Brandon Varnell
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WIEDERGEBURT Act VI: Chapter 22
🕑 Added 2021-04-01 16:49:07 +0000 UTCI gnashed my teeth together as I ducked below a spatial spear that had been sent my way. Odd thing about these spears. You couldnât feel them when they moved passed you. It was almost like they werenât there, but you could see them as they tore the space they passed. It unnerved me. A lot.
Once the spear was gone, I tried to move but found several spatial spears thrusting out of the ground to impale me, forcing me to move backward, away from my target.
Said target was a man with hair like fire and eyes like coals. He was leaner than most of the men Iâd fought so far; leaner, lankier, and looking far less attractive than the average Guddomelig. Iâd learned from my peers that this man was from the peasantâs quarters. People who were less attractive had poor breeding, meaning they came from the poorest district and bottom level of ĂsgarĂ°r.
Despite his below average appearance, his abilities were above average. At the very least, they were giving me a run for my money.
I had already tried merging with the ground, but my opponent had placed a spatial barrier on the floor that separated it from me. I could not touch it. Heâd actually tried wrapping me in it, but barriers like that were flimsy. I broke the barrier, so now he just kept me from being able to activate the Fourth State of Spiritualism with the earth.
But just meant I needed to get more creative.
Sixteen light spears appeared around the man and flew toward him. He erected a barrier. The space around him distorted, the light spears flew in, and then came at me, but I had a perfect understanding of the light element now and just absorbed the Spiritual Power Iâd expended to make them. They were just a distraction anyway.
A howl went up when my real attack slipped through the manâs guard--a death spear, a spear made of death energy. Practically invisible, the spear flew into my opponentâs side and cut a thin line through his spatial armor.
That was another thing Iâd noticed. All the people on the third floor were able to encase their bodies in a kind of conceptualized armor. It was armor composed of the concept they wielded. Since this was something I still couldnât do, it meant I was not as protected, but I made up for that by being more ingenuitive with what I could use.
Oh. My opponentâs name was a man called Ritzen Hauld. I didnât know much about him. Only that he was one victory away from entering the fourth floor.
It was too bad he ran into me.
The moment Ritzen was distracted, I activated the Fourth State of Spiritualism with the light element, used the Flash Step Version 3: Light Step, appeared beside him, and slammed my death energy-infused palms right into his gut. The attack shattered what remained of his armor and sent him sprawling to the ground. I rushed over before he could get up, straddled his chest, and pressed my fist right next to his face.
âSurrender,â I said, breathing heavily through my nose.
Ritzen held the angry look for a second, then sighed. âI give up.â
Loud cheers echoed around the third floor seats. While only people who had earned the right could participate, anyone could watch.
I stood up with a sigh, feeling my shoulders slump as the official declared me the winner, gave my badge back, and congratulated me on another victory. This would make five victories in a row. It would have been seven, but I lost my first two.
Still, I couldnât complain too much. Five victories meant 1,500 credits.
âYou almost fucking lost again,â Tora said as I climbed down from the arena.
Tora was also a third floor arena participant, but she had been doing worse than me. Her understanding of the Concept of Creation was firmer than my understanding of my two concepts. I, however, had the benefit of over several decades worth of constant warfare and struggling just to survive.
Experience usually trumped raw power. Usually.
âBut I didnât,â I said. âAnd donât think you can make fun of me. You did lose your last battle.â
âI wonât fucking lose again. Just watch me,â Tora growled as she made her way to the arena platform and spoke with the official. It wasnât long before she found herself squaring off against an opponent who was about twice her size.
It had been half a month since Iâd arrived at Hero Hall, and in that half a month, Iâd done nothing but fight, study alchemy, eat, and sleep. It was a routine that served me well, but I felt like I really needed a change. If I kept going at this pace, I was gonna wear myself down.
Kari once told me variety was the spice of life. Lin had joked about how that was why I had several wives, which earned her a smack on the head. Jokes aside, it was true that sticking with one routine for so long was wearing me down.
As I thought about what to do, I remembered that I still hadnât contacted Fray about the Prismatic Wyrm I had defeated and salvaged. I thought about it and decided that I should visit her tomorrow. There was nothing in the rules that forbade us from leaving academy grounds; I knew Tora had left at least once for one reason or another.
Speaking of, Tora managed to defeat her opponent. It had been by the skin of her teeth. Sheâd used the Concept of Creation to build an indestructible cage that her opponent couldnât get through--except he had. Sheâd been rather shocked when her cage was destroyed. That almost cost her head, but sheâd managed to win by creating a powerful paralytic toxin that no strong body could defend against.
It made me realize how dangerous the Concept of Creation was.
âThere! How was that? Got any fucking complaints now?â asked Tora as she hopped down from the stage.
âWhen did I ever complain?â I asked, shrugging. âAnyway, you wanna keep battling?â
âNaww. Too hungry.â
âThen we should get something to eat.â
Having fought seven battles, I was fairly famished myself. The battles on this floor were far harder as well. None of these people were as strong as Durmuz had been, but they were powerful enough that Iâd say they could give me a run for my valis.
We left the arena behind and went to the banquet hall. It was a little later in the afternoon than most people usually ate lunch, so there were not as many people present, but that suited me just fine. I had something I wanted to speak with Tora about that I didnât want others overhearing.
The servantâs who managed the banquet hall prepared a platter of bite sized sandwiches for us. As we sat down at the long tables on the far left, I decided now was the best time.
âIâve a favor to ask,â I said.
âWhatâs this?â Tora asked, eyes on me. âA favor? You want me to do something for you?â
I nodded. âI would like you to help me look into Skudeâs home life. Fray said she thought there was something suspicious about Klaue and wanted me to investigate, but I havenât found anything.â
Of course, I havenât really been trying, but I had asked around. Nobody thought there was anything suspicious. The few people I asked had just looked at me with confusion.
âHuh. So Fray is investigating Klaue,â Tora murmured. âGuess that makes sense. Those two never did like each other. Well, thatâs fine. I guess I can ask around for you.â
âThatâs great. Thank you.â
âWhatever. Just donât make a fucking habit of it.â
***
We spoke for about an hour longer during lunch. Tora learned that I was planning to visit Fray to ask if I could have the Less Prismatic Wyrm corpse I salvaged awhile back, so I could sell it to the alchemy store at the academy for spare parts and asked to come with. I didnât have a reason to say no.
Leaving the academy together, we wandered through the streets of ĂsgarĂ°r. I used my memory of the time Chloe showed me the way to reach the palace.
There were many guards around the palace right now, but they all let me through when they realized who I was. I hailed down a passing servant and asked where Fray was. The young woman garbed as a maid led me into a small hanging garden, a little balcony with a wide variety of colorful flowers.
Fray was crouched low as she tended to the garden, snipping off a few leaves with her spatial severing powers. The white dress she wore was folded around her middle. I could see how it conformed to her body through the wrinkles.
âEryk,â Fray greeted when she noticed my presence. She turned around, smiled at me, and then looked at the woman beside me. âAnd⊠Tora, correct? I did not expect you to bring a guest.â
âIâm only here because staying at the academy by myself is fu--I mean, itâs boring,â Tora said, checking herself. Now that was interesting. I had not taken this woman for someone who knew how to watch her tongue in front of others.
âIs that so?â Fray smiled like she had seen right through Tora, which caused the younger woman to blush. âWas there something you needed, Eryk? Or are you just here to visit me?â
âIâm afraid this isnât a social call. You remember the Lesser Prismatic Wyrm I killed? Iâd like to sell the parts I salvaged to Hero Hallâs alchemy store,â I said.
âAh.â Frayâs eyes lit up a bit. âThat is a good idea. A Demon Beast like that will fetch a nice price from the store. Iâm guessing you have a place to store it in now?â
âYes.â
I showed off a small ring on my finger. The runes were currently inactive, but they were still easy to see in the sunlight.
âVery well.â Fray nodded once, then waved her hand, creating a powerful distortion in the air. Space was split. Then several dozen tons worth of scales, blood, organs, teeth, claws, and bones appeared in the air. âHere you are. Everything is still fresh as if it had just been killed.â
âThank you,â I said, holding out my hand and touching the various parts. The runes on my ring glowed briefly as the parts were stored inside. Once everything had disappeared, I was prepared to leave.
Fray, however, had other plans.
âMust you leave now? Why donât you two sit down and have some tea with me?â
I really didnât want to have tea when I had things to do, but I knew it was rude to not drink with my benefactor and aunt. Tora didnât have any complaints either.
And that was how we had tea with Fray. She asked many questions about Hero Hall, like how our studies were going, what sort of activities we had decided upon, and whether or not weâd had a chance to use the meditation chambers. I didnât hold back. Since this woman was family, odd as that still sometimes seemed, I felt safe letting her know what I had been up to. Tora also added some commentary, but she was mostly quiet. I had the distinct feeling she was nervous around Fray.
We did run into one issue when Chloe appeared before us while we were having tea.
âMaster Eryk,â Chloe said with a graceful smile as she held out the expensive tea kettle to me. âIt looks like you have finished your tea. Please let me refill your cup for you.â
âOh, thank you.â
I held out the cup as the woman refilled it, trying to ignore the odd sensation I felt at Chloeâs smile. It was very different from the normal smiles she gave me.
âI could also use a refill,â Tora said as she held out her cup.
In that moment, as Chloe turned to Tora, I felt a chill run straight down my spine. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Chloe even muttered a gracious âOf course, Lady Toraâ as she poured the woman her tea, but I thought I felt a strange energy pass between the two.
âYou are an awfully good servant,â Tora said, for some reason emphasizing the word servant as if that was important. âVery refined.â
âWell, I am Master Erykâs personal servant. That means I have to always be at my best so I can attend to him.â Chloeâs smile widened a fraction, but that just caused strange shadows to appear on her face.
âIs that so?â Tora asked. âHeh heh heh.â
âIt is indeed. Hm hm hm.â
As the two began laughing, I felt something like someone had dumped a tub of ice water over my head, or frozen me solid into a block of ice with a powerful Spiritual Water Technique. All the while, Fray just looked at what was happening with a smile.
***
âI think that is the first time Iâve seen you act so demure,â I said as we were leaving the palace.
âSh-shut the fuck up,â Tora growled, her cheeks red. âOf course Iâm not going to act⊠like I usually do in front of Lady Fray.â
âLady Fray?â I tilted my head, now curious. âSo you, uh, look up to Fray, I take it?â
âIt would be more accurate to ask âwhat woman doesnât look up to her?ââ Tora began with a frown. âLady Fray is what all women aspire to be. Beautiful. Powerful. Refined. A warrior who is feared by her enemies and loved by her people. You clearly donât know how fortunate you are to be so close to her.â
I did know that Fray was a powerful warrior and leader within ĂsgarĂ°r, who controlled her own division of the army known as the Valkyries, but I didnât know she was that popular among the cityâs populace.
We made our way back to Hero Hall, taking several turns into narrower alleys as we traversed the streets. I wanted to avoid larger avenues with a lot of people. Yet as we were making our way back to Hero Hall, I felt a sudden sensation like fingers trailing down my back. It was not the pleasant feeling of a loverâs caress. Someone was watching us.
âWeâre being followed,â I said.
âWe are?â Tora looked started. She tilted her head, eyes going crossed for a moment. I sensed Spiritual Power emit from her body in waves. âAh. It seems you are right. There are ten people following us. Fuck. They look like members of the Northern Division.â
The Northern Division, or in other words, members of Klaueâs group. I wondered what they were doing following us. It was true I had humiliated Klaueâs son, and he was not the kind of person to let that go, but I also didnât think he would be dumb enough to send his men after me like this. Maybe I had overestimated him?
âWhat kind of technique was that?â I asked.
âI call it Sonar of All Creation,â Tora explained with a pleased smile. âBy emitting Spiritual Power infused with creation energy through my skin, I can create a perfect map in my mind of everything in a ten kilometer radius around me. Pretty fucking useful, right?â
âVery useful,â I agreed.
âWhat should we do about our tail?â
That was a good question, and I didnât really know how to answer it at first. I wasnât sure if they were following us to keep an eye on us, or if they were doing so with the intent to harm us when they saw an opportunity. Maybe they had just heard about how we had been at the palace and wanted to know what we were up to?
âLetâs find a remote location where no one will see us,â I said. âIâd like to see what their purpose in following us is. If theyâre going to ambush us, they wonât do so in a populated crowd like this.â
âIâve got just the place. Follow me. Weâll see if those fuckers take the bait,â Tora said.
I followed Tora, who knew ĂsgarĂ°r far better than I did. She took a number of streets and alleys, ascended and descended to various levels at will, and eventually arrived in a back alley that was so far off the beaten path not a soul could be seen. This alley was set between towering buildings and had a wall blocking off one side. Walls didnât mean much to me, but anyone else would have been trapped.
It didnât take long for the ten people following us to arrive. All of them were cloaked and wore masks, which made me frown. I hadnât used my wind sonar to get a good look at them. Now that I had, I wondered how Tora realized they were from the Northern Division.
âWell⊠this is fucking interesting,â Tora muttered. âLooks like they want a fight.â
Almost the moment she said that, five of the ten pulled swords from sheaths within their cloaks and rushed forward. Their weapons became overlayed with powerful fluctuations. I sensed the Concept of Death on their swords. Meanwhile, the ones in the back raised their hands, Spiritual Power surging as they created a spatial lock around Tora and I.
It was a well-coordinated assault. The ones in the back locked us in pace, while the ones charging forward attacked. Most people probably would have been caught off guard by such a strong offensive.
I was not.
When the five guards were within attacking distance, they swung their swords forward, cutting into the bodies of myself and Tora. I was a little surprised they were willing to kill Tyrâs daughter. Maybe they didnât care about her, or maybe they didnât want to leave a witness. Whatever the case was, their swords tore through the bodies from shoulder to hip.
And then the bodies turned into water.
âWhat?!â one of the guards finally broke out in shock.
I appeared behind the guards who had activated the spatial lock, having deemed them the greatest threat. So long as I could move, I could fight, but I couldnât do anything if I was frozen in space.
Coating my fake arm in death energy, I manipulated the earth element composing it into a jagged spear that I thrust forward. I felt a jolt travel up my arm as my attack didnât skewer this manâs back but bounced off what felt like a hardened shell. The man spun around, and I ducked to avoid a powerful strike that would have removed my head.
With the cloak he wore torn and tattered, I was able to glimpse the armor underneath. It was covered in a glowing rune array. No doubt this was what had blocked my ability to penetrate his skin.
I quickly analysed what I could of the rune array while I dodged the manâs attacks. Two of my attacks came up on my left, but I shifted against the ground so none of them could strike me without running the risk of striking their allies. Even with this measure in place, some of them still attacked. Their techniques slammed against one of their allies, which caused the runes to flare before going back to normal.
The rune array was made from a combination of the runes Uruz, Thurisaz, Eihwaz, and Algiz. Eighwaz and Algiz were defensive runes, while Uruz and Thurisaz were runes of power. The power runes charged the defense runes, keeping them active and empowering them.
Which meant I just needed to disrupt the power runes.
Disrupting runes was not as easy as it sounded. Also, because the runes themselves blocked Spiritual Techniques, I couldnât use those to destroy the array. That meant getting creative.
I slipped into the guard of an enemy by replacing myself with a mist clone, which was exactly what it sounded like, then slammed my real hand into the manâs chestplate. My body torqued as I rammed my fist home, putting all the force I could into this attack. My aim was true. The runes on the chest plate ceased functioning when the armor received a crack.
Once my the armor ceased working, I used the Flash Step to appear behind him, created another spear with my fake arm, and thrust. My attack sliced through the manâs back and burst out his chest. He released a strangled gurgle, but that was the only noise he could release as viciously removed my hand-spear from his body with a downward swing that eviscerated him.
One thing I had noticed about using concepts to attack was that most people could only handle one technique at a time. The more complicated the technique, the more concentration it required, the harder it was to use anything else. It took a moment to switch from using a spatial lock to launching an attack, and I could use that moment to my advantage.
I killed one more guard before they could respond. Even though it was not my real hand, I was still able to feel the blood run down it as I slit a manâs throat. My weapon carved a deep furrow in his trachea as I swung it horizontally. The man tried to stem the flow of blood, but I kicked him in the chest. He plowed into one of his comrades and they both went down.
That meant I only had to deal with two of them.
âYouâre going to regret that!â one of the men snarled.
I didnât respond with words as the two released their Spiritual Power and created a thick armor of spatial energy that covered their bodies. This armor would render a lot of attacks ineffective. Tapping my foot against the ground, I channeled Spiritual Power into the stones, and made several spikes just from the floor and impale the two men whoâd just gone down. Their screams of anguish caused the two whoâd been a second from attacking me to turn their heads a fraction.
That was all the distraction I needed.
In a straight fight, there was no way I could defeat five powerful Spiritualists of the God Race, but I never fought fair when it life and death battles. Distractions. Taunting. Misdirection. I wasnât above using any dirty trick I had at my disposal.
These cloaked men were the same as the other Guddomelig I had fought in the arena. They were overly arrogant and believed so much in their own superiority that they didnât stop to think about attacking when we least expected it. Once we went to a remote location, they appeared before us as if challenging us to a duel. Was it honor, pride, or stupidity that made them act so? I wasnât sure, but Iâd be damned if I didnât take every advantage I could.
Appearing before one of the men, I created my Dragon Tail Ruler from pure death energy. I raised the massive weapon, compressed with so much death energy it had turned black, and swung it down on one of the soldierâs heads. The attack slammed into him with so much force the stone beneath his feet shattered.
Sadly, my opponent was not weak. He raised his hands in a crossguard, blocked the attack, and pushed me back with a shout of effort. Meanwhile, the other spatial user attacked me from behind, unsheathing his sword and creating a severing spatial blade that warped the air around it. I transformed into lightning and tried to travel inside of the guard Iâd been attacking, but I unfortunately could not break through his spatial armor.
Reappearing several meters away, I took a quick moment to see how Tora was doing. She didnât appear to be doing poorly, though I wouldnât say she was doing well either. Blood ran down a cut on her arm and face. She was favoring her right side. However, she wore a wide grin like she was enjoying the battle. Two of her foes already laid dead.
I could spare her no more time as one of my enemies created a long spiral-shaped spear of spatial energy and threw it at me. This was not an attack I could afford to defend against. I tried to merge into the ground and found my ability blocked. Guess that was a strategy every half decent Spiritualist came up with after my competition against Skude.
Since I couldnât merge with the earth, I transformed into light, absorbed the power of the sun around me, and used it to not only dodge but create several dozen spears that attempted to skewer my two opponents. My attacks hissed and sizzled as it struck the two, but none of them penetrated that spatial armor.
I think it was at this moment that I realized what the difference was between trained soldiers and those people I fought in the arena. It was true these men were arrogant. At the same time, they had the power to back that arrogance up. I might have surprised them, but once they stopped underestimating me and brought their full power to bear, it took everything I had just to remain alive.
One of the men tried to create a spatial lock around me, but I saw the spatial distortions seconds before it could form and made liberal use of the Flash Step Version 3: Light Step to get out of the way. It wasnât until the other soldier appeared before me that I realized Iâd been led into a trap. The spatial lock had been a distraction!
With no time to dodge, I raised my fake arm as the man came down with his sword. I felt no pain. However, the sword had been coated with a sharp spatial energy that had been compressed to a fine point. It severed my fake arm at the elbow. I was fortunate Iâd had the foresight to add an overlay of life energy to my arm. I was able to avoid my torso being cut open. Leaping back, I gained some distance from the two.
âHa⊠haâŠâ
Breathing deeply, I realized this battle had been going on for two long, and I was getting tired. Even though I could absorb light from the sun to maintain full capacity, my body still had limitations. Fighting a two on one battle with trained soldiers that had a greater grasp over the Concept of Space than I had over my concepts put a strain on my body and mind.
I was just wondering what I should do to get myself out of this situation when, to my great surprise, Chloe appeared behind one of the soldiers. She held a powerful looking silver spear in her hand. With a simple thrust, the spear penetrated the soldierâs back, exploded from his front, and severed his spine. She lifted the man into the air like he weighed less than my pillow and tossed him into the other man.
Now was my chance!
I burst forward, channeled death energy into my real hand, and created a thick overlay. The black energy ran rampant, but I compressed it. Then I added more death energy, which I compressed again. Again. Again. Again. The Concept of Death was so thick around my hand that my arm had disappeared entirely, and I even had to create some armor from life energy to avoid decaying my own limb.
Then I thrust my arm forward. My target was the manâs neck.
Despite being knocked off balance, this man was still a trained soldier. He moved enough that my attack struck his arm instead of his head. My hand went through his shoulder, severing the arm, which plopped to the ground in a spray of blood. Trained this man might have been, but a severed arm still hurt. He screamed and gripped his arm as he stumbled back.
And then Chloe killed him with a thrust of her spear. The weapon penetrated his skull and killed him instantly.
We didnât have time to celebrate. Tora was still fighting three soldiers and losing badly. She had more wounds than before. Cuts ran along her torso. She was bleeding profusely from a wound in her left thigh. I think the only reason she hadnât been killed yet was because sheâd managed to create armor from the Concept of Creation, which was more powerful than the Concept of Death, but her armor was still flimsy and incomplete, and their understanding was also greater than hers.
Chloe and I shared a glance, and then raced forward to help Tora finish off her three attackers.
Comments
Yes. Since my inspiration is Norse mythology, I thought Elder Futhark runes fit the aesthetic.
I've been doing Genealogy in my Anglo-Saxon ancestry, and we used the same alphabet but we had 5 additional runes.
I just realized that you use Elder Futhark for your rune arrays
rykott
Ahhh... the polite female talks that chill all men to the bone ;D
I'll have to go back and check, but maybe? It doesn't sound wrong, but the context might be off.
Paigeon
I think, Chloe is a valkyrie. One of the inofficial guards of the Palace
Tim Nielsen
Once my armor stopped working I used flashstep to move behind him... . Is that sentence correct? I like this little scuffle it was very interesting and I'm also wondering about Chloe myself. đ€
She'll play a bigger role later on. :-)
I never explicitly state it, but Eryk has reached the Fourth State in every element. He did so before he met his aunt. Living alongside creatures far beyond his power forced him to grow stronger to survive.
Tanner Lovelace
Actually, I guess in Act VI: Chapter 11 it was mentioned that he had reached the 4th state with light and and in Act VI: Chapter 15 & 16 it was mentioned obliquely that he had reached the 4th state in Earth. But, nowhere has it said he reached it with any other elements. Chapter 10, though, seems like it might have been a great place for that to have happened, but it wasn't explicitly said.
Tanner Lovelace
No, actually, it was stated he reached the 3rd state in all the elements in Act IV, Chapter 2 (which is still labeled as Act II, Chapter 2). The relevant section is as follows: âWell⊠I did reach the Third State of Spiritualism with the light element not long ago,â I confessed. In the five years since connecting Nevaria to Midgard, I had not been sitting on my laurels. When I wasnât training my son, my sect mates, or dealing with important sect-related matters, I was training myself. âUnbelievable,â Fay murmured. âWhat other elements have you reached the Third State in?â asked Lin. This time, it was my turn to puff out my chest. âAll of them.â âWHAT?!â Since it looked like everyone was shocked by my announcement, I explained how Iâd been training. I trained myself in one element until I reached the Third State of Spiritualism, then worked on the next element. I started with fire first since it was easy to understand, then went to earth, wind, and darkness. âThe only thing I canât seem to do is combine elements like Lin can,â I admitted with a small shrug. âI think you either have to possess an innate understanding for the element like Lin, or maybe I have to reach the Fourth State of Spiritualism for the elements I want to combine them.â
It was stated in a previous chapter before he got to Asgardr that he had reached the 4th state with all the elements
Tanner Lovelace
I just realized that Eryk has now reached the 4th state of spiritualism in both light and earth according to this chapter. Last I remember he had just reached the 3rd state in everything except his main elements (water & lightning). When did that happen and what does that mean for Kariâs achievement of reaching the 4th state in light without the use of alchemy pills? There was a big deal made about the fact that she was the only one to have done that but now it appears Eryk has too. (Donât get me wrong, I think itâs great that he has, and I figured it would happen at some point anyway.)
Tanner Lovelace
Good to see Chloe again! I was hoping she would show up sometime.
