like him, but I don't think he was shit out by a constipated mountain god." Lina had grown weary of the multiple-bodied kobold's story. She began to float away to displace herself from his rude tale, sparks flowing off her dress.

	"Have you smelled the guy? He's not exactly the nice smellin' earth they sell in flower shops." Meepo remarked, and then the clone next to him continued. "Somebody dumped a whole lotta fertilizer on whatever hole he crawled out of."

	Nearby, a figure with the shape of a man but a body made of stone was defending the glowing radiant tower from a group of minion attackers, their bodies molten earth given human shape. Though small in stature, they were vicious and relentless, clawing and stabbing at the figure's ankles. The earthly spirit, in one swift motion, rolled his body into a ball and the soil around him gathered into a solid shape, turning him into a large, brown, round boulder and he rolled forward into the oncoming molten creatures.

	"Ya see? Guy's literally a big round ball of dung." Meepo chortled, and another Meepo near him continued while he laughed. "Let's hope that bug assassin guy doesn't find out about him."

	"Shut it. The Dire come for us soon." A tall, armored man holding a tower shield and glaive was hiding in the trees nearby, on the lookout. "We have to stay quiet, or.. would you stop that?" One of the clones poked at the large mango hanging out of the man's pack.

	"Hey uh, you gonna eat that?" His finger prodded it again and again. The man stuffed it into his pack and gave the clone a bothered look, now unsure if he would eat the fruit at all, but feeling very protective of it from the small molesting man-rodent.

	A ball of lightning crashed into the earth near the radiant, shimmering tower, sending chunks of rock and soil flying every which way. The electricity took the form of a round man with a wide nose and a bushy beard, wearing a straw hat. When he spoke, it was with the bellowing gale of a storm.

	"Earth Spirit! Fancy meeting you here, on the field of battle. Once I might have called you my friend, but today I will simply call you scorched earth!" He took the form of a ball of lightning again, and charged forward into his adversary.

	Earth Spirit looked inward, briefly meditating, aligned his chakra with creation and gaia, and then forced his will outward. He let loose a battle cry, "Here we go!" and a stone remnant of his being flew toward the being of storm, who stopped dead in his path, dodging the remnant.

	"Ah, a perfect location." The man of stone held in his hands a large stone rod, and began to channel energy into it. Slowly, as he did so, he and the remnant began to resonate with an echoing power that shook the earth and disoriented the lightning being-- but as he did so, he saw nearby an opportunity. "Oh, that's a good spot." Repeating the process, he flung another remnant to a nearby hill and became the form of a ball of earth again, rolling to the remnant's spot, causing it to rejoin his being. From his new vantage point, he looked down upon his opponent, who was now rippling with lightning. The earthly spirit began to charge his rod again, when he saw a yet taller hill. "Wait... an even better spot."

	The spirit flew remnants to taller and more advantageous vantage spots again and again, continuously muttering about better locations. The glowing lightning spirit was unsure what to make of this. He simply shrugged his shoulders and advanced upon the radiant tower.