For the first year after Hek’s arrival, Onder noticed no change to his daily routine. Aphmor and the market remained the same. He hunted cave creatures for food and scooped up disgusting puddles for water. He thought about the new settlers every so often, wondering when their time would come. Though he cursed himself for it, he wanted it to happen sooner than later. Hek worried him, and if it was going to happen anyway it may as well happen now.

  He sat in his hut and started carving away at some loose rocks, his only pastime on the empty world. If Aphmor could leave his tree, he could at least have someone to talk to. Days passed by in a blur as he traded his broken-down hut for a cabin made of dead wood. It was comfortable, actually capable of keeping the rain out.

  Almost worth the bargaining I had to do with the gangs. I guess letting them have some dried meat isn’t too bad.

  Onder’s hands had become capable craftsmen during his partial-isolation. His pack was now fully stitched with no holes. He made himself proper clothing and shoes, finally able to avoid collecting beetles on the bottom of his feet. He made his way back to the market for another day of trading. Aphmor waved him over as usual.

  “Right on time, as usual.” Aphmor bowed to his self-proclaimed prince.

  “Wouldn’t dare be late. You think I wanna go insane talking to myself?”

  “You should’ve set up here, prince.” He pointed to a spot next to his tree. “Plenty of space for royalty.”

  “I don’t want to spend more time than I have to around the locals.” Onder glanced at the ruffians browsing other stalls.

  “Always in a tizzy about the gangs! They don’t bother us around here, prince.”

  Onder scoffed. “I’ve seen what they do. They don’t bother you because your tree would kill them.”

  “This ol’ girl?” He patted one of the tree’s roots. “She couldn’t hurt a fly.”

  Onder chuckled and put his pack on the table. Arguing with Aphmor was a losing game. Just as he removed some meat to trade, one of the brutes approached him. Onder positioned himself in front of Aphmor, just in case.

  “Calm yourself, prince,” he said in a mocking tone. “We’re not your enemy today.”

  Onder returned the brute’s energy. “Aw, but you fit the role so well.”

  He put his hands up. “Look. We’ve both got bigger problems.”

  He turned around and beckoned another figure over to them. Once they emerged from the brute’s group, Onder realized it was one of Hek’s people tied to a rope. They were dragged over by another one in the group. The brute shoved her towards Onder and lifted her chin up.

  “Speak. Now,” he commanded.

  The woman did nothing but laugh. She got a kick in the stomach for her behavior. Onder sighed and pushed the brutes to the side, grabbing the rope himself.

  “So, you’ve already started the raids.” He pulled out a knife, preparing to cut the woman free.

  “No raids. We found her at our base.” The brute spit on the ground. “Must’ve been spying.”

  "Spying for good reason! Don't want hurt gangs. Friends!"

  No one responded to her. Her declaration of friendship was not the most convincing. Onder figured it may have just been the strange way they talk. It seemed like the cadence of their voice and the strange grammar were evolved to make them as unsettling as possible.

  She peered back at Onder. “Son of sun. Nice to see again.” She smiled at him. “Helping Hek now?”

  “No, I’m not helping her. I already failed at that when all of you decided to stay on this planet.”

  The rope snapped and she was freed. She gave Onder a polite curtesy as the gang of brutes behind her groaned. They stood still for a second, awkwardly staring at each other. The woman did not break eye contact with him.

  He finally broke the silence. “Um… You can go home now.”

  The woman looked around the market before shrugging. “Don’t know where, but will try best.”

  She walked away from the market and the brutes kept their eyes on her. Onder stayed until her form completely vanished in the distance. The gang started circling him, but they didn’t pose any real threat.

  I must’ve really pissed them off if they’re trying this again. I guess I’ll be getting a good workout today.

  The brutes closed in on him in circles of five, as many that could fit around Onder without piling on top of each other. Ten fists went straight for his torso, making it impossible for him to turn without forcing himself into another punch. Each blow felt like a strong push, but nothing more. He put his left arm to the side and swung it forward, throwing two men into the air. They hit several brutes standing behind him as they flew through the air.

  He casually pulled both arms back as if he were stretching. The two unfortunate souls standing behind him received an elbow to the forehead each. With the area around him temporarily cleared, he turned to face the last of the five men.

  “You sure you wanna keep going?” he lazily asked.

  “You let that bitch go. You’re gonna get us all killed!” the man screamed, lunging forward with his arms out.

  Onder let him get a hold on his torso. It meant nothing in the end, anyway. He plucked him off as if he were a bug and flicked him away with the other hand. The backup men surrounding him looked pissed, but unwilling to move forward. Onder started walking towards his home and through the crowd. They begrudgingly parted to let him through, but just as he emerged from the crowd, one of the fallen men yelled after him.

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  “The purge won’t take all of them.” His friends pulled him off the ground. “Just the weakest. The stronger ones… They’ll make it.”

  Onder decided to indulge the man. “What makes you so sure? I’ve never seen a single non-native survive a dark-age. Not without a miracle like Aphmor’s tree.”

  “You fucking idiot,” he hissed out. “You think we’re from this planet? We’re fucking better than this piss-ass rock.”

  “W-what?” Onder stuttered.

  Everyone turned towards him, including Aphmor. Their faces changed from anger to bewilderment. Some of them even looked like the pitied the giant.

  “We have letters. We have photos.” He quickly pulled a few papers out of his pocket. “It’s all here. All from our ancestors.”

  Onder was silent. The brutes started to whisper and deride their foolish prince. All this time he thought they were one and the same. He didn’t know whether to be happy or sad. He only knew that he felt lonely.

  “Why did they come here?” His words were barely audible.

  “Prince… It’s exactly what you think.” Aphmor spoke from his tree. “I was one of them. This tree supported me through centuries on this planet. The gentleman in front of you are the result of our migration here. We landed to evolve.” He lifted his scrawny limbs to show the group. “We hated our bodies. We had skill, but no matter how good we were, someone like you could always come destroy us. We couldn't handle that fact."

  “Aphmor… I would never.”

  “Maybe not, prince, but someone else could.” He paused, a conflicted look on his face. “Your father. The entire universe lives in fear of him. He abandoned you here to toughen you up. It’s a sign we made the right choice. Evolution takes time, but this is the place to make it happen. Not just for the physical effects, the mental ones. That's why your father left you here."

  He felt it again. Tears. His pathetic response to any mention of his father. He hated when it happened. It made no sense why he cared so much. He could barely even remember the man. Gone as soon as Onder could throw a decent punch. In this moment, he revealed the child that he was. He turned his back to them and ran towards home. His eyes were so clouded with water that he didn’t notice the ship parked next to his cabin.

  He opened the door to find a familiar man sitting at his table with a stone sword propped up on his chair. His long white hair fell over a gruff face with deep blue eyes. Fingers ran through his beard as he read through a book. He didn’t look up as Onder walked through the door, even as Onder’s shadow towered over his small human frame.

  “Ah, you’re finally home.” He closed the book. “How’s my boy doing?”

  Don’t do it. Don’t answer him. Just ignore him and he has to leave eventually.

  Onder walked to his pantry and started organizing some old canteens. Pointless work to pretend he was too busy for his father. The man simply chuckled as he watched Onder. His large hands trembled slightly as he moved another dusty bottle. His attempt at distracting himself ended abruptly when a small cooing noise filled the room.

  His head shot up. He stepped out of the pantry and scanned the area, finally noticing the bassinet lying on the floor. His father grinned as he hesitantly stepped closer to them. Kneeling to the floor, he lifted the blanket inside to reveal two tiny human faces.

  Onder stared in silence for minutes. “What is this?” he finally asked.

  His father’s knees touched the floor beside him, something Onder had never seen before. His father never kneeled.

  “I’m sure you can take a guess.” The man reached out towards one of the infants, gently stroking its cheek.

  Onder wasn’t an expert on human development, but he could guess that the babies were barely a few weeks old. They both looked fully human, one pale and one with olive skin. He didn’t know what he looked like as a baby, but it definitely wasn’t this.

  “Your children. Why?” He wanted to get straight to the point. His father never meant well.

  “Not just my children. Your siblings.” He lifted the pale infant out of the crib. “This is your baby brother, Mtsislav.”

  He looked at Onder expectantly, holding the child out for him to take. Onder took a long look at his delicate little hands. Skin so soft he was worried one touch would break it. Onder wrapped his hands gently around the child and pulled him close to his chest.

  Something inside of him warmed as the infant opened his eyes and looked up at him. His tiny hand moved to grip Onder’s shirt. The baby started cooing happily in Onder’s arms. His beautiful blue eyes were free of fear. Onder steadied him in the crook of one arm as he reached towards the infant with his free hand. As if going straight for his heart, the infant’s hand grasped one of his fingers.

  “Hi.” Onder’s voice trembled. He was never prepared for something like this. “Hi there. I’m your big brother.”

  His father smiled. It looked kind, genuine. Onder knew it was a lie. He turned to the other infant and pulled her to his chest with his free arm, getting them both away from their father.

  “What game are you playing this time?” he asked, clutching the children as if they were precious jewels.

  “Nothing, for now.” The man’s fatherly smile never faltered. “I just thought my poor son might be lonely on this planet. Though it seems it may get more crowded soon.”

  “You’re finally taking me off-world?”

  “No, no. Of course not.” A cruel laugh followed his words. The mask finally wavered. “You think your training is anywhere near done? I’m just dropping these two off.”

  Onder’s heart sang and dropped all at once. His father was letting him keep the two infants before him. His baby siblings. He wouldn’t be so alone.

  As much as I want to stay with them, this place is too dangerous. It’s not fair to keep them here.

  “You can’t be serious.” He walked forward again, returning the babies to their cribs. “This is no place for children, let alone human children.”

  “What about you? You’re a human child.”

  “I’m half-human.” He gestured towards his giant figure. “I have a bit of an advantage.”

  “You think they’re not half-human? I don’t breed with lesser species,” he said, as if he weren’t human himself.

  “They look like normal humans,” Onder retorted.

  “Hmm. I guess your ignorance isn’t your own fault.” He grabbed a thick book out of a satchel at his side and tossed it onto the table. “Here. A textbook on alien biology. Read enough and you might learn what they are.”

  The man circled the room one last time. Onder felt like his father was judging his lifestyle, despite the fact that he had been absent from it for an entire decade. His face twisted into one of quiet disappointment.

  He must think this place is a dump. I did the best I could with what’s available.

  “Well, this has been nice.” He walked back to the bassinets and lorded over the children. “I’d better get going. Take good care of these two. The girl is called Helena. You are not to change their names.”

  With one final threat, his father’s visit was over. He walked out of the cabin and Onder followed close behind, making sure he actually left. The ship next to his house started up and departed from the planet. Onder watched the sky as his mother briefly noted the new item in space, only to ignore it and settle down again. His father was the only being she wouldn’t fight for trying to leave.

  Once the threat was gone, he rushed back into the cabin. The infants were in the exact same spot, lifting their arms in the air and cooing softly. He stood over them and couldn’t help but smile. It was horrible. It was selfish. His siblings did not deserve to be trapped here, but he felt more whole than ever before. His siblings already transformed his house to a home within minutes of being there.

  Don’t you worry, little ones. I’m the best person on this planet to be stuck with. I won’t let anything harm you, not even the cold.

  After sixteen years, Onder’s life finally begun. He found his purpose. He was complete.