Atreus opened the door for Ainz and his company, bringing them into the Witch's home. It was not much to look at, compared to the Great Tomb of Nazarick. A small open room with some windows. It was filled with crudely made furniture, mostly just shelves which lined the walls, and a humble bed next to a small fireplace, and a table in another corner. Cozy for one, cramped for two or more. The owner of the house stood just next to the fireplace, as did Atreus' father. They had just been discussing something.
Ainz looked at the Witch, who in turn could not help but stare at him. She was similar in height to Albedo, and looked to be a human in her early thirties. Ainz could no longer feel such things as passion or lust or romantic desire, but when he saw the Witch, he understood that before him stood a world-class beauty, of a different sort than those he was familiar with. Whereas Albedo's physical beauty derived from the cold, mathematical perfection of her statuesque form, Ainz saw in the Witch the forlorn beauty of the setting sun, of the falling autumn leaves, that strange fleeting beauty of things as they come to an end, preserved in perpetuity by her pale face, her deep dark eyes, and her shoulder-length chesnut-colored hair. Her earth-colored garments, which exposed her faintly-tattooed arms, exuded a weary elegance. Her ensemble had been sewn by her own hands. Atreus managed to break the tense silence that set in.
"This is Ainz, he's a king around here in Midgard, mostly of humans but lots of other people too. He's also really good at magic."
"I… I see… so…" The Witch was understandably put off by Ainz's skeletal appearance.
"I am Ainz Ooal Gown, the Sorcerer King. Ainz will do, however, and further introductions can be made later. To business. You were recommended to us as being able to reanimate a certain severed head. Could you?"
"All this talk about-" The Witch stopped as Atreus' father held up Mimir's head. "A head… Do you have any idea who this is? Did you kill him?"
"At his request. He claimed you could revive him," grumbled Atreus' father.
"Me? Are you sure you heard him right?"
"Please?" begged Atreus. The Wtich sighed and relented.
"Take him to the table. Come in, all of you. Close the door behind you," she said, gesturing to the other Floor Guardians standing in the doorway as she walked towards the table in the corner. She took some bowls of components from a shelf, as Ainz watched her work intently. "〔Heimili!〕It's been a long time since I've practiced the Old Magic. Let's have a look…"
As she shouted the command, the house shifted again, sinking into the ground. The Witch looked over the severed head as she stirred ingredients into a bowl, a purplish glow filling it. She dipped her hand in the bowl, rubbing its contents on the bottom of the neck, where the axe cut it. "Well, thankfully, his head hasn't decayed much, and his brain is still intact. Nice, clean cut. Cutting off his head of all people… I sure hope you know what you're doing." She turned the head over, stuffing some more ingredients into its mouth. "Now, hold his head under the water and don't let go. I mean it." Atreus' father walked over to the fireplace, dipping the head into a boiling pot of water. It shifted and shuddered, fighting against the man's grip, but he held onto it firmly. After a few minutes, the Witch stopped him. "That's enough."
Atreus' father lifted the head out of the pot. The runes on the head glowed for a moment. Mimir spat suddenly, bits of ingredients flying out from his mouth and dribbling down his bushy beard. He coughed, seemingly trying to clear his mouth of an unpleasant taste. The yellow light returned to his one eye, and he blinked. Atreus' father stepped away from the fire.
"Let me see him," said the Witch.
Atreus' father held Mimir up to the Witch. "Mimir, you there?" she asked.
"Yes," he said, absent-mindedly.
"Good." The Witch spat on Mimir.
"Oh… Hello, Freya, been a long time. You look well."
"What I did, I did for them. As far as I'm concerned, death suits you better."
"I'd bow if I could, Your Majesty, forgive me." Freya gave an exasperated sigh as she turned away to stow her ingredients from the magic. Mimir continued. "Had I known 'the Witch of the Woods' was Freya herself, I never would have suggested this."
"Freya? The goddess, Freya?" asked Atreus. Ainz was about to ask the same question.
"You didn't know either? Sorry…" said Mimir nervously. Freya gave no answer, turning instead to Ainz and Atreus's father.
"Once word gets out that Mimir is free, the wrath of Odin won't be far behind."
Atreus' father glared at her. "You are a god…"
"Leader of the Vanir, once, yes, but no longer."
"You did not think it important to tell me?"
Freya stepped towards him. "Are you really going to lecture me about that?"
Atreus' father glared at her as he turned to go. "We are leaving, boy."
"But-"
"Now."
They made their way to an exit that led into a cave.
"You're welcome," taunted Freya. Atreus' father responded by slamming his fist into the threshold of the doorway, shaking the house, and Atreus followed, looking back at Freya sympathetically as he left.
As the door closed, Freya turned to face her remaining guests. "So, any more severed heads you need revived, hm?"
"No, actually," said Ainz. "I wish to make you an offer, Lady Freya."
"Oh? I'll spare you the trouble. I'm fresh off a bad marriage, and even then the answer is no, for more reasons than you being undead."
"That… isn't what I had in mind at all. Would you consider entering my service?"
"You aren't very good at this, are you?"
Albedo huffed in indignation. "What are you talking about? And before you answer, think carefully on what you intend to say."
"Your leader put the offer so kindly, and yet has servants powerful enough to wipe out millions of mortals gathered in my home. If you're pressed for time, just lead with the ultimatums and threats."
"I said nothing about any of that," said Ainz. Okay, so Freya's a bit jaded, by the looks of it. "I am making this offer in good faith."
"Forgive me. The last time I let flattery and kindness win me over, it cost me dearly. I hope you understand that I'm wary of such things now, having learned my lesson."
"What happened, exactly? I assume it involved Odin?"
"Yes, and that's all I wish to discuss about that. What do you mean by 'service,' exactly?"
"At the bare minimum, an oath of allegiance to me, free access to your services and skills for me and all my servants, permission to station guards here in your area of the forest, and compliance with my decrees."
Freya chuckled. "I'm sorry, but I can't meet that bare minimum. I will swear no oath and take no orders. Here is what I can do for you, however: I will use my powers to aid you and your allies as it suits you; station whatever guards you wish, I don't care. All I ask is that you help replenish any rare resources I use to perform my magick, and that you respect the flora and fauna of my grove. Again, I am sorry if this answer displeases you."
She's reluctant to commit herself without more knowledge of how we operate. That's fine. We can win her over with time. Shouldn't come on too strong. "Not at all. There is wisdom in your hesitance. I can come back at a later time and make the offer again when we have a better understanding of each other. Trust is something earned, not freely given. However, may I add one thing?"
"I'm listening."
"Let me cast two of my spells on you."
"What spells?"
"Nothing to endanger you. One will allow us to quickly know if you are in danger, and the second one will ward off death once. You are a person possessed of fine talents, so I wish to keep you out of danger. I require your consent for the spells to affect you, however. Will you let me?"
Freya paused for a moment, pondering the offer. "Fine. What do I do?"
"Just hold still for a moment," said Ainz. "[Ward of Harm]. [Death Ward]. There."
"I was expecting some amount of discomfort, actually. That's a relief."
"Well, in that case, Lady Freya, I will take my leave. Guards will be stationed around your grove just in case. It was an honor to meet you, even if, it seems, you are in less than ideal circumstances."
"I'm starting to wonder if you, an undead sorcerer, are actually here talking to me instead of trying to kill me. Maybe the herbs I used to revive Mimir were overly strong…"
"I assure you, Lady Freya, I am absolutely real." Ainz turned to go. "[Gate]. Albedo, Aura, Mare. Return to Nazarick. I will meet our two new acquaintances at the Temple of Týr. Before you protest, I remind you that Cocytus is near enough to guard me if anything happens. Go."
{The Lake of the Nine…}
Atreus, his father, and the reanimated head Mimir sat in a small wooden boat, rowing Týr's Temple in the middle of the lake.
"Father… what do you think of him?"
"The undead?"
"Yeah."
"I do not trust it. And neither should you, boy."
Mimir spoke up. "I'm with your da on this one, lad, even if he's playing nice for now."
"But he seemed really friendly for an undead. He talked to us like a normal person, even let us fly using his magic!"
"It is an act, boy."
Mimir would have nodded if he could. "And that's what makes this Ainz fellow so dangerous, lad. Revenants powerful in Seiðr magic are a menace, but one that can suppress its own insanity and destructive instincts and rule so many powerful beings is something else entirely. I don't recall anyone ever having to deal with something like that… I can't imagine Odin being at peace with such a faction as that on his doorstep."
"Who were those other people with him? They seem to almost worship him," asked Atreus. "Didn't they call him a Supreme something or another? Before he interrupted them?"
"There were two dark elf twins, I recall. And-"
"But they look nothing like dark elves, Mimir…"
"I was about to mention that, actually. But also, heterochromia is a trait only present in Elven royalty."
"Hetero-what?"
"Heterochromia is when you have mismatched eye color. The two children had one blue and one green eye. They're of the royal Elven blood for sure, but they're also incredibly strong, even for children… I wonder, did Freyr… hmm…"
"Freyr? Freya's brother?"
"Aye, well, that's a thought for another time. The other one, the dark armored one who tried to talk down to your da earlier is a hulder, or related to them, anyway. Albedo, I think her name was."
"A hulder? Really? She looked like a Valkyrie."
"I'm surprised by that too, lad. The armor of hers is a bit bulky for a seductive forest spirit, if you ask me. Bottom line is, lads, our man Ainz runs a dangerous outfit. In a lot of ways, he reminds me of Odin."
"How so?"
"He's got a knack for gathering knowledge, and is more than clever enough to obtain it," concluded Mimir.
"What do you mean?"
"To begin with, Ainz could have easily sprung me out of that tree with some of his magic. I'm certain of it."
"What?! But he said that you'd turn into a mindless undead…"
"Simple. He lied," grunted Atreus' father.
"Spun a half-truth, more like. He might have been speaking the truth there about raising me to life, but he wouldn't have even needed to sever my head. He could have just worked his spellcraft."
"But why wouldn't he do that? It seems a lot easier than having us go to Freya…"
"That was the point, lad! He wanted us to go to Freya. If he had freed me himself, we wouldn't have needed to go to her. By one simple omission on his part, Ainz was able to dupe us into bringing him to Freya's location."
"That's… really smart…" remarked Atreus. "But what does he want with Freya? Is he gonna hurt her? We should go back if he is!"
"I think she'll be alright, lad. If he wanted to kill Freya, he wouldn't have needed to play any tricks on us. He'd likely have magic for wiping out large tracts of land, if the Aesir's power is a good reference point. No, he wants something from her, likely her magic and skills. The same thing Odin did."
"He looked really fascinated by how Freya revived you. That makes sense."
"Reanimation magic is a powerful thing. Additionally, the protection staves that she provided you may have blocked his detection spells. He did mutter something about divination when he first showed up with his crew."
"They did seem surprised when they all came through that magic door, so that makes sense too. Huh. Even if he can't beat Freya in certain things, Ainz must be insanely powerful! How powerful is that, though?" asked Atreus.
"I don't know, lad, but something tells me we'll find out soon enough."
The boat bumped against the dock at Týr's Temple, and Atreus and his father disembarked, taking Mimir with them. They went up the stairs.
"Now, there should be a horn right around here, I think," said Mimir. "Take me to it."
"This way," said Atreus. He had just seen a platform that could lead up to a large, intricate horn, fashioned of bright metals. Atreus' father stopped as he saw something in front of him opposite the horn platform.
"The undead… he is here," he muttered.
Ainz, alone on the bridge, called out to them. "You still have Mimir, correct?"
"Aye," replied the severed head. "I was just telling these two where to go. The horn we need is right here."
"Horn?"
"You'll see, Your Majesty."
Atreus' father turned a switch that stood in the center of the platform, and it began to ascend.
"Mimir, how will you communicate to the Serpent? Its language is unintelligible to me."
"It's a dead language, thanks to the Aesir. I, however, know it well enough to converse, but nothing like Jörmie himself. He doesn't look it, but he's quite the sparkling conversationalist."
The platform rattled to a stop, and Atreus' father took the severed head off of his belt.
"Put my lips to the horn, brother."
He did, and the deep, rumbling call from the horn shook the lake and the temple. The earth trembled, the Serpent moved, turning his mighty head to face the temple. But something else caught his eye instead. On one shore of the lake, there stood a towering statue of a bearded man wielding a hammer, looming over the body of a snake in triumph. The vast maw of Jörmungandr opened, as he swooped down on the great statue. With a loud crunch, the jaws closed on the upper part of the statue, crushing through the chiseled stone with ease.
"Why is he doing that?" asked Atreus.
"Odin had that statue made in honor of Thor," replied Mimir disdainfully. "And seeing how the World Serpent absolutely abhors the fat dobber, he was probably sick of looking at it."
"But… doesn't that hurt?" The Serpent had begun chewing on the broken stones of the monument, showing some signs of discomfort in the process.
"Well, he and Thor have a bit of an unpleasant history, or they will, anyway. I suppose waking up to see it was worse than the thought of lumps of solid stone passing through his gullet. You want me to ask him?"
"No," said the boy's father. "Our only concern is Jötunheim."
Before Mimir could respond, the Serpent spoke in its deep, rumbling voice. Atreus' father lifted the head up to face the great monster.
"Alright, wish me luck… AAAAAAAAAAWOOOOOOOOOOO…" Mimir coughed at the end of his first statement. "YOOOOOOOOOOOR-MOOOOOO HIN MIIIIIIIIIIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIR…"
The Serpent perked up in understanding, before replying. Mimir chuckled to himself.
"I still got it, lads, he remembers me! LYOOOOOOOOO- oh no that's not it…" The Serpent tilted its head in puzzlement. "MAAAAAAAW-LONNNN-GOOOOOOO VIH-NOOOOOOOOR TOOOOOOON KOOOOOOON… Oh, dear… no…" As Mimir continued, the Serpent coiled up around itself, baring its teeth. "EHHHHHH-KOOOOOO… NOOOOOOOOOH OH-THOOOOO VOO-NOOOOOOR…"
The Serpent's face softened at this hasty addendum, and it gave a sorrowful reply. Mimir translated. "He knows the pain of your loss… he'll help you!"
The World Serpent continued speaking, and Mimir replied to it. "EFNI… OOO-FOOON-GOOOR…" The Serpent bowed its head, moving closer to the bridge on which they stood. "Curious… Mimir remarked.
"What is it?" asked Atreus' father.
"Oh, nothing to be concerned about…"
The bridge shook momentarily, as the Serpent began to push against it. It began to move, turning past the towers that surrounded the temple.
"What's he doing?" cried Atreus in surprise.
"He's making sure we're headed in the right direction," answered Mimir. "Now listen up, lads. To open the gate to the land of the Giants, we need two things: first, we need to learn the travel rune that opens realm travel to Jötunheim; second, we need to carve that rune into the special gateway."
"The one on the peak we first met you on?" asked Atreus.
"Correct, except the Giants in their infinite wisdom made sure that no ordinary chisel would do the trick. Only the tip of their own magic chisels could open that gate, and luckily, I know where it is, and it's not far."
The World Serpent stopped pushing the bridge as it came into alignment with one of the towers, lined with sickly-green ornamentation and a great rune shaped like the letter H.
"He looked kinda mad there for a second…" said Atreus.
"Oh, that! He thought I said you were friends with Odin. You'll forgive me, I've never spoken the Ancient Tongue sober…"
Ainz felt a strong feeling of laughter get shut down by his emotional suppression. "Well, now that we know what we need, what if you and your son retrieved the chisel, while I acquired the travel rune? Then we can meet at the mountaintop?"
"Hmm…"
"We would both benefit. It would quicken the journey to Jötunheim if we each did half of the work."
"What do you want with the Giants, anyway?" asked Atreus.
"I am intrigued by all that is unknown to me. That includes the Jötnar."
"Oh… sorry, I didn't mean-"
"It's fine. It takes more than a simple question to offend m[e."
"Well, I guess I'm interested in the unknown too. It scares me sometimes, but it fascinates me too."
"Enough talk, boy," muttered his father. "We will find the chisel, and go to the mountaintop."
"Good," said Ainz. "Will you lend me Mimir?" The boy's father narrowed his eyes at Ainz, but said nothing.
"But we need his help too…" said Atreus.
"I will need him only a moment. I can use my magic to ensure we both can seek his counsel."
"Hm."
"Oh, just hand me over, brother. No need to make a big fuss over this. I'll be fine, I promise… I think…" said Mimir uncertainly.
"Hm." Atreus' father unhooked Mimir from his belt, and gave him to Ainz. The Sorcerer King put his free hand on Mimir's forehead.
"I apologize if this causes any discomfort. Like many of my spells, it should only take a few moments."
"I don't know what could beat 109 years of torment. Do what you need to."
"[Maximize Magic - Simulacrum]."
"Oi-the-WOAH! AGHH!"
Ainz moved his hands apart as a purple glow subsumed Mimir's head. The light faded, and now he held two identical heads in his hands.
"Woah… that's so weird…" whispered Atreus.
Ainz proffered one severed head to the boy's father.
"Mimir?" asked the boy. "Are you okay?"
They both responded, slurring slightly. "Yes…"
"Huh… that's weird and cool at the same time… I guess two heads are better than one… but they don't sound alright…"
Ainz nodded in understanding. "Give him a few minutes to reorient himself."
"Oh, okay!"
Atreus' father started to leave. "Let us go, boy."
"Yes, father."
The two of them turned to go, descending stairs to the water. Ainz, carrying Mimir, passed the corpse of a draugr, and it caught his eye.
"So, Your Majesty, what-" Mimir, who had recovered from the ordeal, started to speak.
"[Death Knight]."
The draugr's corpse writhed as it melted into an inky blackness, rising two meters tall into the hideous form of an undead warrior.
"What in the bloody-"
"This Death Knight is your arms and legs for the moment, until we come up with a suitable alternative. Take him."
"Alright then…"
The undead summon took hold of Mimir, sheathing its sword to free its hand.
"Well… that's quite interesting. So, Your Majesty, care to tell me how long you were aware of Freya's presence in Midgard?"
"Eh?" Ainz was absolutely confused.
"Why else would you have my head cut off for reanimation, Your Majesty? You could have easily freed me yourself, but you didn't. Thus, the conclusion I must draw is that you were already aware of Freya's presence in Midgard, and wished to contact her. Did I miss anything?"
I've known this guy for five minutes, and I've already gotta pull the same bullshit I pull with Demiurge… and this guy's the 'Smartest Man Alive,' dammit! "You have not. I have long known of the presence of the Vanir goddess Freya in Midgard, and I wished to meet her, and had been unable to find her location thus far. Now that we've recruited her, we can return to Nazarick."
"You actually recruited her? I can't imagine what you had to do for that to work out. Nazarick is your palace?"
"Indeed. [Gate]."
"This should be interesting." The two stepped through the [Gate], into Ainz's office. Mimir drank in the well-lit, open room and the elegant decorations within it. "Way more hospitable than I thought it would be. I was expecting an underground tomb of some sort, you know, dark, dank, littered with corpses, traps, and a violent assortment of the undead."
"It is a tomb, and it does have those things. Just not here."
"Really? If all tombs were this comfortable, people would be dying to get in." Ainz simply stared at Mimir. After a few moments of awkward silence, Mimir sighed in defeat. "Look, I just couldn't help myself… the joke was there! Waiting to be made. I hope your sense of humor wasn't the price for your brand of immortality…"
"I have a question, Mimir. Your duplicate… are you linked to him somehow? I've never used this spell before, so I'm curious how it works."
"Hm… no, can't say I am connected, not mentally, at least. Seems like you made two copies of yours truly, completely separate from the other, aside from the name, personality, and knowledge. Never seen that kind of magic before in my life, but I suppose the sky's the limit now that I'm slightly deceased. By the by, Your Majesty, you wouldn't happen to have a full-time advisory position available, would you? Preferably with mobility accommodations for the recently decollated?"
"Advisory position… You know, now that you mention it…"
Author's Note:
If the title didn't make it obvious, (Götterdämmerung being the German translation of Ragnarok), this fic will contain spoilers for God of War: Ragnarok. That bit's a good way off, though. Be warned.