Full Circle

by Stand Alone Battle A.I

Join Hrist, as she continues her quest across midgard, to ensure that everyone gets their daily recommended dose of iron. With an iron sword

3. 121 Gigawats

Time… Time is an artificial construct, an arbitrary system, based on the idea that, events occur in a linear direction at all times. Always forward, never back. Is the concept of time correct? Is time relevant? It matters not. One way or another, I fear that our time has run out. –Sheogorath

Hrist sat with her legs crossed on the edge of an elegant water fountain, and kept an ever vigilant eye on the guards, as they patrolled the checkpoint that led to the noble district. Arngrim sat casually with her, taking his own assessment of their opposition. To the average passerby they looked like a happy couple enjoying the sunshine.

"So what's the plan boss?"

The night prior, Hrist had done some recon of their defenses, and discovered that these guys were serious about their security. Short of tunneling, there was no way to sneak into the Noble side of the wall. Barricades had been set up at the exits that led up to Midgard itself, leaving the only way in through the city itself. Hrist could fly, but that wasn't going to help them this time. Snipers had been set up at random rooftops all over the place. Their purpose was simple, if they looked sick, kill-em. As heartless as it sounds the nobles agreed to it, since most of their servants came from the poor side of town. Even though technically they were watching the ground, them being on the rooftops made it impossible to fly in unnoticed. Hrist had hoped that, since Missy had mentioned people getting in with a pass, that they could possibly steal a pass from someone. But that wasn't the case, really it was a huge list that one of the guards had at the checkpoint. So that gave them nothing to steal.

That left only one option to get in.

"Unfortunetly, our best option is infiltrating their barricades." she said. This was not going to be easy, getting past a bouncer or gang century was one thing, but these guys were disciplined soldiers.

Arngrim nodded in agreement. "It does look like our best way in… So what's our cover story?"

Not Husband and Wife "I was thinking I could be Leone the Mercenary Partner…" Arngrim looked over at the checkpoint. "I dunno, most of the nobles are probably HPT (high priority targets), and I don't think that they are gonna let a couple of potential assassins in."

Please gods, not husband and wife "What about Leone the noble?"

Arngrim rubbed his chin "With me playing the bodyguard? That could work. You'd have to do the talking though. You think you're up for it?" Hrist deflated a little. Her looks were her best asset, a flirtatious smile or well placed wink could get her passed a lot, but she was pretty sure that it wasn't going to work with armed sentries. Words were the key here, and Arngrim was the smooth talker.

Not Husband and Wife "Leone the courier?"

"You'd be on the list."

NotHusbandandWife "Leone the merchant?"

"You'd be on the list, and you'd have to do the talking."

Hrist's shoulders slumped and she looked like she wanted to cry. "We could do Husband and Wife…" she said with a quivering lip. Arngrim smiled and put a reassuring arm around our favorite goddess "Awww, it's not so bad… Try to look at the bright side. At least you're married to me, and not some rich asshole."

"I want a divorce…"

Xxxx

The main section of the Temple of the All Father is a vast, cathedral like structure that was lined with statues of ancient and powerful gods. Inside was made of fine white marble and lined with brilliant torches that would burn eternally. Marcus Vera stood before the center alter, next to a ten foot tall white statue that portrayed a man holding the long double sided blade of the mighty Gunguir. Marcus inspected the statue, and noted the tall pedestal it stood on. At the bottom was a large stone slab that stood out from the rest. Marcus carefully moved his hands across the grooves and knew that could be moved, this was the door to a vault.

Years of painstaking research, money, and planning was finally coming together.

He touched the door, and an unseen field quickly shimmered under his hand. He could feel the raw power that probably had to go in its construction. The door was not something that was going to be easily moved

"So the cure to the plague is in here somewhere?" Mercenary Captain Neemeth, a stout though disciplined looking man asked. Marcus nodded without looking at the grizzled man. In all reality, Neemeth really didn't give too much of a crap about the people suffering from the plague. Nobility was free, and he was here to get paid. This odd little man, known for inheriting his family's fortune was paying him to do a job. If he could cure the plague, then good for him, he and his team will be known as hero's and he'll pretty much be able to name his price till the day he retires. Part of the deal was that he got to keep anything they found that was 'non mission-critical' and breaking into temples, built by the gods always paid well. And if this job didn't turn up a lot of valuables, he was going to charge Marcus extra for Expenses. So no matter what he really couldn't lose. "Yes, I know for a fact that it's here somewhere."

Marcus eyed the huge stone door, and wondered how the hell he was going to move it. He was pretty sure that it was enchanted to recognize only certain people. So that left out conventional lock picking. It was certainly too thick to pry open.

There was no way in hel, that Marcus was going to be defeated by a damned door.

The merc captain looked at the massive door then looked to Marcus. It was obvious that the door was a problem to him. "Mr. Vera, if the door is a problem, I could open it for you."

Marcus turned to him with a disbelieving look. The man probably didn't know enough magic to heat a pot of water. How the hel did he hope to bypass one of the most elaborate enchantment' he's ever seen. "Oh? And what do you know of security enchantments?"

Neemeth saw the skeptical look on his face and smiled. Mages could be so damned arrogant sometimes. However, in spite of whatever his opinion of him was, Marcus had hired them to assist in any way they could.

"That's the thing about you mage's, you use magic for so long and you forget that sometimes, the best answer to a solution is sometimes the most conventional… Lieutenant!" he called out to his men. One of the soldiers, who was busy pilfering the various gold ornaments off of the wall, dropped what he was doing and ran over.

"Lieutenant, I believe that our employer has a problem with a locked door. Do you think you we can get through with a master key?" Marcus raised an eyebrow. A master key? To his bewilderment the Lieutenant, walked up to the Vault door, and rapped his knuckles on the heavy stone.

"Oh ya…" He said with a smile.

Xxone hour laterxx

Marcus stepped though the smoldering remains of the vault door and whistled in approval. The Master Key, had turned out to be a high explosive directional charge. Crude, loud and kinda messy, it didn't quite have the subtlety that Marcus preferred but he couldn't argue with the results.

Plus, blowin shit up is always fun to watch.

The mercenaries, Marcus, and his own disciples entered the massive vault and, for their own individual reasons, everyone's jaw dropped.

For the Mercs, the reason was simple; gold. Treasure, ancient and enchanted weapons lined the wall, sat on pedestals and were placed on statues of the fallen heroes that once owned them. Everything ranged from being literally worth its weight in gold, to just being outright priceless. Needless to say, the Mercenaries were happy.

As for Marcus…

The rearmost part of the mammoth structure was barrel shaped, a half cylinder with a stairway leading half way to the ceiling. Three sections were carved out, no larger than a window they all housed intricately carved pestles. Marcus and his own second in command, a dark man named Loric, boldly and slowly ventured up to the top of the platform. Each display window housed its own and uniquely glowing treasure. All three of them suspended mid air.

The Dragon Orb. Said to have the essence of all dragons, good or evil, its history is long and painted in blood. Wars between nations, between gods, have long been fought to obtain the near infinite power that was barely contained within.

The Heart of Brahms. No one really knows the origins', nor what happened to the Lord of The Dead. Stories ranged from Odin finally finding a way to kill a being that was already dead, to him finding love in one of the three battle maidens, who then freed his soul. Only a handful of beings really knew the truth. Either way, though he is gone, his power remained in the form of a black jewel. Though there was a rich maroon glow, the gem seemed to drink the light around it. Whoever possessed it, would become the new Lord of the Dead.

The Philosophers Stone. A small stone, able to fit into the palm of a hand, was the great equalizer between men and gods. Contained in an item so small, was the infinite knowledge of the universe. Everything that has ever been known, spells, alchemy, and magic, that not even the gods knew, was contained within a small red prison. In the right hands, knowledge was power, and the Philosophers Stone was the mightiest weapon of all.

With childlike wonder, Marcus and Loric stepped forward, and were immediately stopped when a clear, shimmering wall appeared. They both groaned, unlike the simple security enchantments that held the door in place, these were strait up Barriers. Far too strong for something crude like Merc's blasting powder, these were going to have to be dispelled the hard way.

"damn it…"

"I know…"

Behind them, footsteps jogging up the stairs caused them to turn around. Neemeth, looking half crazed with greed, stopped just short of the two necromancers "So what exactly is plague related here…" he said gesturing around the room-o-treasures. Marcus and Loric smiled, more than half of this crap was cursed.

He saw one random soldier; he was test swinging a sword that was polished to such a mirror shine, that it actually seemed to glow in the darkness. What that jackass didn't know, was that he was wielding the 'Shadow Slayer' and just by holding it, he made himself the new champion of the light. By the end of the day, he was going to notice that random shadows, cast by anything, were going to have a set of eyes watching him. End of the week, those shadows will start randomly attacking. After that, if he ever walks into an unlit room or ever gets caught not next to a source of light, he will be skinned alive.

One of the few female soldiers was trying on the Charmer's necklace. Over the course of the next few months, she was going to slowly morph into a smoking hot bombshell, which no man will be able to resist. …Oh ya, and her soul will swallowed by a succubus.

Ring of the Giver: three wishes, three guaranteed backfires.

Amulet of Madness: self explanatory.

And whatever wasn't cursed, was marked sacred by the gods. Sooner or later, they were going to comeback for it, and whoever has it at the time was screwed.

"I merely require these three objects here. And as for the rest of the stuff…" he gestured around to all of the shiny objects "it's all yours if you're willing to carry it." The men didn't need to be told twice, as they all moved to various parts of the vault, pocketing valuable jewels and trinkets. Some of them were working the valuable weapons off of the mounts on the walls.

After a few moments both Marcus, and Loric, grimaced when they saw Neemeth work a ring off a nude statue that had no gender parts, male or female.

"oooohh…"

"Should we tell him…?"

"Nah, he'll figure it out when he uses the bathroom."

xxxx

"Not gonna happen guys." The sentry guards stubbornly held their ground, unyielding to Arngrim and his usually persuasive arguments. "We're under orders to halt anyone without a royal pass from entering the noble district."

Even Hrist couldn't believe the audacity of these people. They stood before the only gate to the upper district of Villinore, which had over a dozen guards posted to keep anyone from the slums from entering. When asked they told them that this was nothing more than an extra precaution against the plague, though they both knew that the nobles just didn't want any of the lower class, whom they viewed as nothing more than garbage, littering their streets. She wondered if it helped them sleep at night if they didn't have to see the victims of their profiteering rackets.

"Look, we aren't here to cause any trouble, we just need to speak to someone who knows how to smith mythril." Hrist marveled at Arngrim's persistence, somehow he managed to keep a cool and friendly composure, even though he had been arguing with this frustrating guard for almost an hour. Had it been her, she was pretty sure that she would have 'made' a gate by now, and gods help anyone in her way.

The Valkyrie in disguise sighed, and tried her best to look 'feminine and helpless', hating that that was pretty much the extent of her role while she let Arngrim try to talk their way into this godforsaken gate.

Maybe if she was lucky, they would try to attack him, and give her a justifiable reason to turn this annoying checkpoint into a smoking crater. She broke herself from her revere and saw that the guard was still being an insufferable asshat. (She didn't actually know what an asshat was, but once she heard Arngrim referred to Odin as one, so she felt that she was using it in the correct context)

"I told you buddy, since you're not one of the nobles, you have to submit a request form, and if the royal chancellor approves, you will be granted a pass." The guard spoke slowly as if Arngrim was mentally challenged. That annoyed Hrist more than anything else. How dare these insolent mortals talk down to her Einherjar; that was her job! Once again she prayed that he would do something that would warrant swift and violent action.

Go to your happy place. Hrist always marveled at Arngrim's ability to always be cool and calm. So she gathered her nerve one day and asked how he did it.

"Easy, when something's pissing me off, I just take a deep breath, close my eyes and go to my happy place"

The Chooser of the Slain closed her eyes and took a deep and relaxing breath.

Hrist fantasized what the guard's faces would be like if she were to reveal herself as a Goddess of Fate. She imagined that most of them would do the usual, dropped jaws, shaky knees and the occasional trouser wetter. Once she had seen a man drop dead on the spot, his heart stopping in fear as her wings spread to their full span (she proudly counted that as her quickest kill, though Arngrim contests the validity of it).

She imagined summoning a shimmering Valkyrie spear, the wonderful rumble of pure power as it streaked to its target, maybe a guard tower, before it exploded and sent debris everywhere. Several of the guard would be killed outright from the blast, while others would be hit with shrapnel and various objects moving at a lethal velocity.

"Hey" Her thoughts of mass destructions, fire and screams of terror were interrupted by Arngrim's voice.

"I need 200 OTH" he whispered. She quickly, though discretely, accessed the invisible mass storage system, known only as the 'INVENTORY' and pulled out the necessary funds. "Bribe?" she asked

"Day pass" he corrected, using his fingers as Air Quotes. Just as he was about to turn back, he did a double take.

"You look happy."

"I was in my happy place" she said.

"Good girl" Arngrim gave her an approving smile, and patted her shoulder.

Xxxx

The difference between the north and southern districts was like night and day. The noble's side of the city was completely clean, not a single piece of trash littered their streets, beautiful and colorful plants lined their sidewalks and gave the whole place a floral scent.

It made Hrist sick. She watched all of these men walk around with an undeserved sense of self importance, and wondered if anybody's ever worked a day in their lives. No matter how much good anybody does, crap like this will go on.

It was all a little depressing.

Arngrim looked around, and brought a hand to his chin as he thought of the best way to search the city. This wasn't going to be easy, Villnore's upper city market was a big place, and trying to find one shop out of hundreds was a needle haystack scenario. His mind quickly reverted back to his mercenary days; particularly his jobs spent acting as bounty hunter. This wasn't the first time he's had to track someone who didn't want to be found…

"Arngrim"

He turned and began to scope out the guards and most of the people who were seemingly minding their own business. An easy option would be to ask around, but that might draw attention. Putting out feelers for info worked both ways unfortunately, and he didn't wanna tip off the target that he was being hunted. Plus, if this guy set up something as big as the plague, then he probably had money. There'd be no way to tell if he, or she, had the locals in his pocket.

"Arngrim…"

Completely lost in his own thoughts, he spoke more to hear himself think than for the benefit of others "I think we might have to do a sweep of the district, it shouldn't take that long. Most of the time, jewelers are usually set up near the center…" he explained. Hrist cleared her throat in an attempt to gain his attention, but once again, her actions were fruitless as he wasn't paying attention. "We have to consider the possibility that he might be using a third party. But we don't have to worry about that too much, I still know some people in the black-"

"ARNGRIM!" Leone barked, effectively derailing his train of thought. He looked down to the severely annoyed woman with a "huh?'

"While that is a well thought out plan, and I am glad that you are willing to put so much effort into our mission, I feel that our best plan of action would be to look there." She pointed to a spot behind her large partner. He turned around and saw a small building with two large windows. Hanging above them was a large sign that said 'Jays Jewelry'. Below that were several smaller signs that said things like 'expert mithril smiths' and 'we make tools for alchemists!'

Arngrim's jaw dropped "you have got to be kidding me…" he looked lower still and could see other containers, all of them identical to the one found in Bellane. He looked back and saw a very smug looking Hrist smirk at him. He slumped his shoulders and let his arms hang in defeat. "fine… I guess we could start there." He sighed in defeat, disappointed that he wasn't going to get to do any cool detective work.

xx

There was a cheery jingle as they opened the door, Hrist looked up and saw that the source was a tiny bell which was there for that very purpose. The interior was pretty much what she expected it to be for a jewelry shop, it was clean and there were display cases everywhere that held lots of shiny rings, broaches and earrings. There was a thin, clean cut man, standing behind the counter. She looked his slightly balding head and guessed that he was probably in his forties.

"Good afternoon, and welcome to Jay's" the man drawled his eyes flew to their hands, no rings and noticed that they stood in close proximity to each other, a sign of familiarity. He looked to Arngrim, "Let me guess; you here to buy a ring for the young miss there?"

Arngrim stepped forward, and pulled out the Exigency Container they found, while Hrist casually watched the door.

"No thanks, but we found this, and were hoping you could tell us who this belongs to, it looks pretty expensive and the owner probably wants it back." Arngrim said smoothly, in spite of the sarcastic grin he was getting from the proprietor.

"Oh, is that so now? And you just happen to be a Good Samaritan who's hopin to do the right thing?" The owner, presumably Jay, didn't look like he was buying it. Arngrim instantly changed tactics, this guy was smart and this wasn't going as smoothly as he wanted, but he could roll with this. "Well, of course there's going to be a finder's fee… a fee that you could get a small cut of, if you help us out here." He smiled darkly. This was a role he could fit easily into; if people wanted to believe that everybody had an ulterior motive, then that's exactly what he'll give them. Besides it was always easier to believe that somebody was extorting somebody else than someone trying to do the right thing.

"ya… that's not gonna happen for two reasons chap. One: I have a long list of respected clients, all of which would not be pleased if I broke my confidentiality clause with them. Two: you two are not nice people, my guess is… bounty hunters?" he looked at Hrist, who was still positioned near the door. "Probably assassins"

Arngrim could only blink, amazed that their cover was blown to hell in a matter of seconds. Part of him had to know why. The shop keeper smiled, then leaned back and crossed his arms. Almost as if he was reading his mind he answered him by gesturing towards the Valkyrie.

"She has the dead eyes of a killer." He said, not at all concerned that those very eyes were now looking directly at him. "I'll tell you what gents' why don't you give me all of the OTH you two have on you and leave right now, and maybe I won't call for the guards." Arngrim honestly didn't know what was worse, the fact that his cover was blown, or that he was being extorted by completely condescending snob.

There was a small and feminine 'hmph' and all eyes went to the small and unassuming Leone, whom was still standing in the corner. The keeper was suddenly very uneasy. He expected them to try and intimidate him with scariest look they could muster. But she didn't do that, her face went impassive, in fact it was more than impassive it, was it was downright serene. She blinked and incredibly, her once violet eyes were now golden. Arngrim backed away from the jeweler, as he recognized the golden eyes as her primary sign that she was powering up.

Hello misplaced aggression, long time no see.

The small woman began to calmly cross the room; the pad of her soft shoes grew harder with each step till it became a distinctive 'ka-chink'. Without breaking stride, her hair fanned out behind her without being touched, and the lightly colored clothing melted giving way to jet black armor.

In the time it took to cross the room, she morphed from Leone to Hrist Valkyrie.

"Holy Gods…" he breathed and tried to run. She exploded into movement, far too fast for any normal human being, she was on him. She grabbed him by the front of his shirt, led him back away from the exit and slammed him to the wall so hard that all of the display cases shook and pinned him in place. He couldn't reach the ground as she let his feet dangle a few inches off of the ground.

"You are indeed correct." She said. So taken, and frightened of the young woman's lethal calm that he didn't even struggle. The jeweler felt something sharp press up against his crotch, looking down; his eyes bulged as he saw that she was holding a full sized halberd up to his (pardon the pun) family jewels.

"Now I would suggest that you listen well, for I shall not repeat myself. You shall tell us everything we wish to know…" He yelped as she applied more pressure to the blade, not enough to cut him, but just enough to know that she meant business. "Or we shall see if you have the balls to face me," she smiled cruelly "get it? That is a joke… why aren't you laughing?"

"I sold that to a man named Marcus Vera!" he cried

"Who is that?" he swallowed, but didn't waste any time responding to her.

"Y-you can't do this! The guards will-" She slammed him against the wall again. He couldn't help but notice the way the feathers on her helmet wobbled with each movement she made. And still, her composure was as cold as ice.

"The guard will never make it in time. Now answer my questions. Or rather, if you would prefer to squat for the rest of your life…" there was the light sound of fabric being torn, as the blade of her halberd began to slowly slice through…

"I don't know! He comes in once in a while and commissions me for alchemist tools; th-there's billing receipts in the drawers over there, it has his address on it- That's all I know I swear!" He could see her eyes flash with contempt; it wasn't hard to see that she was quickly running out of patience.

"oh gods, please. That's all I know!" he wailed. She dropped him and stepped away. Her armor burned away, and was quickly replaced with the same clothing that she had before. She looked to her partner, who was pretending like he didn't just almost see a guy get castrated. "We should take our leave, and investigate the resident" she said, while putting her hair back into a pony tail. The keeper flinched as she brought her scrutinizing gaze on him again. "I trust that you will be wise enough to forget what you saw today… if not, then I shall return."

Once they were back outside, Hrist couldn't help but take a deep and appreciative breath. "I must admit that felt goo-" she noticed the odd look she was getting from Arngrim. "What?"

"Hrist, I've meet a lot of people in my time, but you're by far, the god damned scariest woman I've ever met." He said, and waited nervously for Hrist to explode. To his absolute surprise, the Valkyrie blushed and gave him a small peck on the cheek.

"I am unsure of what you are trying to gain with your flattery… but you are sweet for saying it." She almost giggled, causing the mercenary to give a nervous laugh of his own.

"Ha ha… yea… flattery"

Xxxx

Our usual partners in crime strolled up what had to be the biggest mansion that they've ever seen. This big monster was an obvious testament of the owners' status and wealth. The gated courtyard was tastefully decorated and immaculately maintained. All of it was surrounded by a 10 foot wall that led to a single gated entrance.

"Holy shit…"

"Indeed…" they said, as they stared through the bars of the gate. "It looks… unoccupied, are you sure that this is the correct address?"

"Positive, this is where all of jays work gets shipped to." It made sense. After all, if this guy could afford to have alchemist tools and containers made of mythril, then he could probably afford a snazzy pad like this.

"The answers we seek could be anywhere in that place… We should have brought the others." Hrist turned to her partner "Do you think it is possible to go back and get them?" Arngrim shook his head.

"We barely made it through the first time; I don't really think that we'll have that kind of luck again."

"Damn… I suppose we shall have to do this alone-"

"Do what alone?"

Hrist and Arngrim nearly jumped out of their skin when a voice spoke from behind directly behind them."Gah! Wha… Cromm?" The goddess looked and sure enough it was her Viking, and next to him were his other two accomplices, oddly they were wearing Villnore guard uniforms and armor. All three of them were sipping at a mug, filled with some sort of frothy dairy product. Using care so he didn't spill his drink, the huge man put his hands up apologetically. "Aye, sorry bout that lass, didn't mean to sneak up on ya. We got bored of waitin here so we went out fer smoothies! And look, we even brought you guys one, just case you were here when we got back."

Sure enough, they each had a mug thrust at them, which they accepted numbly.

"Wait, so how did you guys get past the Guard Post?" Arngrim asked incredulously. It took them an hour to get past that Checkpoint, they must have found a side entrance or something. But that couldn't be right, Hrist scouted the area, and there's no way she'd miss something like that.

"The checkpoint?" Mylan spoke up "Well we just lied our way though, it only took us a minute."

"I demand to hear the details!" Hrist boomed. The three looked at each other with curious looks, they weren't really sure what their deal was, but they figured that they better oblige.

"Uh… okay," Rod spoke "well Cromm had this really awesome idea on how to get us passed the gate" The Viking shook his head enthusiastically "Ya, I remember that mah little buddy here, used to be part of the patrol guard in his home town! So I figured that he knew how to speak 'guard talk'."

Xx

The Villnore guards are bored and hot, the sun's been brutal all afternoon, and none of them are really all that happy to be there. Suddenly they spot something that catches their interest. Cromm is being directed toward the gate, his hands are in shackles. Behind him are Roderick and Mylan, they follow closely behind him each are wearing the same armor, helmets and uniforms as the rest of the VIllnore guards.

"Lemme Go! I didn't do nuthin!" The massive Viking struggles and hams it up for the benefit guards. "you'll never pin it on meh!" A couple of the real guards stepped up and halted them.

"Hold it, what's going on here?" He asks.

"Made an arrest in the eastern neighborhood district, and I'm taking his ass to central booking." Mylan kept quiet while Rod answered with the crisp and authoritative tone that only his years of being a patrol guard could develop.

"What are you charging him with?"

"I'm charging him with a 10-95…" Rod said and turned his head to Cromm "and if he doesn't shut the hel up, I'm gonna slap him with a Resisting Arrest too!" he yelled at his 'prisoner'. Cromm shrunk a little "yes sir" he said in a tiny voice. The guard looked confused

"10-95… Loitering?"

"Yup" Rod said grimly "right outside the schoolhouse…" The real guard took one look at Cromm's puffy mustache and shook his head with disgust "You make me sick… Alright you guys get him to the station and process this pervert." The trio, almost made it passed, when one of the other guards stopped them.

"Wait a minute… why haven't I seen you guys before?"

Roderick stopped, then let out a big sigh, he began to remove his helmet. Mylan, not wanting to draw attention to himself mimicked Rods actions.

"We're new…" his expression and his voice deadpan as he and Mylan lifted their helmets and pointed at their shiny bald heads. The entire Checkpoint burst out in laughter. After a full 20 seconds, the guard wiped a tear from his eye.

"Don't worry rookie, you'll be the one's hazing the new guys before you know it" he said with a smile.

Xx

Arngrim, groused "Well I could have done that if I had some… Where did you guys get guard uniforms?" Mylan cleared his throat "That was actually me…"

Xx

Two Villnore guards walk around the corner of a building. On their routine patrol, they make small talk and pass by an ally. They both stop when they hear a scuffle then a voice "give me all your money, and I won't have to kill you."

The two guards look at each other, having just pretty much heard a mugging in a progress, they both dash into the ally, swords in hand.

Inside, Mylan has Roderick up against the wall and is holding a knife up to his throat.

"Drop it, NOW!" one of the guards yell. Mylan gasps "You guys got me!" he says, then immediately complies my dropping his knife, it lands with a clatter.

"Alright, keep your hands where I can see them! You're under arrest for mugg-" The second they're in arms reach, Mylan strikes by grabbing each of their arms. Suddenly their bodies go ridged, and start to convulse, as several thousand volts of electricity, from the Mages lightning spell, course through their bodies. After a few seconds they fall to the ground, unconscious.

Xx

"I… Wh… How did you men find this resident…" Hrist said, still reeling by the fact that Arngrim and she had been beaten to the punch in almost every way "Do you even know whom we're after?"

"Yeah, guy named Marcus Vera right?" The archer said, as the Valkyrie and her mercenary stared. Seeing the obvious question on their faces, he decided to continue.

"Well, since I was already in the one of the Villnore guard uniforms, I decided to head to the station and check out the DVS list for any suspicious acti-"

"DVS?"

"oh! It stands for Department of Villnore Security…" He saw the blank expression on the Valkyrie's face "Well a couple of years back there was this whole incident involving a guy named Lezard Valeth-"

"That is all a bunch of crap! It was all an obvious inside job, so the kingdoms could have more funding for mage and alchemist tracking!" Mylan spat. Cromm looked like he couldn't believe what he was hearing "Are ya daft man? How can you be one of them conspiracy nuts, when there was so much evidence!"

"…anyway" Rod continued, while ignoring the Viking and Mage heatedly argue. "since then, the Alchemist's Act was instated, which allows shipments of dangerous ingredients to be tracked, and anyone who buys them to be flagged. And on a hunch I checked the list to see if anything recent happened. Sure enough I found a whole bunch of hits on a guy named Marcus Vera!" He pointed proudly to the house behind him.

"…I'm telling you, the Alchemist's act, was just a start! Pretty soon, they're going to be counting how many times-"

"Well I think that we should just trust the kingdom and do wh-"

"Silence! Both of you!" everyone shut up "We are too close to risk anything with this mission. And your petty bickering might draw the attention of any guards patrolling the area!"

Roderick cleared his throat…

"What…" Arngrim deadpanned. Completely oblivious to their expressions, he answered "While we were at the station, we also found the patrol schedule, so we made a few… adjustments."

"We are the patrol for this area" Mylan said as he pointed to Rod and himself.

"You men have done well, now… go find a way into that house for me…" The Valkyrie said. And with enthusiasm that was almost damned annoying, the three nodded and took off for the mansion. At some point someone declared it a race and they started sprinting.

"Are we getting slow?" she asked her partner as she watched Cromm trip over a rock and topple over on the lawn.

"who put this rock here!"

"Us? Nah… we just do it with style… you can't rush style." The two nodded as they totally bought their own BS

"Hey! You lads aren't going to believe what's under this rock!" Cromm held up a key that was more than likely a spare to the front door.

"Oh come on!" Arngrim cried.

Xxxx

Unlike the immaculately cared for lawn, the inside is a different story. The inside was dirty, and unkempt. It looked as if no one has attended to it for well over a year. Everyone held their nose at the strong stench of death.

"… I don't like this." Arngrim said, giving voice to all of their thoughts. "This smells like the ghost towns." Everyone drew their weapons, and began to sweep the area. Stairways, corners and balconies, presented a huge tactical disadvantage. Anything could be waiting around any corner or behind a door, and they could be easily ambushed from over the railing of the second floor. Hrist, Arngrim and Cromm formed a defensive formation around Roderick and Mylan, as the two scanned the upper walkways and balconies, ready to launch spells and arrows at anything that pops its head into view.

But like the towns they frequented lately, there was no signs of life, no sounds.

Silence

Keeping quiet, they moved from room to room. However every room they cleared led to more rooms, and those to even more, the mansion was just simply too huge.

"This place is almost as bad as Valhalla" Arngrim said "We're gonna be here all day."

"Indeed. Everyone, hold position" the goddess said. Everyone did as ordered has Hrist lowered her weapon. Rod, Mylan and Cromm watched with curiosity as she stepped a few feet away from them and lifted her head slightly, were she outside people might say she was enjoying a breeze.

"What's she doin?" Rod whispered to the others.

"She's trying to see if she can sense anything" Arngrim said, and everyone nodded. They waited patiently as their Valkyrie spiritually searched for anything, good or evil, finally after what seemed like forever, she spoke.

"This house is an unholy place, I can sense the darkness everywhere. However, I can also sense that something is alive here, something… large."

"Anyway to tell what it is?" The mercenary asked, and the Valkyrie shook her head "No, only that its soul is far too large to be human, and that whatever it is, it's directly below us."

"Awesome, because nothing bad has ever been found in a basement before, hel I'm willing to bet there's a petting zoo down there." Mylan quipped sarcastically. However his tone flew right over the Viking's head as his eyes lit up "Really lad?"

"You mean you're asking me if there's a petting zoo in an evil mans house, which by the way smells like there's a bunch rotting corpses we have yet to find?" There was a long pause.

"Well all zoo's smell a little."

"…Yes Cromm, there is a petting zoo there… and there's probably cake too."

"To the basement!" everyone shook their heads.

Xx

"I'm starting to think that the cake was a lie…" Cromm said.

Walking into the bottom most floors in Marcus Vera's mansion was like stepping into the psyche of a madman. The smell of formaldehyde and rotting meat was almost overpowering as they all had to cover their noses. The massive room housed equipment for Alchemy, all of it ranging from small beakers, to massive boilers for distilling ingredients. Scores of crates, some of them of them open, held various containers of multi colored liquids and powders, which Hrist guessed were ingredients for alchemy.

Off to the side were large shelves of books, and various scrolls. All of it leading to a set of tables and a large board that were completely covered in notes, papers, charts and even maps. All of it marked with various dates and times indicating his progress to whatever he was doing.

This was a lab

"Does anyone else hear that?" Everyone turned to Roderick, who pointed to a large section of a corner that was curtained off.

"It sounds like something's breathing…" Arngrim said as he pulled his sword out. Hrist took point while everyone moved to their positions. By the time the Valkyrie reached for the heavy cloth of the curtain, they were all ready to attack. Giving a silent countdown she pulled the curtain, and everyone jumped, their reactions varying from 'holy crap' to 'is that real?'

Shackled to the ground by heavy chains, was an actual Dragon.

The mighty beast probably weighed somewhere in the ballpark of ten to twelve tons. Though it was curled up against the corner, it could probably be as long as a house and maybe as tall if it raised its head.

Bound to the floor, the beast had extremely limited mobility, so it really couldn't much more than growl from where it lay. Deeming it non-threatening, they all lowered their weapons, and approached the downed reptile. Valkyries came with… we'll call it a package of info. She knew basic information on all monster and demons that exist on Midgard, nothing too fancy, just enough to be able to defeat them. She could tell it was young just by its lack of a horned fringe. And the color of its scales, which were a murky green, told her that it was male.

A quick glance showed that the animal was in poor condition. One of its eyes was missing, along with several of its talons, and sections of its scales had been removed. Mylan made a grim observation.

"He's harvesting it for ingredients…"

Kind of like cats and dogs, Valkyries and Dragons were natural enemies. Often times the battle maidens were dispatched to destroy such beasts that were turning towns into hunting grounds. However though, to see this pathetic sight…

'No, not pathetic' she thought as she stared into its one good eye. She expected to see a lot of things, maybe rage, fear, or maybe she even expected to see it plead for its life, but that's not what she saw.

Hrist respected a lot of things in her enemies, she respected strength, honor, courage, but when facing one's own death, there was one thing that she would never disgrace when having end something's life. And that was defiance, the unwillingness to surrender its dignity, even when it didn't matter anymore.

"Hrist?" he heard her partner behind her. Arngrim wanted to ask if she was okay, but that would make her seem weak in front of her Einherjar, an offence that Hrist would be slow to forgive. So all he could do was wait along with the others, for her order to put this thing out of its misery.

"Everyone spread out, and find what you can. Mylan, I want you to see if you can make sense of those papers" she said without turning to any of them. Roderick looked unsure.

"But lady Valkyrie, what about the dra-" Rod instantly shut up when the dark maiden whirled around to him.

"I will not tolerate your insolence!" she said in a voice that caused even Arngrim to take a step back. "Now go do as I commanded..." Everyone took off, but Arngrim stayed.

"Were my orders unclear?" She asked, her voice as cold as ice.

"What's going on with you? You know we can't let this thing live."

"Just go… please." She said as she turned from him. Arngrim didn't like it, but he knew that he wouldn't get anywhere with her at the moment. Whatever issue she had, she was obviously wasn't ready to talk about it.

Xx

They found quite a few things' while waiting for Mylan to finish sifting the pile. For one, they found the waiting staff, Rod had opened a door to find a bunch of plague riddled corpses that bed been experimented on. Evidently Marcus had 'enlisted' their help their help to develop the plague.

Arngrim discovered that he wanted to become an alchemist, when he found an old microbrewery. He asked about it, and Mylan explained that alchemy was expensive. Labs had to be furnish, ingredients needed to be procured, studies had to be funded. And since brewing beer was really just another form of alchemy, the easiest way make money was to make their own brew, and sell to local pubs and taverns. When he asked Mylan if he could make beer, the mage merely smirked "The Arcane University runs at about 30,000 OTH per semester, and is filled with a bunch of beer bonging fratboys. What do you think?" And Arngrim instantly liked this guy.

And Cromm? Well, at one point in time, he cautiously approached the archer and whispered in his ear. Roderick shook his head and whispered back, this caused the Viking to stand a pump an angry fist in the air "The cake was a lie!" Rod nodded.

Hrist approached the mage as he laid papers and maps into individual piles "What have you to report?"

"Well this guy is nuts, but I gatta admit, he does good work." He said, and reached for a stack of notes, mindful to try and keep everything simple and in layman's terms for non-mage's. "He dabbles in a lot of things, everything ranging from standard Medical Science, Necromancy, Alchemy, Hel I even see some notes for Chronomancy…"

"What, you mean like time travel?" both Hrist and Mylan's head turned to Arngrim, as he and the other approached the work station "Not like you're thinking. Chronomancers can only manipulate time flow, barely. They can maybe slow it down a little or speed it up, but traveling years in any direction just isn't possible…" he stopped and rubbed his chin "Well… there were a few radical theories from the Lost City of Dipan but that place was destroyed by some sort of disaster.

Arngrim, and said 'Disaster' shared a look.

"But I digress, as for the plague from what I can tell; he made some kind of bio/magic infusion of some ordinary disease. Kind of like how one would enchant a weapon."

"Can it be undone?"

"By me? No, I'm an elemental Mage; I deal with lightning, ice, and fire. However, given how thorough these notes are, it can totally be undone by the right guy, maybe in a matter of weeks." Mylan said with a smile. Everyone loved to give good news.

"This… this is excellent. Is there anything else of importance?" Hrist was just barely able to contain the cry of joy that bubbled up within her. This was it, mission accomplished! Hrist would be able to report back to Valhalla with nothing but good news. No innocent casualties! No collateral damage! Finding and purifying Marcus would be the final objective to her mission. However, she wasn't worried about that, like so many before him, he was about to find out that nobody escapes Hrist Valkyrie. Nobody.

There was nothing that could bring her down from her joyous mood.

"…There is one other thing, though I'm not sure it's worth mentioning." Mylan pulled another stack, this one a mixture of maps, notes and even a few books. "I think he's one of those weirdo's who spend their life looking for the Philosophers Stone." Arngrim froze and all of the color drained out of his face. This didn't go unnoticed by either Hrist, or Mylan.

"Arngrim? You look like you know something. Perhaps you would like to share?" she asked suspiciously. The large mercenary gulped, and then very cautiously he turned to Mylan.

"There wouldn't happen to be anything about the Forest of Woe, would there?" Mylan dubiously pulled out a map out of the stack an unfolded it "…yeah there is actually, I saw a lot of references about a vault hidden in a temple… right here." He pointed to a red circle on the map. Arngrim looked at it and closed his eyes. They both saw a single bead of sweat run down the side of his face.

RIP Hrist's joyous mood. It's too bad; a lot of people would have said that it never really had a chance.

"Arngrim…" She dragged his name out dangerously. Mylan looked like he couldn't believe what he was hearing "Hold on here… are you telling me that the Philosophers Stone, The Philosophers Stone, is real?" Hrist spoke up to answer him, though not without taking her eyes off of Arngrim.

"Oh yes, that cursed stone does indeed exist, and it nearly destroyed us all!" The Dark Reaper of Souls, calmed herself "happy place, happy place…" she took a deep breath then spoke, in a much calmer voice "Okay, now enlighten me as to why the stone was not destroyed."

"We tried, that stupid thing was indestructible so we had to hide it. Valhalla seemed like a bad idea, I mean, can you imagine if one of the Aesir like Loki or Thor got a hold of it?" He had a point, and maybe this wasn't as bad as she might have thought this seemed.

"Okay, this may not be as bad I fear, tis obvious that he know of its whereabouts. However, the stone cannot act alone, he would need a strong power source to act as a catalyst, and I know for a fact that both Lenneth's and Silmaria's souls are safe at Valhalla."

"…he might also have Brahm's power…"

"…He might have the power of THE LORD OF THE DEAD!"

"I don't know the details, but when his soul was freed his power remained… or some shit like that. So me and Rufus decided that we should hide that and the stone to make sure that nobody would find em."

Hrist couldn't believe what she was hearing, All-Father or no; she was going to ream that idiot when she got back to Valhalla. "I cannot believe this! Why not just give him the Dragon Orb while you're at it!" Her jaw dropped, when Arngrim didn't say anything "No… you didn't…"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time?"

She exploded into movement. However, Arngrim was just as fast as he moved to the opposite side of the table. Whenever she moved left, he moved left, when she moved right, he moved right. The two were locked in a stalemate. "You get over here, so that I may punish you properly!"

"C'mon you guys, this isn't going to help anything. I think we have bigger fish to fry at the moment." Mylan said, though he was still trying to wrap his head around the idea that the Philosophers Stone wasn't just some myth.

"You are right. This issue must be resolved immediately, and there will be plenty of time to properly smite Arngrim and Lord Rufus later. Are the notes the only thing needed to stop the plague?" The mage nodded, then handed her the stack of papers, and she immediately deposited them into the INVENTORY. "Good, I want everything, the research, the experiments, even this house to be purged." She made an about-face and began to march across the lab, where the others were waiting "Everyone! Prepare yourselves for battle, we are going to war!" she boomed as all of the Einherjar, save Mylan who was launching fireballs in random directions, disappeared in speckles of light. After a few moments Mylan ran up to her, most of the lab was going up in a roaring blaze, so Mylan had to yell to be heard over the flames. "It's done ma'am!"

"You are sure that nothing will be left behind?" To this Mylan pointed to an entire stock of large wooden crates, some of them were already on fire. "Half of those supplies are extremely volatile! I'd say we've got about five minutes before this place goes up in a mushroom cloud!" Hrist looked pleased, and unsummoned the man, like the others he disappeared in a series of speckled lights.

Earlier, she had noticed a ramp that lead to a large set of wooden doors. Arngrim explained that that was a loading ramp, and was how they brought in large crates and equipment that would never fit through the house. Hrist was going to use this as her escape.

She reached into the air and in her hands a spear that was as long as she was tall, and made of raw energy, formed into her hands. Rippling and rumbling with pure power the Valkyrie took aim.

"Rah!" the glowing missile streaked across the room and slammed into the doors with devastating and spectacular results. The doors, and the stone around it, exploded into a million pieces as the resulting boom shook the entire mansion.

Just as she was about to make her escape, something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye.

The Dragon

Sensing the danger, it pulled and struggled against its bonds but couldn't escape. After a moment, it resigned itself to its fate and slumped its head to the ground. However, when it saw the battle maiden staring at him he gave her that look again. A look that said it would deny her any pleasure of seeing it whimper or beg for its life. In defiance of everything this beast had gone through, it refused to show anything any weakness for committing the crime of merely existing.

Maybe she took pity on the restrained beast, or maybe she felt like it would be an injustice to allow something that has done nobody any wrong to die without a fighting chance. Maybe she felt like she could relate to this creature, simply because it was too stubborn to be broken.

Or maybe… just maybe she understood the value of being granted a second chance to prove them all wrong.

Whatever the reason, the goddess found herself marching over and summoning her halberd. With a graceful strike, a set of chains that had been holding the beast was destroyed. Soon after, another followed, and then another till there was nothing holding the prisoner in place.

Bones creaked, joints popped and the sound of wings stretching were all heard as the mighty beast stood for the first time, in what had to be ages, and stretched. Two of the mightiest beings in the land stared each other down before an explosion reminded them of how little time they had.

"Do not mistake my mercy beast. The next time we meet, I will end your life. I merely feel that you deserve the chance to do so on your feet." Whether or not it understood, they had to get out. The sounds of glass bottles shattering and the groan of failing support structure were now heard over the flames.

"I hope you know what you're doing" Arngrim said from somewhere inside her soul. If she knew what she was doing she would have said so, but in all honesty, she didn't.

She really didn't.

xxxx

Hrist had flown in low, staying just above the tree line, to avoid detection. The Valkyrie and her Einherjar stood just outside the darkness, which encircled the temple of the All-Father. Dusk had fallen hours ago and she used the dark, as well as the foliage as cover. The moon was clear, and she could see them. Some of the enemy soldiers were gathered around a small fire, cooking something inside of a small pot, while others were loading up horses and sacks with whatever was plundered from the vault. Obvious shifts had been set up. She could see that some were sleeping inside tents, while others patrolled the area, though they seemed bored, and thus probably weren't that vigilant. An unfortunate mistake, for the reaper was now upon them.

The soft crunch of dirt beneath heavy boots announced Arngrim's presence by her side, most likely making his own tactical assessment. The others were quiet within her soul, awaiting instruction from their leader. Arngrim finally broke the silence, though he spoke quietly and began to make his tactical assessment.

"Looks like they boxed themselves in… if we lure them into the center, we should be able to take em out by hitting that supply cache there." He pointed to a stack of crates, next to their tents.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Standard defence tactics is to keep all flammables as far away from walls as possible." They mercs weren't dumb, being surrounded by thick forest presented a tactical nightmare. The overlapping shadows, and eerie fog that flowed through the trees like water, would never allow them to see any advancing hostile until it was too late. The best way to counter this was to fortify their position. Using resources from the forest they had built crude, though sturdy looking, wooden barricades around the entire site. This, in addition to booby traps and wicked looking spikes, made a formidable little fort. Unfortunetly for them, this also trapped them within. Hrist nodded in agreement with Arngrim's plan. But there was one other question on his mind.

"How do you wanna handle this?" He asked, though he already knew the answer. This was where Hrist differed from her sisters. Hrist always preferred absolute solutions. By nature she was a perfectionist, and didn't like to leave loose ends. Everyone, including the mercs, now knew where the vault was. Since the mansion burned down, nobody would be able to unearth Marcus's work, but that was only half the problem. There was only one sure way to make sure that its location was kept secret.

"No Prisoners. Nobody escapes." She stated coldly. She kept her face stoic, but Arngrim knew her too well to be fooled. The mercenary was very good at reading people. A necessary skill when trying to negotiate his fee's, or when trying to predict if someone is about to betray him. Right now she was all but screaming her distaste for what she was about to do. He could see it in the way she clenched her jaw, and the way ground her fingers into her palm, but the biggest giveaway was the way she kept touching her sword.

The sword on her hip made her feel safe. He realized this early on in their travels together, so he became used to her unconscious need to touch the weapon when she felt anxious or upset. He is mildly surprised at himself for being able to spot these things in her, but being able to identify an angry Hrist was never a bad thing. Somehow though, the thought that she will get no joy in what she is about to do, reassures him.

The Einherjar within her soul begin to stir, and she can almost feel the protest that they are reluctant to voice. "Lady Valkyrie" the mage is the first to speak "do we really have no choice but to kill them all?" he asked.

"Ya, that seems kind of… harsh." Roderick added. Though they can't see her, the Valkyrie shakes her head. "No… A line has been drawn. It does not matter who they are." Arngrim gave her a curious stare, but quickly figures out that she isn't talking to him. "These men are not innocent civilians, knowingly or not, they have aligned themselves with the enemy. If I allow them to leave, they will only bring more here. Countless have died at the hands of their plans, and tomorrow countless more shall share the same fate." She paused for a moment, as she chose her next words. "Sometimes, we must do regrettable things to ensure the safety of Midgard…It is our burden, It is who we are" she added as an afterthought. She turned to Arngrim. "Are you ready?" Arngrim nodded quietly.

xx

A tall dark man, walked amongst the mercenary army, dressed in the same dark robes as the other apostles, it was easy to see that he was one of Marcus's men. The others were inside, helping with the barriers of the vault. The mercs only knew him as Loric, and as far as they knew, he was a friendly scholar, and worshiper of the gods. However what they didn't know was that he was one of Marcus's top lieutenants, and a complete sociopath. From a young age, Marcus had taken him under his wing and taught him everything he knew, from spellcraft to the art of manipulation. And in return Loric acted as his enforcer, without the ability to feel empathy, or remorse, he was usually the one to extract information from prisoners, and act as publicist. The last secret that Marcus had to teach him was how he never seemed to age. And thus until he learned, he would remain loyal to him.

He rounded the temporary barracks, which was nothing more than a bunch of tents, and decided that he wanted some coffee. He found that the soldiers were pretty amiable. The fact that their expedition had turned up so many valuables really lightened their moods. So many in fact, that they were going to have to make a return trip. Though he found most of them to be nothing more than mindless meatheads, talking to them would help pass the night. On the way to the group, he heard something that made him stop dead in his tracks. He looked up, and saw a single black raven, slowly circling the sky above them, cawing away.

That couldn't be good…

Nature had funny little ways of warning people, who knew what to look for, of major catastrophic events. Like animals running away from a shore, days before a massive tidal wave, or dogs barking before an earthquake. During the whole trip here, he never once noticed any ravens in the woods. And now there was suddenly one flying above the camp? Loric made his way to one of the passing patrols, and intended to ask them how long that bird had been nearby.

FRRWOOOOMMM

Something that looked like a glowing spear, launched from the ground and streaked to the sky. So bright and brimming power, it lit up the entire camp as it as it continued its ascent. Heads poked out of their respective tents, wandering patrols stopped mid step, and everyone looked up with a collective 'what the hel?' as the glowing missile started to gently ark in the air, and began its journey back to the ground. Loric fallowed its most likely path, and saw that it was heading straight towards the merc's supply cache, right next to their barracks. 'Blasting powder and lamp oil!' was the only thought that popped into his head.

What happened next was something he would never be able to fully recall.

He remembered seeing some of the woken soldiers try to make a break for it. Some of them were not even dressed as they tried to sprint from the doomed tents, but none of them made it. Never remembered the sound, but he remembered the mute flash, as the Valkyrie spear slammed into the cache, but nothing else. The next thing he knew he was picking himself off the ground. Partially deaf, he could still pick out the sound of debris whistling through the air and landing on the ground. Something landed next to him with a soft thud, and caused him to look over.

Gods, it was somebody's leg.

Scrambling away from the charred piece of meat, he managed to pull himself off the ground. The acrid smell of smoke and the orange haze of firelight forced Loric to bring himself to his senses. We're under attack. He finally thought to himself. He looked over and saw Neemeth the mercenary captain; he was shouting something, barking orders, which he couldn't make out. After a few seconds the ringing began to fade and he could make out his words. Surprisingly, chaos did not take hold of the men, as he was directing them.

"…Surround her!" he screamed, pointing with his own sword "She's outnumbered and she's in our territory, we can take her!" With shouted orders, the captain had the entire camp moving. Through the smoke and the flurry of movement, he could make out the form of their intruder. The initial explosion had rendered him night-blind, so he couldn't see any detail, but with each move the light reflects off of the intruder's armor and blades. The hired army readied their weapons, swords, spears, and axes they move in. The sound of clashing steel was immediately followed by cries of pain. Something in the fire exploded, probably one of the barrels of oil, whatever it was it caused the flames to flare, spilling light across the entire camp.

A single woman, clad in jet black armor, stood in the center of a ring of bodies.

With the swing of a massive halberd, they saw one of their men's head tilt back in a silent scream, and a gout of blood poured out of his neck. He crumples to the floor, and he finally gets to have a good look at her. Golden eyes, form fitting armor and a long skirt stood out in the night. She seemingly danced around the mercs, cutting them down like tall weeds. An unstoppable force of nature, he knew exactly what she was.

Valkyrie

In all reality, Hrist didn't really have senses that were higher than most humans, but she didn't need to see them with her eyes; she could actually feel them all around her. Their life forces flared brightly, telling her exactly where they were. She could sense their fear, their desperation; there would be no hiding from her.

She would show them no mercy, no pity; she intended to kill them all.

Xxxx

Odin stood before a young woman, new to existence, she knew nothing of the world. Completely dependent on his information, she stands ready, eager to please the only voice she has ever known as she receives her final lessons. "You are a defender of the land, a soldier whom is responsible for the safety of all that dwell within Midgard. You must always remember that those that stand before you, with the intent to do you harm, are always the enemy.

"There can be no exceptions.

"Know that your hesitation will cost you your life, and in turn you will fail those that depend on you." She stands tall, taking everything he said to heart. She vows to never hesitate. Odin places a hand upon her shoulder. "Know this, my young Valkyrie, that sometimes in order to rid the world of evil, you must do things that many would consider evil themselves. Midgard is a harsh place… those who take advantage of those that are good sacrifice their right to live. They well never play by anybody's rules, so you should never play by theirs." He begins to walk circles around her, scrutinizing her posture, her expression, and the power that runs through her veins. She knew that failure was not an option. She would meet her opposition head on, and she would come out on top.

"In battle, there is a slight gap between life and death. It is you, versus them. You must earn everything you get, never allow them to give you anything. Those that fight, will try to prey upon your weakness. You must survive on your own vibrant power." The all-father looked over the naive being, and decided that he could teach her nothing more. She would be forces to learn her remaining lessons through the harsh necessities of life itself. "There will be times… when you will be afraid, when you will be lost, when you think that you will hesitate. When this time comes, you must never forget…"

With expectant eyes, she waits for him to finish. These are the lessons that will forever define her life.

"…Never forget, that you are the mightiest weapon."He turns from her and begins to walk away.

"Now go forth child… be strong…"

Xxxx

She's so strong.

The mercenaries charge her en mass. Dozens of them come at her, and still she cuts them down with extreme efficiency. Moving amongst them like a whirlwind of death, she makes short work of them. The crashes of steel and their screams continue fill the night.

The mercs effectively surround her, threatening to overwhelm her. But instead of charging through them, she takes a step back and raises a hand to the air. She speaks in a voice that echoes in their heads, like a thousand speaking at once.

"Come to me dark warriors, defend your Valkyrie…"

Suddenly, and literally out of nowhere, Loric sees a massive Viking strike a man down. And he's not the only one. An arrow slams into the skull of a merc, and bolt of lightning strikes another. One man desperately tried to defend himself from a massive man with an appropriately massive sword, but he too falls victim to their unilateral assault.

A lot of things suddenly make sense. Marcus knew that eventually it would come to this. He knew that the gods would send their right hand to end their lives. He had ordered Loric and the other apostles to gather as much tactical data on the Valkyries as possible. But there was almost nothing to be found. People worshipped the Battle Maidens, they told stories of their beauty, their honor, but there was nothing about how they fight. The only things available were locations, places where they struck, warnings of what would happen should anyone incur their wrath. But now he understood.

Nobody could describe how they fought, because nobody has ever survived.

It was impossible to count how many were dead now. They weren't even trying to fight anymore. They were trying to, retreat, to flee with their lives, tripping over the bodies of their fallen, The dark Valkyrie, and her warriors continued to indiscriminately slaughter them. Loric could only stare, in shear awe at her face. She's so gods damned serene, like an avenging angel she moves right through.

They were being cornered, and hopelessly slaughtered, the merc captain tries his best to maintain a semblance of order.

"Fall back! Retreat back to the temple!"

The few that remain make a mad dash towards the temple gates. Loric manages to make it inside and escape the killing spree that is currently taking place. By now everyone knows what is going on, and the other apostles move in and seal the door. Anyone left outside is left to fend for themselves as they cast Guard, Protect, Shell, any number of defensive spells on the heavy wooden doors to stop the intruders. With so many enchantments, the door began to glow a miasma of color.

They listen in horror, as the fighting continues outside. Muffled screams, cries of terror continue for only a few minutes more. Then there is nothing.

Silence

They're all dead. In less time than anyone could have ever thought possible they're all dead…

One of the hired soldiers falls to the ground, with a sort of half laugh half cry, he begins to rant. "Oh my god! We're gonna die! Did you see what she did out there?" nobody was really listening; everybody was in a kind of trance, still in shock over what happened out there.

"They're dead! She killed them all, and now she's going to kill us too!"

Soon the others are joined by Marcus and the other apostles. Loric turns to his leader, still a little light-headed from the explosion, he gathers his wits. "We've got company" he says "I think they've found us…"

This was not good, Marcus needed more time. He racked his brain for a plan, there was no way to hold them off forever. In spite of how many enchantments they had on the door, there was no way it would hold of a Valkyrie for very long.

"-holy gods, did you see those eyes? How did she get-" he stopped when Marcus grabbed him and began to shake him. "Shut up! I need you to stay here and hold the door." The half dozen remaining mercs, out of the original platoon, stared at Marcus with disbelieving faces. Nobody could really blame them. They did just see a single woman reduce their forces to about a mere dozen. The captain marched up to him, anger written across his face. "Are you kidding me? I don't even know what the hel we're up against! You don't pay us enough to die! "

"Fool" Marcus shot back "we know teleportation spells. We can still escape, but it takes time."

It was kinda true; he didn't lie about the teleportation. And he did need them to stall her for time to do it. But what they didn't know was that they could only teleport themselves. Even if he could save them, he honestly did not give a crap about them.

BOOM!

The entire room shook, as something hard hit the door. This, along with the clatter of objects hitting the ground, added to the terror of what was waiting on the other side of the door. The spells used to reinforce the door held, but they flickered and grew weaker. They didn't have much time.

"Fine! Go do it then, sorcerer." The remaining soldiers took positions. Marcus and most of the apostils retreat to the vault, leaving the remaining mercs to slow the goddesses' advance. One of the survivors happens to be an archer and took cover behind a pillar. Two of the apostils remained to give them magical aid. Again the whole room shook with a loud BOOM, as the door was hit again. Sweaty hands and fearful eyes watched the door, as the intruders slammed into it again and again.

Words cannot describe the anxiety in the air, as their only barrier bulged and weakened. The heavy wood splintered and even the stone around it began to crack. With a final bone jarring slam, the door cracked. The magical barriers had broken, now all that separated them from their impending doom, was a single piece of splintered wood. There was an impossible long moment of silence as they waited for them bust in.

They did not.

"I think we're safe…" their archer said. The captain smacked a hand to his forehead.

It is a common and well known fact, that if one is to survive a dangerous situation, you do not tempt fate. It goes right along the laws of not wearing red shirts, or dismissing that ominous sound as 'just the wind'. Hel, he was probably one of those people who take their summers at Camp Crystal Lake and names himself Billy (people named Billy never survive).

And sure enough, and probably because he said it, the heavy stone ceiling above them exploded in.

Xxxx

"Damn it!" Marcus snarled, and the whole room shook again. Breaking his concentration and disrupting the arcane circles he was trying to write. Whatever it was, it sounded like they had gotten in. If there were any sounds of men dying, or anything for that matter, it was washed over by the thunderous roar of the ceiling caving in the next room. Behind him he could hear, and feel, the distinctive signatures' of monsters being summoned. Various screeches and roars, were heard as the apostles summoned their familiars to make their last stand. Teleportation spells were quick, but he failed to unlock the Philosophers stone from its pedestal in time. So now he was just going to go ahead and Teleport the whole damned section of vault with him.

Unfortunately this was a tall order, and he was going to have to not let himself get distracted.

"Goddess Nanna grant me your hand, and connect thine road…" he chanted as he furiously scribbled intricate symbols around the pedestal with a piece of chalk.

Imps, sword wielding undead, and even a Minitor, watched the cloud of dust that emerged from the archway. The few choking sounds of the last mercs had died out a few seconds ago. Now there were only sounds were the hissing of the imps and the heavy breathing of the Minitor. The imps stood closest to the rolling cloud of dust that roiled out of the doorway. The collapse had taken out the magical torches that lit the worship area, and the dust made seeing anything impossible.

Imps were pretty much useless, when it comes to anything really. They were noisy, and smelled. Too stupid to give any typed of complex order outside of 'stand here' or 'eat that'. They were basically the rats of hel. They sure as hell weren't good fighters either. Anyone with a sword could kill one without too much hassle. Their only virtues were that they were cheap and easy to summon. In large numbers they made for great cannon fodder, and thus were good distractions. Between the 11 remaining apostiles they were able to summon almost 20 imps. Behind the imps were 5 undead swordsmen. A bit more formidable, they would at least be able to put up a fight. The real threat however, would be the Minitor. Standing at almost 17 feet, he was a behemoth of ungodly beefy muscle. Huge hoofs, which were easily the size of a dinner plate, and its hands that could easily crush a human skull. And that was if it didn't try to gore them with its massive 3 foot bullhorns. If there was any hope to mount a suitable defense, it rested on its shoulders. This combined with the apostiles magical abilities, gave them hope that they may be able to repel the assault.

Or so they thought.

Right out of the smoke, like something they've only read about in stories, they exploded into the room. With the Viking and the mercenary at both of her sides, the Valkyrie and her Einherjar moved as one. The imps, threw themselves at them, but they gracefully slaughtered them without even slowing down. The apostles launched a volley of fireballs and lightning bolts, only to have them impact an invisible wall just short of their assailants. Behind them Mylan's hands were aglow with a yellow light as he held up a Guard Up spell for them.

Roderick took up the rear, and immediately began prioritizing his targets.

"…I bid thee, bind these points and grant me passage through your valley!" The chalk markings and even the ground around Marcus began to glow, casting much of the room in silver light. He gave a short laugh of victory. He did it, the spell was cast, and all it needed was a little time.

The time part was the problem. He turned and saw the terrible carnage the Goddess and her compatriots were causing. Imps were slaughtered everywhere. He actually watched the Viking pick one of the ugly little critters up and whip it at a wall. It died with a loud pop and a circular spray of red that marked its impact.

Marcus had heard long ago, that Valkyries chose only the strongest, most valiant of warriors. That they would walk through battlefields, where thousands had fallen, and only choose one or two souls to accompany them. Somehow, seeing these people in action, he knew it to be true, each one of them was a master of their respected talents.

"Arngrim, go after the Dragon Orb! Cromm, assault the undead. Rod, Mylan, lay down cover for us! "

"You got it" Arngrim said, and took off at a sprint, choosing a path that would leave the least resistance between him and the cultists holding the Dragon Orb. Rod took off and ran for one of the pillars, using it as cover. He began targeting for any ranged enemies that would impede their assault such as Mage's and enemy snipers, while Mylan continued to counter incoming spells.

Roderick popped himself out of cover and hit one of the cultist with a perfect head shot.

Much like the long standing battle of crunchy vs creamy peanut butter, archers and mages were long time rivals over who's the best ranged fighter. Archers would argue that in the time it takes for a mages to cast a spell, they would could've shot so many arrows into those 'bookworm bitches' that the only choice would be for them to go and stand in the corner to act as a coat hanger. To this you would hear the mage's say that, while they are too busy playing with their wood, they will cook, freeze, and/or de-atomize their stick-throwing asses in new and interesting ways.

Rod popped out of cover and shot an arrow into another one of the cultists while in mid-cast. His buddies watched him fall and took cover themselves. He could make out some of them chanting, summoning power to return fire. (possibly with actual fire)

"Ya, you guys go ahead and take your time chanting! I'm sure you guys have all day!" Rod taunted with a laugh. However after a few seconds of silence from them, they taunted back.

"No problem, just let us know, when you're tired of holding your wood!" Uproarious laughter could be heard from where they hid. "Do your hands ever hurt from handling all of those shafts!" another said, with more laughter as Rod groaned, and then he looked up and glared at Mylan, as he was snickering too.

"What? You have to admit it was kind of funny." The mage placed his hand over his face and tried not to laugh, and Rod huffed.

He was so going to kick their asses.

Meanwhile Hrist Valkyrie moved right down the center. Dead set on her mark, she would destroy all who stood in her way. The Minitor had different ideas though. With a deafening roar, a sound that was punctuated by a heavy hoof stomping the ground. It lowered its head, and she found two massive horns pointing right at her.

It was going to charge.

Keeping her feet wide she readied herself for the beast. The massive head of the bull snorted at her, sending little clouds of vapor in either direction. With another roar, it began to run at her. One of the undead swordsmen, dutifully keeping a guard position between the Valkyrie and Marcus, happened to be in the way. Without even slowing itself the beast speared him, the body was still writhing as it slid down its horn, all the way to its pig-like-snout. Swinging its head in an arc, the body was thrown off and landed with an unsavory crunch as Hrist waited for the creature to come to her. Nearly as wide as it was tall, it seemed to be moving at a slow pace, but it was at a full run.

The Minitor lowered its head at her, intending to impale her. Hrist waited for the last possible second, right when the beast was upon her, and she leapt upwards into the air. Stepping upon the massive snout for leverage she leapt again, sending her over its head, and exposing its back. In a display of just how lithe she really was, she twisted and turned in the air so that her halberd was pointing downward. With a loud grunt, she drove her halberd into its back as hard as she could. The pike and blade sunk right in, the Minitor screamed in pain and started bucking about, throwing the Valkyrie off. Hrist crashed to the ground and slid a few feet. Her world dazed, she could see the massive beast struggle, trying in vain to reach behind its back and pull her halberd out.

Unable to pull the offending weapon out, it turned its sights back on Hrist, whom was still on the ground. Its eyes red with rage, it roared, stomped its foot then charged again.

But before it made it more than a few feet, a bolt of lightning struck its thigh, causing the beast to stumble. It tried to get back up, but out of nowhere Cromm made a mad dash and jumped on its back, and mounted it like a professional bullrider. He dropped his war axe and put both of his hands on either side of its head.

"Yee-haww!" Cromm whooped and hollered like a drunken Viking cowboy as the abomination tried to throw him off. However a combination of blood loss and the Cromms weight slowed it down enough for him to stay on. He was evidently having the time of his life. "Cmon ya big wuss! My last girlfriend bucked harda than this!" (he didn't mention that she was about as hairy)

Disturbing visuals aside, Mylan raised his wand to the air and took aim "let's see how it likes this!" Mylan cried and launched a fireball, this time striking it in the chest, just below where Cromm was riding. The Minitor bellowed a tired cry and fell on its chest.

Now that his feet could reach the ground Cromm took advantage of the leverage and began to roll and twist the Minitor's head, looking to either snap its neck, or tear its head off completely.

"Ha! Rip its head off Cromm!" Arngrim yelled, and kicked a rotting swordsman off of his blade.

But to everyone's astonishment, the massive beast planted its human like arms into the ground and hefted itself back up. Cromm didn't give up though. "Cmon you ugly sucker. I'm gonna make a new helmet outta yer horns!" The godless cross of man and bull continued to flail about, trying to dislodge the bullriding Viking, as he continued to pull on its head.

Then without warning the Minitor stopped flailing, and charged at the nearest wall. Cromm held on for dear life as he watched the wall come right at him.

"Aww fu-" was all he was able to get out before the rampaging beast slammed into the wall. Causing the Viking to fly off and 'pancake' against the wall.

Arngrim saw the whole affair, but couldn't divert his attention from the task at hand. He had finally managed to reach the apostle with the dragon orb strapped to his back (it was easy to spot the only man smuggling what looked like a basketball in a pouch), and had locked blades with him. The cultist jumped back and his hand began to glow. Arngrim saw it, and rolled to the side, just in time to dodge a nasty looking fireball, and was instantly back into a prone position before the cultist knew it.

"Hey, heads up!" he said. The cultist didn't even get a chance to say 'huh?' before Arngrim swung his blade and decapitated him. With a victorious smirked he snatched up the Dragon orb and looked around. To his dismay nobody had been close enough to hear his cool one-liner.

Aww…

The Minitor was looming over an unconscious Cromm, and raised a large hoof to the air. It was obvious what he was about to do, but just before he could crush the Viking. An arrow slammed into its head, with a gristly sounding 'THOK'.

"Suck on that, bit- OH SHIT" Rod ducked back behind cover as 2 fireballs and a bolt of lightning flew perilously close to him. "A little help here!" Mylan obliged, by launching a volley of fireballs at the enemy casters. A couple of them fell to the ground and desperately tried to put themselves out, while others ran to aid their burning compatriots; Rod took advantage of their distraction by jumping out of cover, and nailing another one of the cultists.

Though Roderick's arrow was a direct headshot, the Minitor's skull proved to be too thick to penetrate its brain. But obviously the Minitor was very unhappy at his new horn protruding out of its head. It stomped around, in an angry rage. Hrist had pulled herself off of the ground, and drew her sword. She'd much rather have her halberd, but that wasn't really an option as it was still stuck in its back. Before it even knew she was coming, the goddess was on him. Furiously slashing at any part of its body, the Minitor cried out in pain and started swinging angry firsts at the Valkyrie. But each time it tried hit her, Hrist nimbly danced out of the way. She was simply too fast, and the battered Minitor was starting to lose its strength.

"Lady Valkyrie, lure it to the center!" Rod cried, and with absolute trust in her Einherjar, Hrist started to do just that. With each stomp, and swing of its fists, the Minitor was slowly being lead to the center and directly in front of the archer.

"I got it! Move!" Roderick's arrow began to shine brilliantly, almost like a small star. Hrist saw this and knew exactly what he was going to do. Rather than run, she pointed her hand and projected herself away in a photon. The raging beast opted to chase the bead of Violet light, but right then Mylan summoned a Frigid Damsel. The tiny being of pure cold streaked to the Minitor and embraced one of its legs, the appendage was instantly encases in ice, effectively stopping its progress. Again it roared and started pounding at the ice around its leg. It would be free in a second, but that was all Roderick needed.

"You're going down buddy…" He lined the shot with his shimmering arrow. "PULVERISING STORM!" he cried. In a moment of sheer awe, the single arrow he launched became dozens, and then those dozens became hundreds. It was like an entire army of archers had fired at once.

The move was far from efficient. Many of the arrows fell short, and landed on the ground, while many more flew over its head. However for every arrow that missed, two more struck the dying Monster. They landed everywhere, its chest its arms were absolutely riddled with them. They struck its head and legs, and as fast as the attack had started, it was over.

Finally the Minitor dropped to his knees, and fell backwards, dead. With the massive handle of her halberd sticking out of its back, and all of the arrows riddling its front, the dead beast looked sort of like a big toilet brush.

"That… Was AWESOME!" Cromm cried, evidently having gained consciousness just in time to witness the spectacle. He ran up to Rod, and they chest bumped. This of course caused the smaller archer to fly back a foot and land on his back with an 'oof'. Right about that moment Arngrim strolled up and held up a bag, with a victorious grin on his face. "I got the Orb, and it looks like the rest retreated to the top." Mylan looked at the dead beast, holding his nose. "I didn't think that thing could smell any worse while it was alive. I stand corrected"

No Valkyrie had ever been so proud of her Einherjar.

The temple was a mess. Bodies littered floor, blood was everywhere, and not to mention she had obliterated the worshiping section to get the last of the mercs. Hrist did not envy whoever had to clean this up.

Her attention was brought up to the small flight of stairs that led up to the platform, where the Philosophers' Stone rested. The entire upper part of the platform was glowing. Mid teleportation, but considering that Marcus was trying to teleport the entire area, it was slow going. Only 4 of the cultists and Marcus himself remained. They stood within the light, hoping to hitch a ride to safety.

Hrist Valkyrie looked to her soldiers. "Wait here, I shall make short work of these men." She said coolly, once again regaining her icy composure. She walked past the dead Minitor, and casually pulled her halberd out without breaking stride. Back in her hands, she unsummoned the weapon.

She casually walked up the steps and approached the platform. But just before she entered the glowing part she stopped. The cultists took a step back in fear as she curiously looked around in front of her, like she was examining an invisible wall. Arngrim and the others looked with wonder in their eyes as to why she paused.

Human eyes couldn't see it, but she could. She reached out, and sure enough the air in front of her rippled as she confirmed the barrier. 'They're using the vault's own defenses to hold me off… clever.'

Cold, golden eyes stared at the men in front her. None of them seemed like they wanted to talk. They were unsure of what she planned to do, even though the heavy barrier was up. Only one of them was bold enough to stand near the other side and look her defiantly in the eyes. Hrist could only guess who he was.

"I've come a long way seeking you mortal. I've walked through the streets of the dead" she spoke calmly, coolly, like she was doing nothing more than telling him about the weather. "I've seen many of their faces. Children, mothers, farmers, people who do nothing more than try to make a life for themselves." The other cultists exchanged looks between Marcus and the face of their death, waiting to see how this all turned out. The teleportation spell was so close, just another few minutes. But Unfortunetly those few minutes might as well have been hours, for all the good it did them.

"Never in my existence, have I seen so much grief and pain… So before I render my judgment, I feel that I must ask you this one question. Why?"

"And what do you care of my methods?" He hissed "Are you going to tell me next that the god's hands are all clean of such atrocities?" he shook his head and began to pace behind his barrier. "I had a vision of how the world should really be. You do nothing but cause conflict, by favoring one nation and denying others. I've seen the way you puppet your frustrations through the guise of blinded faith!" If his words upset the Valkyrie in anyway, she never showed it. "Everything that exists must change, to adapt to the times. However, the only thing that never changes is you, and your fellow gods. And because of this-"

"That which does not grow, falls into decay?" she interrupted by taking a page right out of Lezards book and quoting him. "You disappoint me. Not only is this plan unoriginal, but the man before you, did it with far better flair." She took a few steps back, and drew her sword. The blade began to shimmer and shine brilliantly.

"You'll never understand my plans…" Marcus said.

"No, I suppose I shall not." She said and pointed her glowing blade at him. "In the name of our all-father, Lord Rufus, I hereby condemn your souls to purification." Marcus fumbled in his robe for his dagger, and anything else that my help him. His hands came on his small hourglass containing the sands of time, which he made. It would slow everything down for a few seconds, and thus give him more time to react (think bullet-time).

Or it would give him the dubious honor, of literally having the slowest soul purification in the world.

The latter he decided might suck.

"May this forever be engraved upon your souls." She said. Everyone backed up from the barrier, they had no idea what was in store for them, but they were pretty darn sure that it was going to ruin their day.

"DIVINE ASSAULT!" She screamed, and struck the barrier. Marcus flipped his hourglass, a disorientating lurch of his stomach and the sudden deepening of all sound indicated that it worked. In slow motion he saw her strike the barrier again, this time causing a huge flash as the as it winked out of existence. The fall of the defense caused a small shockwave and threw Marcus off balance. The hourglass, containing the sands of time flew from his hands. Had his attention not been focused on the predatory look of the ever approaching Valkyrie, he would have seen it hit the ground and shatter.

And that was when the proverbial/cosmic shit hit the fan.

Magic, or any of the arcane sciences for that matter, were still a great mystery to all of mankind. New effects were always being discovered, and many would devote their entire lives to trying to understand even the most basic principles. The second the Sands of Time, free of its glass prison, touch the ground and it began to sizzle. Without the small hourglass to give it a certain direction, it went in every direction or 'fluxing' as some would call it. On any normal occasion this was a harmless event, but the power that was once holding up the barrier was still there, and was now super-powering the anomaly, creating a super flux. This now 'super flux', reacted with the teleportation spell that was still in mid progress.

Teleportation spells work by taking two points and creating a 'shortcut' between them, by making a rift in the fabric of time and space. Freya herself travels using this principle. When the super-flux met the teleportation spell, it was instantly given direction (which was basically through the empty void of time and space). Between Marcus and Hrist, they had basically created a flux-capacitor and set a course. Now the only thing that they required was a catalyst, and something to refine the event, and deliver the necessary 1.21 gigawatts of energy.

Unfortunetly for Hrist, she was in the middle of that very event. Her Nibelung Valesti, that was initially intended to purify Marcus's soul, purified the event instead, and the energy behind her soul crushing move kick-started the chain reaction.

Between the two of them, they pretty much had successfully divided by zero.

Hrist knew that something was wrong. Time slowed even further, and came to a crawl. She was still coming at him, but the closer they got to each other the slower they went. The point of Hrist's blade was a mere few inches away from his chest. But just before she could make contact, time came to a screeching halt. 'NOOOO!' She screamed, but her lips didn't move. She could hear herself, but she didn't know where her own voice was.

Unable to move the world around her begins to wash away. It looks almost like sand in the tide, as she continues to struggle. The blade was mere millimeters away, but she just couldn't reach him. Then the tip of her blade began to blow away like dust. Hrist could only watch in horror as the odd effect traveled right up her sword and through her hands. It didn't hurt, but she feels the numbness and is terrified. Its only seconds before the world falls away, and leads to darkness.

OMG, this thing is going to be huge. The outline for this mutha is 45 pages long! I would also like to say that, i know that most people arent too big a fan of OC's. However though, I would like to point out that Hrist didn't really have any Einherjar of her own in the game, and i thought that she could use few people that were as loyal to her, as the others were to Silmeria. I promise, aside from the random town folk here and there, you'll start to see the regulars like, Jelanda, Celes, and many more. Anyway, i hope i didn't do to bad with the fighting (that crap is hard to write!), and that you shall be kind enough to leave a review.