Chapter 36

Echoes of the Past

Madoka watched as Mami simply stared at Nagisa. Her unmoving face still looked like a creepy clown. She couldn't understand what was wrong with her. She had never heard of an illness that could do something like that to her. And there wasn't any way she could help. Cure spells weren't doing anything. One of her friends was suffering right in front of her, and she was powerless to help. Unbidden, memories of events in Mitakihara flashed back into her mind, of her mother never coming home, her father lying in a pool of his own blood, her brother impaled and hoisted into the air. Of her entire city being taken by the Heartless.

Madoka slumped down onto a nearby bench, watching as the attendants did something she didn't understand. There was now a holographic image of Nagisa's body floating above her, with some sort of red fluid floating through it. As she leaned back against the wall, she saw the flash of the Holo-Ramuh appearing in front of her.

"Do you know what's wrong with her?"

"Unfortunately no." Ramuh sighed. "I may be a spirit of knowledge, but I often have to remind myself that that is not the same as all-knowing."

"Oh." Madoka said, slumping.

"One of the most important parts of being a hero is realizing your limits." Said a voice. Madoka turned to see Thor. Though he was usually boisterous and loud, here, he seemed more subdued.

"I'm the God of Thunder, he said. Thunder and Lightning are mostly good for destruction. Not so much for building or creating things. Even if they do come from a hammer." He said, with a chuckle.

Madoka understood that. She loved helping people, but she had just been a teenage girl before. Now she was a world-hopping warrior with magical powers. She could heal people. She could protect them from harm. She recalled how happy those people were. After the battle, when they were reunited with their friends and families. Knowing that they were safe. That there was hope for the future.

Madoka looked back at Nagisa, and then at Mami who was sitting next to her, her face filled with worry. She was supposed to be a hero, wasn't she? If she couldn't help here, then she would have to develop her powers further. Madoka turned to the Holo-Ramuh. "Are there spells that could potentially help with this?"

"Magic is not without its own rules, but it's uses are vast. Somewhere, certainly, a spell exists. But finding it is a different matter entirely. People have spent entire lifetimes searching for the proper magical solution to whatever problem or threat they face."

"Oh..."

"You can't do everything. No matter how powerful you are." Thor said.

"I understand that, but there's still a lot Keyblade Wielders are capable of. I still want to learn more, and get stronger, so I can help more people." Madoka said. "I want to learn more magic."

"An admirable sentiment, Madoka." Thor said.

"If you're trying to learn more magic, it might help to connect with more Espers. Through that connection, you can learn more spells."

"Like with Ifrit?" Madoka said.

"Indeed, as the Esper of Fire, he could help advance your fire magic, though again, I would caution against trying to contact him here. With some more training, I could help you advance your lightning magic. Help you gain the ability to use Thundara."

"But, that's just…" Madoka paused.

"What?" Ramuh said. He didn't look offended, merely curious. "If you have some objection, best to air it."

"That's just, more attacks. Like, I understand the use and want to learn it, but what about other kinds of magic? I can heal some injuries. Are there more magics like that?"

"Ah, I understand." Ramuh said. "Cure is a spell that heals wounds, but there are other forms of healing. Poisona, Blindna, Stona. Not to mention other protective magics like Protect and Shell. Unfortunately, we don't currently have access to any Espers who could teach magics like that."

"Oh."

"Though I do know of one magic that you might be able to learn. The Magus Sisters could teach you Reflect, a defensive spell for turning magical energies back upon their source."

"That sounds amazing!" Madoka said.

"Indeed, though we'll have to find the time to train once more. Once we-"

There was a sudden commotion from elsewhere in the room. Madoka looked up to see Mami leaning over Nagisa. She was waking up, her skin changing back to it's usual color and the clown face vanishing.

"Nagisa?"

Before anything else, Nagisa heard Mami's voice. When her vision was swimming in red, and her body ached, she could still feel her embrace.

And that was good, for when her vision cleared, there was no doubts as to where she was. Though it was all styled differently, there was no mistaking the implements, the tools and the devices. She was in some sort of hospital. She felt her heartbeat rise, and her breath quicken, not at all helped by how raw her throat was.

"Nagisa! You're awake!"

"I-" Nagisa struggled to speak. She embraced Mami harder. The girl had been like a big sister to her after she had been abandoned. And then Nagisa's grip loosened, as she slumped back onto the slab on which she lay.

She was still so weak compared to them.

"I'm sorry. I messed up." Nagisa said.

"You didn't. It's not your fault."

Objectively, Nagisa new this. She was 11. The others were at minimum 5 years older than her. It made sense that she would have trouble keeping up. But, at the same time, she had the same magic powers that they did, she could use spells and transformations all the same. And yet, it hadn't helped her in escape from that cave, or from those blue giants. She was still...

"A stupid girl."

Nagisa flinched, and buried her face deeper in Mami's shoulder, trying not to cry. Instead, she tried to distract herself by asking questions.

"What happened? How did I get here?" She kept trying to remember, but after arriving in the snowfield and seeing the giants everything was… fuzzy. She did remember a name however. Charlotte.

"We crashed." she heard Kyoko say. The redhead was currently leaning against a nearby wall. "Got scattered all across the Nine Realms."

"Heimdall found you in the ruins of a Frost Giant village in Jotunheim." Said a male voice. Nagisa turned to see a blonde man in armor and cape standing near to Madoka and a holographic projection of Ramuh.

"W-who are you?" She asked.

"Thor, Prince of Asgard."

"Thor… like… from mythology?" Nagisa asked.

"Ayup!" Sayaka said.

"Then were..."

"In the realm of Asgard." Mami answered. "Once we were all gathered together, we were supposed to depart to where we were supposed to be headed, but with you like this, we need to remain here until we can figure it out."

The stress of being in a hospital was starting to be outweighed by the excitement. She was in a world from mythology, made real! And if it got her out of this hospital…

"I don't feel that bad." She denied. "This place sounds amazing. I want to explore. Maybe they have some neat cheeses!"

"I don't think that will be necessary." Said another voice.

Madoka watched as Odin entered the room, flanked by several guards.

"If all are gathered, then I believe it is time for the lot of you to continue on your journey."

"Father, one of them is ill!" Thor objected.

"She is mortal. Illness is their defining trait. Besides, their kind have their own healers. They're called 'doctors'. Let them handle it."

"Hey, what the hell?! You're just going to try and force her to travel in that condition?!" Kyoko exclaimed.

"Guards, escort them to the Bifrost!" Odin ordered. The Einherjar nodded and moved over to the table where Nagisa lay.

"No, wait!" Thor shouted, but it was too late.

Nagisa's eyes widened and then glowed before a massive pulse of red energy exploded outwards, blasting everyone back. Madoka was slammed against the back of the bench, though she quickly came too. She looked up to see both Odin, Mami, and the head healer standing over her.

"Nagisa! Are you okay?!" Mami asked.

"Impossible..." Odin ran his hand down Nagisa's arm, and where he did, a strange red glow lingered.

"The infection… it's defending her?"

"No… it's defending itself." Thor realized as he approached.

"Ugh… what the hell just happened?" Kyoko asked, struggling to her feet.

"The Aether… of all the things, why this? And with an outsider as it's host?"

"What's the Aether?" Madoka asked.

"Something that should have been impossible for her to encounter. This does not bode well for her."

"Nagisa, how do you feel?" Mami asked.

"I feel… hungry." Nagisa said. There was a sudden flash of red light, and then the table she had been lying on was transformed into a gigantic block of Camembert cheese.

Everyone stared in shock, even Nagisa, but only for a moment before she squealed and began digging into the cheese.

"Okay, we have to get that thing out of her." Sayaka said.

"I don't see a problem." Kyoko said, joining Nagisa in eating the cheese.

"The Aether is more dangerous than you know. Something like this is only a fraction of the chaos it's capable of." Odin said. "Come with me."

"But..." Nagisa said, between large mouthfuls of cheese.

"We're going" Mami said sternly. Both Kyoko and Nagisa hesitated, before they stopped eating.

"A-alright." Nagisa relented.

"Can you stand?"

"Yeah." Nagisa held out her hand, and Mami helped her to her feet. She then slumped back against the cheese table, prompting Thor to pick effortlessly pick her up and place her on his shoulder. Mami followed next to him, with the other girls trailing behind.

They were led to a room with a massive tree within it. Floating around the tree were swirling masses of energy, resembling galaxies of some sort.

"There are relics that predate the universe itself. What is within young Nagisa appears to be one of them. The Nine Realms are not eternal. They had a dawn, and they will have a dusk. All Worlds began in darkness. And so might all end." Odin said. He gestured to one of the Aesir in the room who brought him a massive tome and laid it on a pedestal.

Everyone crowded around as Odin opened the book to a page depicting strange moving symbols and runes.

"Long before the birth of light, there was darkness. And from that darkness came the Dark Elves, who reigned unchallenged." Odin turned the page, revealing strange beings. At first, Madoka thought their faces were weird, before she realized that they were masks. Strange masks resembling porcelain doll faces.

"Born of eternal night, the Dark Elves come to steal away the light." Thor rhymed. "I know the stories, mother told them to us as children."

"Their leader Malekith, made a weapon out of that darkness called the Aether. While the other relics often appear as Stones, the Aether is fluid and ever changing." The book depicted a group of Dark Elves all standing before another Elf, this one in more elaborate robes and holding a strange red object, from which glowing energy emerged. "It changes matter into dark matter. It seeks out host bodies, drawing strength from their life force. Malekith sought to use the Aether's power to return the universe to one of darkness."

Odin turned the page again, and the image shifted into one of Malekith darkening the stars in the sky.

"But, after eternities of bloodshed, my father Bor finally triumphed, ushering in a peace that lasted thousands of years."

"What happened?" Mami asked.

"He killed them all."

Madoka flinched, not just at what he had said, but how he had said it. Completely matter of fact about the topic of genocide.

"Wait what?" Sayaka asked, clearly as shocked as Madoka.

Odin turned yet another page, this one depicting Dark Elves marching towards Aesir who were marching towards them from the other page. He then spoke some words Madoka didn't understand, and suddenly, a massive holographic image formed, blossoming out of the pages of the book. As Madoka observed, she gasped.

The battle in Vanaheim was like a bar brawl compared to this. Trained and uniformed armies charged across the black soil of Svartalfheim, swords, and lasers meeting in a brutal and bloody battle. Above them, spaceships streaked through the sky, either dogfighting or acting like carriers for other ships to launch from, while unleashing blasts from their own cannons.

Even more shocking was that there were Heartless in this battle, fighting alongside the Dark Elves. The consisted entirely of Pureblood Heartless, Shadows, Neoshadows, and Darkballs, as well as strangely powerful demonic looking creatures wielding swords and raging beast like creatures. Though the Aesir could fight them, those who were felled by the Heartless joined them, transforming into more Heartless.

Above them still were strange discs in the sky that Madoka eventually realized were portals. She could see Asgard, Muspelheim, Vanaheim, and other realms she had not yet visited.

"Malekith, the most ruthless of his kind, sought to use the Aether at the convergence, when all of the Nine Realms are in alignment. There, he could accomplish his goal, to turn this World into one of eternal night."

The projection zoomed in on one elf, a pale-skinned elf in white and black armor, wearing a cape. He stood next to a dark-skinned elf in similar armor, as they looked over the battlefield as a Bifrost beam came crashing down from the sky, out of it emerging reinforcements for the Aesir. Golden armored Einherjar charged out of the portal into the ranks of Dark Elves.

"The noble armies of Asgard, led by my father, King Bor, waged a mighty war against these creatures."

As he said this, a second wave of Aesir emerged from the portal, these solders locked into a shield wall formation. Spearheading this assault was a tall red-headed man in golden armor and a horned helm. He carried the same spear, Gungnir, that Odin did now, and he shot beams of energy from it, that tore through the ranks of Dark Elves and Heartless alike.

In response, some of the Dark Elves drew strange glowing egg like stones. They crushed them in their hands, and then their bodies jerked and twitched. Fire and darkness engulfed them, while their bodies warped and transformed. When the transformation ended, the Elves now stood several feet higher and had gained immense muscle mass. Where the eye sockets of their masks were once black, now they glowed yellow while a dark aura swirled about them.

They gave out bestial roars and charged into the ranks of Aesir, smashing aside soldiers with their bare fists, weapon swings merely bouncing off their reinforced armor and flesh.

The scene then switched back to Malekith. He looked up into the sky, where the portals were beginning to completely align.

"As the Nine Realms converged above him, Malekith could at last unleash the Aether."

The Dark Elf approached glowing monolith, bifurcated, with the Aether floating in between the two segments. He held out his hand, and the red fluid flowed towards him. However, before he could complete the union, a Bifrost beam came crashing down, blasting him away from the monolith.

Aesir warriors charged out of the portal towards Malekith and his companion. However, they were easily dispatched, falling to the blades of the Dark Elves. He then ran back towards the Bifrost but it was too late. The beam vanished, taking the Aether with it.

"But Asgard had ripped the weapon from his grasp. And without it, the Dark Elves fell." True to Odin's words, the battle turned against the Dark Elves, with Asgard gaining the upper hand. The footsoldiers were slaughtered, the giant Elves were overwhelmed brought down, and the Heartless were felled along with them, the rest retreating into dark corridors.

Then what Madoka saw next made her blood run cold. The Dark Elf ships darkened, and fell from the sky, upon the battling soldiers, unleashing shockwaves and explosions. A massive storm of smoke and dust arose.

"What the hell?" Sayaka said.

"With the battle all but lost, Malekith sacrificed his own people in an attempt to lay waste to Asgard's armies."

"What?!" Sayaka was aghast, horrified.

Madoka had to agree. That was… just wrong on so many levels.

Odin, however, continued unabated as the image switched to the cloud clearing, depicting the ruins of a battlefield, with countless corpses lying in blood and ashes.

"Malekith was vanquished, and the Aether was no more." He then turned to Nagisa. "Or so we were led to believe."

"Are you so certain about the destruction of the Dark Elves then?" Thor asked. "The Aether was said to have been destroyed, and yet here it is."

"The Dark Elves are dead." Odin said in a calm tone but Madoka got the impression that he wasn't to be argued with.

"Well, does your book mention how to get it out of her?" Kyoko asked.

"No." He said plainly. "It does not."

Madoka backed away, as the hologram faded, returning the room to what it once was. She felt uneasy, a gnawing feeling in her stomach.

"He killed them all."

"Nagisa Momoe will be taken into protection within the castle until such time as we can find a way to extract the Aether from her." He said.

As the guards approached to escort them away, Madoka followed numbly without protest.

Thanks to The Name Of Love for beta-reading and idea sounding!

~Dragonexx