Prologue: Sendoff

Netherworld:

Erasmus Killgore was usually not one to stand on ceremony. Case in point, he'd never formally married any of his brides; Velvet, Sophitia, Taki… none of them. Everyone involved just sort of fell into a mutual agreement that things were as they should be and started using the appropriate pronouns to refer to each other. That sounded rather dry, and indeed there was much more to it all, but that was the concise version of his living arrangements. Today though, today he was willing to make a break in this self-imposed pattern for a special occasion. Today he was fortunate enough to bear witness to Bjorn, his grandson, set off on his first deliberate adventure through the void to another universe. Acheron had specifically requested that they all be present, which was a very nice gesture considering that his eldest son hadn't been a father for that long. The self-titled pirate had even gone the extra mile and opened a large portal-window so Shirahoshi could watch the proceedings from her grotto in the deeper reaches of the Netherworld as was her right as mother to Bjorn. The giant mermaid was, in a completely normal turn of events, softly crying as her "little boy" got ready to depart.

He loosed a single, small laugh to himself. "Ha, 'little boy' indeed. Ten and a half feet of armored muscle that makes me look like a twig in comparison. Yes, he is most deserving of the moniker 'little."

A shadow fell upon him, and he craned his head back to look up at Bjorn before the young man spoke. "Well Granpa, I iz guessin dat dis be goodbye fer now."

He reached up and set his right hand upon Bjorn's left shoulder. "It's only goodbye if you don't come back. And I have every confidence that you will do so in glorious triumph." He glanced at the wire-wrapped handle protruding over his grandson's shoulder beyond his hand. "I trust that you find your going-away gift to your liking. It took me a whole day to set the metal properly for such a massive weapon."

"Massive" was a bit of an overused word when it came to large blades, but Bjorn's blade most definitely deserved such distinction. A full meter longer than Soul Edge, and countless kilograms heavier, and yet Bjorn held it in one hand like a toy, a toy the boy had promptly dubbed "Da Mega Choppa." Lacking in originality, most likely, but certainly descriptive. Besides, it was Bjorn's weapon, he could call it whatever he liked.

A big grin spread across his grandson's face. "I luv it. I'z gonna krump loads a gits wif it. Unless I shootz dem ta deff first." The grin vanished and the giant looked upwards thoughtfully. "Hmm, I can't fink which I likez more. Shooty or choppy, choppy or shooty…" About six seconds of silence passed before Bjorn shrugged his burly shoulders. "Eh, it don't mattah. Both iz loads of fun."

He forced a smile to match and pet the boy's shoulder. "That's the spirit. Whatever suits you at the time."

Bjorn started to turn around to eagerly move towards the walls of the Netherworld and the multitude of static portals dotting the wall. Before the boy could charge off into the great unknown however, an even larger arm reached across the balcony they were all gathered on and latched onto Bjorn's retreating left arm.

Shirahoshi spoke through the portal-window, around her extended arm, amazingly subduing her almost ever-present tears. "Now Bjorn, you come back and visit me, ok? Mommy's going to miss her little boy."

Bjorn immediately did an about-face and lumbered over to the portal-window, sticking his head through and planting what he assumed was a very loud kiss on Shirahoshi's cheek. "I'z gonna miss you to ma. I'z promiz ta stop krumpin ta see ya every week."

Mother mollified, Bjorn turned and started moving towards the walls again with gusto, but Acheron loudly cleared his throat. "Ahem, Bjorn, maybe there are other people here that have things to say before you run off."

The young giant stopped, one foot suspended in midair, for a stretch of several seconds before spinning about and abashedly chuckling. "Eh heh heh, I'z suppoz dat you'z right pa."

With that bit of prompting Bjorn began to make a slow circuit of the throne room balcony, exchanging cheerful pleasantries with varying degrees of familiarity to the gathered family members. The green-eyed boy took notably longer to work through the panoply of women that made up Acheron's harem, but such was the numerical difference. Bjorn stopped outright in front of Persephone, his aunt despite the detail that she was two years younger than him, for a long moment.

Persephone fidgeted awkwardly. "Ah, ahem…" The young woman rallied her composure. "I wish you luck with your-"

Bjorn picked the girl up and hugged her, inadvertently causing several almost disturbingly loud pops to issue from Persephone's back. "Thanks Auntie. You'z ben great fun, leadin me to all doze places wif ya, an all da fun fings to krump dat was in em." Bjorn stopped hugging the young woman and held her out at arm's length. "Youz sure dat ya don wantz ta coma long wif me? I be sure dat dere gonna be a load a gits to stomp."

The family's sole Overlady shook her head vigorously once she was put back on the ground. "I'm sure Bjorn, but thank you for offering, again. You go along and have some fun on your own."

Acheron, not to mention most of the other people in the room, gave Persephone a long, skeptical look before stepping forward before Bjorn could wander towards the portals again. "Hey there big guy, you weren't going to go off, um, 'krumpin' without saying goodbye to me, now were you? I'd feel a little bit offended if you were."

Bjorn's face twisted up into a miffed scowl. "I'z sorry pa. I'z juz really wantz ta get out dere. Da boyz be waitin on me. And dey don do waitin dat well. I'z probly gonna hav ta knock a few on da ead to get em finkin straight for wen we gets ta stompin. I'z da boss, dats wat I'z do."

Acheron nodded once. "I get that, but you're my kid. It's my job to see you off, so…" The young man held out his arms and gestured with his fingers. "…How about it. I know you're a big fan, and I can deal with it, just this once, since it's such a big day."

The green-eyed giant looked at his father for a moment, and it eventually dawned on the boy what Acheron was giving him permission to do. Bjorn seized the chance happily, scooping Acheron up in another crushing bear-hug that audibly stressed the recipient's spine. The boy laughed merrily, and Acheron, though obviously extremely uncomfortable, faked a laugh convincingly enough that Bjorn seemed heartened by it.

The young giant dropped his father and gave all present one last boisterous wave. "Fanks, all of ya. Now I'z really gotz to get movin."

Instead of waving a hand and calling one of the floating rock discs to ferry him over to the walls, Bjorn simply squared up with the edge, a good three meters back.

Sophitia, standing just a short ways off to his left, voiced what they were all thinking, in perhaps different words. "Oh gods, he's not going to…"

Indeed, with a bellowing war-cry Bjorn took off at a dead sprint that shook the balcony and leapt for the portal walls. "Ere we go!"

The young giant flew like a rock, awkwardly and at a poor angle. Bjorn's limbs flailed as if the boy were trying to swim, and oddly it seemed to actually buoy the short flight. Bjorn sailed straight through one portal, although likely no one but the giant himself knew if it were actually the one he had been aiming for.

With Bjorn gone, Acheron immediately turned towards his sister. "So, what's this I learn just now about you leading my kid around, doubtlessly doing your dirty work for you?"

Persephone looked relatively nonplussed, apart from the blush suffusing her ivory face. "I really don't see the problem here. Bjorn was clearly enjoying himself, as he just told everyone."

Some of the assembled family started filing away, and he chose that moment to comment. "I think it's more the spirit of the issue Persephone, the surreptitious manner in which you acted. Bjorn has proven himself an exceptional warrior, even if he is particularly undisciplined. And from that stems the concern, he's reckless. You bring him to situations that you clearly think, either that you can't handle alone, or that you don't want to bother with." He shifted his tone into pure authoritarian. "That conveys a certain lack of respect for us, your own family." He gestured towards one of the Brown minions milling about the stairs to the Forge. "Those are our minions, your minions until you deign to employ something different. Do not make the mistake of considering us in the same capacity."

Persephone's face turned brilliant red. "I, ah…" Her eyes fell. "I, I'll try to think about that in the near future."

His daughter made a slow about-face and trudged off towards her room. He felt bad about berating Persephone like that, but he had a gut feeling that he was unfortunately going to have to do that same thing periodically for a while to undo some of the potentially destructive habits she had been demonstrating that were likely directly derived from her utterly spoiled upbringing.

Acheron sauntered up to him, closing the portal to Shirahoshi's grotto with a hand wave. "Well, that was a first. I can't remember you ever chewing Persephone out like that before."

He shot a sidelong glance at his son. "Make no mistake, I did not derive a single shred of pleasure from that. But, she has to learn that there are limits to her authority, specifically us." He looked off towards the portal Bjorn had vanished through. "I do not dispute her point, Bjorn did seem like he genuinely enjoyed himself wherever Persephone brought him. But doing so behind our backs, behind your back especially…"

His eldest just shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, I guess it is what it is." Acheron stood there in silence for a long while as the balcony emptied of everyone but them, staring after Bjorn. "Hey, you think the big lug is going to be fine? I know he's practically made of iron but still…"

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "It speaks well of you that you show concern, even if unwarranted. I'm sure he'll be fine. If he doesn't drown something in bullets or chop it in half he'll still have the protection of that unorthodox army he is so proud of. And they are all almost as tough to kill as we are, not to mention utterly ruthless when roused."

Acheron chuckled lightly. "Yeah, yeah I guess they are at that. I think I might even have to shoot one of them more than once with Soul Calibur to kill it, and that's fucking tough." After another long moment jabbed a thumb off towards the portal on the wall that led to the "pirate" world that Acheron had been taking over when he returned. "Hey, you want to go and grab a drink? I mean, I know it's not exactly your thing and all…"

He let out a short chuckle. "As was this entire affair with seeing Bjorn off. Seeing as how I've already broken that aspect of tradition, I see no harm in sharing a drink with my own son." He held up a hand and waggled a finger at Acheron. "Quid pro quo though, one crack about my age and I'm gone."

His son scowled before shooting back a pointed remark. "Jeez, times like this I really wish we weren't incapable of getting drunk. A few drinks might loosen that stick up your ass…"