A few years before Argall's arrival...
"Husband," Nareena walked up to him from behind. Thragg did not turn to meet her or greet her. Instead, he stared at his hands and forearms, drenched in the blood of beasts and monsters. She came up to his side eventually and her eyes briefly widened, but she wasn't surprised. He'd shared with her his true nature. Sereen didn't know, of course; she didn't need to. But, Nareena, his wife, knew. She looked up at him and brushed her fingers over his hairline. "What happened?"
His shirt had been torn. He'd have to buy a new one soon. "I wandered into the grasslands to test myself against the monsters. A pack of Laughing Lions came at me. There were ten of them, each one larger than a horse."
Thragg closed his eyes and breathed in. Disappointing. "And I failed."
Nareena embraced him and nudged her face into his bare shoulder. "Do not be disappointed in yourself, love. Those who are afraid of failure will never succeed. You're trying and... that's what matters."
"When they attacked..." Thragg said, eyes slowly opening to behold the twinkling lights in the night sky. They sat on the balcony of their home, which overlooked a large portion of Alka. Cool winds blew over them. It was nice. It brought with it the scent of grass and dew. For a moment, he stared at his bloody hands, before he closed both of them into fists. Thragg sighed and leaned into Nareena's touch. "I hurt and killed a few of them. They couldn't hurt me. But... I hurt them, animals who were simply doing as their instinct dictated. I wasn't supposed to. I was supposed to reign in my instincts, to defend myself without killing, to subdue without hurting; I was supposed to be better than them, than beasts... but I failed."
He hadn't been able to stop himself from attacking immediately. The monstrous things hardly ever reached him before his battle instincts took over. Even when they did reach him, none of their natural weapons could hope to even pierce the skin of a Viltrumite. Very few creatures could hope to harm him.
And then, he sighed. It was progress, however small. And, really, Thragg had plenty of time to better himself. Nareena smiled. "But... you're learning. And that's what matters, yes?"
Thragg nodded. "Yes... that's what matters."
Now...
"Beasts though they are, boy." Thragg began, approaching Argall from behind. His son had decided to hunt a Wilderbeast on their way home. Thragg had not refused him, simply because his prey was close enough that they did not need to venture far. His son was strong and fast, and so they caught up to one – an older male of the species. Argall panted as he stood over the gigantic carcass, spear in hand, covered in blood and gore. "They must not be made to suffer. You must offer them a clean death, boy; do you understand? A quick death or you do not kill at all."
Argall did not know how to hunt. He knew how to hurt and maim, two things that seemed to come to him quickly. But he did not kill his targets immediately, a worrying thing, Thragg found; his son had a natural inclination towards prolonging the suffering of those he killed. A natural inclination towards Sadism. Still, it wasn't anything Thragg hadn't seen before. Such a trait was common among young Viltrumites.
But it was worrying.
Argall's grin disappeared upon hearing Thragg's words. The boy seemed dejected for a moment as he stared down at the whimpering Wilderbeast on the grass, all its limbs sliced off. Argall was more than capable of killing it immediately. His weapon could slice through just about anything. He could've gone for the head, but the boy's first instincts told him to cut down the Wilderbeast slowly, one limb after another. He enjoyed it too. Thragg knew the look on the boy's face because he'd shared that very same look when he was younger.
The boy met his gaze. And Thragg knew he had to be firm. "Cruelty is beneath us; if we must kill, then we do so quickly and efficiently. I want you to answer me, boy; do you understand?"
Argall's inner conflict lasted for about a moment longer, before he raised his spear and stabbed the Wilderbeast's heart, killing it instantly. "I understand, father. Forgive me."
Thragg shook his head. "Apologize to the animal, boy. And promise to do better."
Argall nodded and jumped down, absently sending his spear into the cube. He then knelt before the Wilderbeast and laid his hand on his massive chest. "Forgive me, beast... I... I didn't know what came over me. But... I promise that I shall not bring pain or suffering to any other creature."
Thragg placed a hand over the boy's shoulder. Argall would try. But he'd fail again and again. That was to be expected. What mattered was that Thragg would be there to guide him, until Argall grew into a man of wisdom, virtue, and strength. "Make good with your promise, boy. If you break it, you disappoint only yourself."
"Yes, father." Argall nodded as he stood up. "I'll... remember that."
Thragg wasn't certain of that, but he knew that Argall would, at the very least, try his best to control himself better.
"Now, we will clean this carcass." Thragg said, pulling back his sleeves. Wilderbeast organs were tough – too tough for humans to safely devour. Thragg himself could eat it without any problem, but the tradition of the people of this planet dictated that organs and innards would be left on the place where the kill was made for the scavengers to feast on. Soon enough, hungering Black Hounds and Laughing Lions would come, drawn to the scent from miles and miles away. Argall nodded and summoned his spear again, using just the tip of it to cut open the Wilderbeast's belly, disemboweling the creature. Wordlessly, Thragg knelt down and shoved his forearms inside, before pulling out every organ he could wrap his hands around. He didn't get everything. Stepping back, Thragg turned to Argall.
The boy nodded and dug his forearms into the opening in the Wilderbeast's belly, doing as his father did as he pulled out all the remaining organs. The brain would have to be removed only after they reached their home. Wilderbeast skulls were prized trophies and neither of them had to the tools or the expertise to remove the brain without damaging the skull. Nareena could do it, of course, it was one of her few hobbies. They had a whole building with an interior space that was dedicated solely to her trophies. She even had the skull of a dragon there, gleaming silver, its emerald eyes blazing; Thragg was pretty sure it was made entirely of self-repairing nano-machines.
Argall was strong enough to drag the whole carcass by himself. So, after tying up the beast with a series of ropes, which were attached to the boy's torso, Thragg had Argall do just that. It was good for the boy's stamina and his overall physical fitness, which was a problem for powerful beings, like Viltrumites. There were very few things they could use to train with. The Wilderbeast weighed around five thousand kilograms, enough to give Argall a hard workout, since he'd be dragging it over rough terrain. The boy did not complain, however, and simply did as he was told.
Fortunately, the carcass did not attract the predators of the grasslands on their journey back to Alka. It might've been due to the proximity of the city as a great majority of the wild and violent beasts lingered in the depths of the steppes, far from human civilization, where the herds of Wilderbeasts roamed in their millions. It was dark by the time they arrived.
"Ah, Thragg; it seems your son's monstrous strength has only grown." The guards recognized them quickly enough. One of them Torvig, a young man, greeted. Thragg knew the boy, a runt with no talent in scrapping, which was how he ended up settling for a position as a guard of the city. Still, it was a noble profession, which the boy performed to the best of his abilities. Not that there was much for him to do. Guards were a ceremonial position if nothing else.
"Indeed." Thragg nodded at the young man. Argall did the same, but smiled at the compliment.
They passed through the gates and entered the city proper. Alka was not a particularly large city. There were many others that had far greater population numbers. What Alka did have, however, was a booming industry. As the city that was closest in proximity to the junkyard, almost every scrapper had a tendency to briefly stop in Alka to rest and resupply; it was referred to as the Hub Town, for that reason, a place where plenty of scrappers gathered before or after setting out. Prominent businessmen also had a presence in the city, where they traded scrap for coin or weapons. The Scrapper's Guild also maintained a permanent office in Alka, where licenses were issued and prospecting scrappers could find some form of training. Thragg had been there only once, just to secure the most basic license. He didn't want to, but Nareena was a big follower of the rule of law. And he couldn't say no to her.
Many of the people here turned to regard his son with curious and awe-filled stares and glances. No human was capable of dragging a fully-grown Wilderbeast behind them with as much ease as Argall did. It was virtually impossible for them, actually. Most of the locals, however, already knew about Argall's gift and were not nearly as surprised. The visitors, on the other hand, openly gawked. Thragg grinned. It felt... good... to see others be bewildered by his son. It was pride, he figured, pride in the growth of his child, pride in the fact that he wasn't the only one to see that growth.
Did Nolan feel the same way for his son, Mark? He must've. His son grew up to be very powerful; after all, it was Mark – despite all the help he'd received at the time – who eventually defeated him. Pride. Nolan would've been proud of his son, just as Thragg was proud of Argall.
Their house wasn't far from the main entrance, nestled upon a hill that overlooked the city, a reward Nareena had received after she discovered a functioning STC, a remnant from a civilization known only as the Old Empire; the device could apparently take scrap metal and turn it into some form of highly malleable, durable, and heat-resistant steel. For her discovery, she was awarded with the house they now resided in, a house with its own greenhouse, freezer, smokehouse, vegetable garden, and forge. The residential building itself, however, per Nareena's instructions, was not particularly large, good enough for a family of six to comfortably live in. Now, only Thragg, Argall, and Nareena herself dwelled in their home; Sereen had long since migrated to Amak, a city that lay on the western side of the junkyard.
"Do you think mother would be happy with this catch?" Argall asked, huffing as they trekked up the hill to their home. The boy strained as he pulled his own weight up, alongside the weight of the Wilderbeast, but his strides were largely unaffected by the beast's weight. That was good. Argall was growing stronger. Perhaps, one day, the boy would reach the same level of strength as a Viltrumite. For now, it was simply too early to tell. And, ultimately, it didn't matter; clearly, Argall's power was in his ability to invent just about anything he could think of.
Thragg nodded and smiled as he reached out and ruffled his son's hair. "She has been craving for Wilderbeast steak as of late. This much shoulder shut her up for the next six months or so. If that doesn't make her happy, then I believe your gift should do the trick."
Argall's face lit up and, as though his spirit was bolstered, the boy happily trotted up the hill, dragging the Wilderbeast carcass behind him as though it wasn't there at all.