Asgard

Brunhilde, Goll, and Hera head to the Valkyrie headquarters to select the champions following the Council of Valhalla meeting. While they were walking there, Brunhilde questions Hera about what happened in the building.

"Could you please tell me, Lady Hera, why you helped me declare Ragnarok to your fellow gods, and how did you know of my plan?"

Hera laughed at the thought of helping a half-god and replied, "I didn't do it for you or humanity. I saw an opportunity, so I seized it. As for your plan, you have the Moirai to thank for telling me about your idea."

In the following dialog, Brunhilde says, "An opportunity? I wonder what opportunity you saw in challenging the gods and risking your life."

Hera sighs and explains, "I helped Zeus to become the chairman of the gods, but I was never appreciated. Also, he sleeps with every woman while I keep the Olympian gods in check. I, too, want revenge, valkyrie."

"Revenge? I'm doing this to protect humanity from gods' disregard," Brunhilde replied firmly.

The sarcastic Hera states, "Oh yes, a valkyrie willing to sacrifice human souls to defeat the gods obviously doesn't have any ulterior motives."

Before Brunhilde could say something, Goll drops to her knees which causes Brunhilde and Hera to stop momentarily.

What's wrong with you, Goll?" Brunhilde asks nonchalantly

Goll turned her head to her sister and Hera and yelled, "WHAT'S WRONG?! You two challenge the gods to Ragnarok! Why would you do that? We could've been killed! Now we have to gather human champions to battle their creators! We're doomed, DOOMED!"

Goll then gets into a sitting fetal position and rocks back and forth. Brunhilde looks at this display with embarrassment while Hera looks at it with disgust.

Brunhilde then says, "Goll, you're an apprentice valkyrie, so you may not understand it yet. For you see, the connection between us and humankind is more prevalent than the gods. I'm not going to abandon them when they need us most."

The heartfelt words of Brunhilde touched Goll as she got up. Hera, on the other hand, couldn't care less about the valkyrie's dribble.

Goll thought to herself, 'She's risking everything for humankind. No wonder why she is a tragic valkyrie. But will her plan pay off?'

Goll then asked, "I understand but do you think humans will win? Who do you think will represent the gods?"

Brunhilde thought about it for a moment and then looked at Hera.

"Well, Lady Hera, who do you think will be the combatants representing the gods?" Brunhilde asked.

Hera answered, "Hmmm, knowing my husband, he will mostly be one of the combatants. He may be a manchild, but his mastery at close quarters is unparalleled. As for Amaterasu and Huitzilopochtli, they're also likely to participate as well. So now, I wonder who will be the first representative for them."

Then, as fate had it, a strong wind blew around the three women. They sense a powerful aura right behind them. They see a semi-silhouette of a young man in golden Chinese armor with beast head pauldrons, a matching belt, a flowing red silk cape, and golden armored boots. He is holding a three-pointed, double-edged spear in his right hand. He has black hair tied into a man bun, orange eyes, and seemingly a minor vertical scar in the middle of his forehead.

Suddenly, Goll runs towards this menacing foe. She prepares to deliver a punch while the mysterious man smiles. Suddenly, she unballed her fist and used her index finger to poke the man.

"Boop," Goll says playfully.

As she says, the man is jokingly riving in pain as he fell by his blood sister.

"Oh, you got me! I was no match for Goll the Great! The unspeakable pain," said the stranger milking the moment.

They laughed together, and Goll said, "It's great to see you, Brother Shen!"

"I'm glad to see you as well, Goll," Shen says in a brotherly manner.

Chinese Pantheon

The Illumnious Sage, Erlang Shen (China)

Shen then looked at Brunhilde and Hera and smiled.

"Brunhilde, Hera, I'm glad to see you also," Shen says as he nods.

Brunhilde smiled back and did a slight bow, as did Hera.

"It's nice to see you, Brother Shen; you look as strong as ever," Brunhilde said.

"I could say the same for you and Hera," Shen says as Goll gets on his back which he smiles.

While Brunhilde and Goll enjoyed the sage's company, Hera interrupted the merriment.

"While it's nice to you and all, are you going to be the participant in Ragnarok?"

A stillness fell upon the Goll, while Brunhilde figured it to be true.

Shen sighed and said, "Yes, I am in the gods' vanguard, and I may be fighting in the first round."

Goll got off the Shen as she couldn't understand why he was selected to fight for the gods.

"Let me make this clear, I voted against humanity's destruction. But it seems this is my punishment, I guess," Shen says begrudgingly.

"Well, regardless of whether your friend or a foe, I wish you luck in your match," Brunhilde says with a genuine smile.

Shen smiles and walks past them before saying to Brunhilde.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Brunhilde nods sternly, and Shen understands that she made up her mind.

As Shen left, Goll was sad that Shen was their enemy now.

"I-I can't believe Brother Shen will be fighting against humanity," Goll says somberly.

Brunhilde and Hera turned back around and walked with purpose.

"We must hurry and choose 13 most capable champions in the seven million years of the human race," Brunhilde asserted.

Goll seeing her sister and Hera walking ahead rushes to catch up to them.

Valkyrie Headquarters, Records Room

The Valkyrie Headquarters has a large brick room filled with holographic records of humans, from the mundane to the extraordinary. Brunhilde bursts open the doors entering the room along with Hera and Goll.

"We must find the first representative for our vanguard," Brunhilde states.

"What?! That's impossible! Who can challenge the gods in the first round?" Goll said hesitantly.

Brunhilde pulls out her phone as Goll says this, and all the holographic files appear before her. The picture contains famous people in history from every generation so who will be the first representative?

Hera walks to Brunhilde and says, "I hope you know that I will also pick some of the champions as well, right?"

Brunhilde glares at Hera, and Hera does the same. After a brief staredown, Brunhilde relents and consents, knowing it is pointless to argue with a Greek.

"Fine, but I already decided on our first representative. If anyone can beat them, it's him," Brunhilde declared

"Him?" Hera and Goll said simultaneously.

"Yes, I met him once in my travels. He is a knight like no other. Without a doubt, the most revered and skilled knight of them all." Brunhilde says.

As she says this, a picture of the knight appears. Hera looks at the valkyrie's first pick and is impressed. Goll looks in awe of the combatant.

Goll sighs in disbelief. "He will represent us in round one?" she asks.

Valhalla Arena

A huge gladiatorial arena is located somewhere in the realm of the gods. The packed venue has the gods on one side and the humans on the other. In the middle of the respected sides, there are the entrance gates of the arena. On the side of the arena, in the middle, is a tall imperial box where Zeus, Amaterasu, and Huitzilopochtli sit on their thrones and other important deities. As for Aphrodite, her throne is that of golem manservants. As the cheers erupt for the first matchup, Hera, Brunhilde, and Goll stand in the arena viewpoint on the human side, observing the spectacle. A silence falls as the spotlight shines upon a short man with a robot-like face and a green cloak that covers most of his head, with some black hair slicked back from the front. He is wearing protective goggles similar to those worn by pilots during World War I. He is wearing medieval fur pants and striped shoes.

The watchman of the Apocalypse

Heimdall (Norse)

"I have been waiting for eons! Now I finally get to blow the Gjallarhorn! It's about time that Ragnarok is upon us, everyone! Are you ready!?" Heimdall yelled into his horn.

Cheers erupted once more for the battle to begin.

He continued, "The rule is simple! It's a fight to the death! The only way to win is the destruction of the other side!"

"It's about that time, huh," Goll says nervously. As for Brunhilde and Hera, they watch intended for the gods' first representative.

Heimdall begins to announce, "The First Bout! Introducing the first combatant representing the gods!"

Then he points to the west gate as it opens, and a golden tiger runs out into the arena.

"He was born from the union between a goddess and a mortal man! His father was killed by the Jade Emperor, and his mother was captured by him! He went on a quest to save his mother from her imprisonment! During his travels, he gained notoriety for helping humanity control the rapid floods, subdued the demon fox, Daji, and even went toe to toe with the monkey king, Sun Wukong!"

As Heimdall energizes the crowd, the golden tiger turns into a majestic falcon as it flies into the air. The humans were amazed by the shapeshifter. The falcon then flew high above the arena and rapidly descending toward the center of the ground. Once again, the falcon transformed into a man near the arena floor and landed with a three-point landing. He raises with his spear in hand.

"Finally, he saved his mother from her imprisonment and earned his place as one of the greatest warriors of the heavens! Get it up for, Erlang Shen!"

After Heimdall finished, the gods' side of the arena cheered for Shen, believing that victory seemed guaranteed.

'As expected, Erlang Shen is the first opponent,' Brunhilde thought to herself.

Heimdall begins to announce Shen's challenger, "Now, the representative for the humans! First up for humanity is this man!"

The Eastern gates open, and knights in full plate armor emerge bearing the red banner of the golden dragon. They formed two lines and faced the audience.

"Born from nobility, he was raised by the Lady of the Lake in the land of Avalon! He was a legendary knight who fought for the in honor of Camelot! His skills and accolades earned him a place among the round table of King Arthur!"

A figure of a knight in refined silver armor that has the golden dragon crest on his breastplate makes his way to the arena. He dawns a white shoulder cape on his left side, and over his right shoulder is the blade of a greatsword that he carries with one hand.

"This man has accomplished many deeds in his kingdom's name! Unfortunately, struck by the charms of Queen Genevieve, he led the downfall of Camelot, and it has haunted him till his dying breath. Now he seeks atonement by carrying the will of mankind!"

The knights that carried the banners left as Shen's opponent had arrived. As the knight reaches the center, he plants the sword in the ground. Then he took off his visor helmet and revealed a middle-aged man with long raven hair, a well-trimmed beard, and weary grey eyes.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Gods and Goddesses, the knight that seeks redemption! Sir Lancelot!"

First Human Representative

Sir Lancelot (Avalon)

The humans cheered for their champion to bring them victory in the first round. The two competitors stare at each other with a focus in their eyes.

"Yo, Shen! This human got nothing on you!" says a boy with a red kung fu shirt, white baggy pants, twin man buns, and balancing on a ruby wheel on the gods' side of the arena.

Chinese God of Youth

Nezha (China)

Joining him in the cheering is a giant of a god with a blue spiky receding hairline, rough-looking beard, torn pants, and has a massive axe he carries.

Water Spirit God

Juling Shen (China)

"OH YEAH! Let me to you something, humans. No man or demon alive has ever beaten Erlang, YEAH! So what makes you think Lancy Boy got what it takes," Juling bellowed.*

(*I encourage you to use the Macho Man voice for Juling Shen)

Suddenly, a loud voice from the humans' side yelled and caught the attention of the two Chinese deities.

"Take him down, Lancelot! What the hell are you waiting for, huh? Turn that son of a bitch into mincemeat," says the gruff old man with white hair, olive-green eyes, rusty-looking armor, and a scar on his left lip.

One of the knights of the Round Table

Sir Ector (England)

Nezha gasped, "Wha mincemeat?!"

Along with Ector, all the knights of the Round Table are present. Another was a man with short brown hair, a coarse beard, ironclad armor with blue engravings that matched his eyes, and a Dane axe lying next to him.

One of the knights of the Round Table

Sir Gawain (England)

"I don't understand. Why is he of all people representing us? If anything, it should be you to save humanity, uncle," Gawain says to a well-aged man with blond hair, rich blue eyes, armor with white and gold, and a crown on top of his head.

King of Camelot

Arthur Pendragon (England)

Arthur spoke, "Perhaps nephew, but when it comes to the tenacity and the fighting spirit, Sir Lancelot is the man to do it. Let's hope he's up for the challenge."

"Ha, damn right," Ector says with a grin.

Heimdall announce once more, "This is truly a battle of the greatest of the greats! Representing the gods, The Illuminious Sage...Erlang Shen!"

Shen spins his spear before getting into his fighting stance, which is met with cheers from the gods.

"And his opponent! One of the most renowned knights of the Round Table! The Champion of Camelot...Sir Lancelot!"

The helmet is tossed to the ground, the sword is retrieved from the ground, and Lancelot takes his fighting stance, to the cheers of humanity.

In the viewpoint, Hera hears a human praying for victory.

Using a godly voice, she utters, "Human, stop praying. For your prayers fall on deaf ears. For they are for the enemy."

Ragnarok's First Bout

Sir Lancelot vs Erlang Shen

Begins