Born Anew Chapter Three (Original chapter Chapter 92)
"Stupid Goddesses." I muttered as I made my way through the swamp. Yes, I was in a goddamn swamp. Apparently, that's what made up about 90% of Niflheim, one of the Nine Worlds of Yggdrasil. "Stupid quests. Stupid temple."
Although I was supposed to be teleported straight to Yliaster's temple, one thing that Yliaster hadn't told me was that she was an overthrown goddess. Meaning that the worship of her was forbidden by the priesthood of the new Yggdrasilian God of Shadows, Myriad of the Ten-Thousand Shades. All of Yliaster's temples had been razed to the ground except for the main one, which was hidden away and blocked people from just teleporting in.
What that meant was that I had bounced off the anti-teleportation shield and been randomly sent to one of the Nine Worlds, Niflheim. This was, according to my knowledge of Norse mythology, supposed to be a world where the Goddess Hel reigned supreme, her kingdom of ice and cold where the dishonored dead, those who did not die in battle, were her subjects.
In Yggdrasil, it turns out that Hel only reigned over Helheim, the deepest and coldest section of Niflheim. Good news, right? Wrong. The rest of Niflheim was covered in poisonous swamps filled with dark beasts and where inhuman beings resided in temples, tombs and other dark places. The Realm of Ice and Cold is not where I wanted to be. Where I needed to go was the Realm of Darkness and Shadows, Svartálfaheimr. That was the homeland of the Dark Elves, Shadow Elves and Drow, and also the place where any clues as to the location of Yliaster's hidden temple might be.
I was lucky that this place was naturally somewhere where the sun shone only in twilight, so my poor light-sensitive eyes weren't hurt by the accursed orb. Hell, I could see perfectly well in the darkness, but the twilight was just a bit too much. I was not looking forward to seeing what the actual sun was like.
Anyway, once I was recovered from the damned teleport redirection (it had felt worse than the time I'd gotten food poisoning and the flu at the same time), I had assessed the situation and promptly started swearing like a dockworker. One I had given full vent to my spleen for a while, I had calmed down and taken stock of the goodies the Hobgoblin Savage Pack Leader had left me.
[Necklace of Warding] (Mid Class)
A rather generic magic necklace mass-produced to offer some form of protection from weak magic spells. Often worn by those who do not expect to face a Magic Caster, but take some degree of precaution just in case.
- Reduces damage from Tier 3 or lower spells by 5.
[Diadem of Insight] (Mid Class)
A somewhat useful magic item that clears the wearer's mind and allows them to see things they had not considered before, raising their intelligence. Also has some minor defensive ability.
Physical Defence: +5
Magical Defence: +10
- Raises wearer's intelligence by 10.
[Lesser Ring of Magic Destruction] (High)
A ring created by an angry man who wished to get revenge on a Magic Caster. This was merely a prototype of his final product, but it is a potent weapon when facing a Magic Caster.
- Lesser Magic Destruction: Once Per Day: Negate any Tier Two or lower Spell in play or has been cast against you.
OK, so they weren't top-tier stuff, but any port in a storm, right? I'd done more with less before. Much less.
I'd also gotten a couple of spells.
[Message] (Tier -)
A standard spell given to all who defeat the Boss of the Advanced Tutorial. Not on the Tiers of spells, it is considered a hallmark of a God's Champion. It allows the user to instantly contact someone they know the facial appearance of telepathically within 10KM of them. Costs 10 MP/Minute.
[Create Item] (Tier 3)
A basic spell that allows the user to create items using their imagination. The larger the item, the more MP it will cost to create it. In addition, if weapons or armour are created with his skill, there is only ¼ of the usual penalty to equipping out-of-Class equipment.
Pretty useful. I had to wonder if some of the weapons I had seen and used back on Earth Bet could be used here…
Anyway, I had also estimated my own combat abilities. By the PRT's Threat Assessment system, I was a Blaster 2 or 3, a Shaker 1 and a Mover 3 when purely talking about my spells. I could add in Thinker 2 for my enhanced senses and maybe another half-point for my better reflexes to my Mover section. With my skills in close combat, that would be Striker 2 as well. I'd be a regular grab-bag Cape with this list of skills.
And I was still fairly weak! Only a Total Level of 4!
Unfortunately, that worked against me here, along with my limited pool of spells. A lot of the monsters in Niflheim were either in the Fifties or they were low rank horde-type undead; skeletons, and the like. They were weak as hell, but where there was one; there was usually a hundred other piles of bones hiding under the swamp's surface.
Thankfully, I was mostly out of the powerful monster territory. One of the times I hadn't been able to stealth away from a strong monster, I had lead it into the territory of another beast and watched them rip each other to pieces as I ran like the dickens. I had received a reward for my 'cunning' and that was a map of Niflheim. It wasn't a very good map, as it had no scale and it did not have many landmarks on it. There were three main landmarks on it; one was the Gates of Helheim, where I had absolutely no intention of going. One was the only city in the entire world, situated next to the great well Hvergelmir, where I was heading to right now. The third was the entrance to the Bifröst.
In the mythology that I knew, the Bifröst only extended between Midgard and Asgard, but evidently, that wasn't true in this world. According to a pop up, the Bridge spanned all Nine of the Realms, but travel to Asgard and Vanaheimr was forbidden. If you went to Asgard, Heimdall would kill you with a single stroke of his sword Hǫfuð. If you went to Vanaheimr, you would be drowned.
Lovely people, these gods, aren't they?
Anyway, the Bifröst wasn't the only way to travel the worlds; I could, if I was an evil bastard, get the Corpse-Eating Dragon Nidhogg to fly me to another world. How about no? Another way was Ratatoskr, the squirrel who moved between worlds, acting as courier between Nidhogg and the unnamed eagle that lived at the top of the World Tree. Why the eagle was unnamed and the hawk that sits between the eagle's brow, Vedrfolnir, had one was something that had confused me since I'd read it.
As those two ways were unlikely, the only way to travel to Svartálfaheimr was the Bifröst. That was a pain, because the only way to open the gates was to offer up an Apple of Idun, one of the foods of the gods, to the Shrine of Týr. That would grant me a World Pass that allowed me free travel between the realms during my lifetime.
Again, it was a pain. The Apples of Idun were rarely given out by the gods, apparently, and they were especially rare in Niflheim, even more so than inside Muspelheim. Apparently the Goddess Idun travelled the realms, giving her apples to those who had performed heroic deeds as rewards. As a goddess of fertility though, realms of destruction like Muspelheim and worlds of cold like Niflheim were anathema to her, so she didn't visit unless she absolutely had to.
I had several options here, though I had to say that the best plan was to find someone who already had an Apple and steal it. Apples of Idun granted eternal youth to those who ate them, which was much appreciated in Midgard, the Human Realm, I would guess. To those who didn't age until they were in their seventh century like elves, they were symbols of their courage and daring.
I…hadn't quite internalized the fact that my lifespan was now more than seven times that of the oldest living human back on Earth Bet. More than that, elves didn't become dotards or senile, nor did they become any less spry towards the end of their lives. An elf who had lived for more than eight-hundred years would be just as dangerous as one in their twenties, more so because of their experience.
Sadly, I was far too weak to carry out that plan. So I had decided to hit some tombs in order to get experience, level up and maybe get some new gear or disposable items. At least I would once I was well away from the mass of Bloodhulks, triceratops knockoffs and Zombie Dragons that had made up most of the forest.
Seriously, of ALL the worlds to end up in, only Muspelheim, Asgard and Vanaheimr would have been worse. Maybe Jötunheimr too. My shadow magic was too weak against big critters and undead were all but immune to my [Shadow Strangle] spell. Not to mention the secondary effect of [Shadow Bolt].
Looking around, I found myself in a clearing in the trees…not to mention actual solid ground rather than swamp sludge. I swear that the purple muck has poison in it. And it was hard to clean off my boots too.
"Huh…oh great…barrows." I muttered. Surrounding the small clearing were five or so great hills with stone cairns atop them. Each had an entrance that had once had a wooden or stone door sealing it shut. These had been smashed open…from the inside.
"Lovely. A barrel of barrows." I snorted. Well, maybe this wasn't such a bad thing. I doubted that anything they had inside them was of the large and unkillable variety Unlike with the areas I had stumbled and run through before now, I didn't feel a great deal of pressure bearing down on me, so nothing here was more than ten levels stronger than me.
…
OK, ten levels was still pretty bad. Hopefully they'd be five levels stronger than me at most…I hope.
One Bout of Tomb Raiding and Five Barrows of Undead Later…
"I hate my luck."
I was heading out from the little grove of barrows that I had conquered. It had been both hard and easy. It had been hard to win because of the sheer number of undead I had faced.
The reason it had been easy was because, frankly, low-level undead like skeletons were very, very weak. In the barrows, each of which had been as big as an apartment building inside…somehow, there had been four distinct types of undead for me to face. The basic Skeletons, which were BELOW Level 1. This meant that they were worthless as far as EXP was concerned. The Skeleton Warriors, armed with swords and shields. They had barely been Level 1. The Skeleton Archers (in a tomb? Why?!) armed with short bows. They had been Level 2. And finally, the Skeleton Mages, equipped with a staff and ratty robes. There had been four of those and they had been Level 3 to Level 4.
The boss of the five Barrows had been called Quintus of the Five Barrows, had been an Armoured Skeleton, equipped with a spear and shield. The spear had been magical; able to strike with negative energy, but that had been the most remarkable thing about Quintus. My [Shadow Strangle] Spell may have been useless to either deal damage or distract undead, but I had found that they literally couldn't move from their position once the spell was cast, so I essentially 'stun-locked' Quintus and blasted him with [Shadow Daggers] until he was dead…again.
And the end result? I hadn't levelled up. I had gotten useless items intended for either alchemy or necromancy and, just to top it off, the only worthwhile items from the boss had been a belt and another scroll so I could learn a spell, which I had done.
[Leather Belt] (Low)
An ordinary belt made for keeping ones trousers up and ones robes secure. It isn't magical in the least, but it does take a hit well, raising your defence by 1.
[Magic Arrow] (Tier 1)
One of the most basic and broadly known spells in all of Yggdrasil. It fires an arrow of mana to pierce the target. Although generic, using the [Widen], [Delay], [Boost], [Extend], [Silent], [Over], [Penetrate], [Twin], [Triplet] and [Maximise] metamagic enhancements can make this weak spell pack more of a punch that its low Tier would suggest.
Effect: Fires a single arrow of condensed mana at a single target. Counts as Piercing Damage. 15 Damage per arrow.
Range: Short-Mid.
Cost: 10 MP/Arrow
Again, not sterling offerings, but at least I now had a basic attack spell that wasn't Shadow aligned. Basic or not, if it was really so generic, then knowing it would make me seem less suspicious to the inhabitants of this world. Also, it would let me play around with it to see if I could invent my own spells.
If this world really was a world of swords and sorcery fused with a sort of game interface system, then there almost had to be a way to create spells. Humans, and probably the other races that could use magic, were inventive and innovative. Spells had to have come from somewhere and I did not believe that the gods had done so. That meant sentient, non-godly, beings had invented them. If I could find out how it was done, I might have something to while away the time once I found a place to hole up in.
Still, this small amount of EXP from low-level undead was problematic. I hadn't levelled up either of my classes and the loot had been dismal. Maybe the ultra-good tutorial loot had spoiled me?
Speaking of being spoiled, I'd not been as…edgy…as I had once been since being transmigrated. I had been expecting angst and nightmares, but I was just as chatterbox-like as I had been before Emma's betrayal.
Now that I think about it, Yliaster had regrown my arm, hadn't she? Had that undone my mental damage somehow? She had said that the higher dimensional plane she resided on was a fusion of mind, body and spirit/soul where all three were essentially the same thing. As she had regenerated my arm there, had there been some unexpected healing of the numerous scars on my psyche?
If that was the case…hell, I was glad of it. I had been more suicidal and resigned to my fate at the end there than I had been during my run-in with Lung. As I hadn't been the real Taylor Hebert, having the mental wounds removed was…a relief.
A hollow roar came from in front of me, making me look up. I immediately groaned. It wasn't a Bloodhulk or anything; it was a zombie. A Zombie Bear, to be precise. It was very obviously a zombie because of both the chunks of flesh hanging off of its carcass and the smell of rot that was making me want to vomit. And it was looking at me like I was a pound of raw meat.
"Fuck me running."
A Week Later
Gates of the City of Hvergelmir, Niflheim
I. Hate. Zombies.
In between trekking through filthy swamps and conquering barrows, tombs and other undead gathering points, I had been ambushed by so many damned wandering zombies, ranging from bears to puma to even a raccoon, that I swore I'd never set foot in this Realm again once I had left it.
On the bright side, I had leveled up a lot thanks to the zombies being somewhat stronger than the skeletons. The loot had still been necromantic reagents and items though, which sucks. I did get some silver and copper though, which is always nice. I had also levelled up a good couple of times, with my Racial Class being Level 4 and my Job Class being Level 3 and ALMOST Level 4.
I was heading for the large gates that were the entrance to the city of Hvergelmir, taking its name from the freezing-cold well of the same name a few miles away. Even at this distance, the ice-old water made everyone's breath fog up. The gatehouse was an enormous edifice that was as tall as a small skyscraper and as wide as any four of the same height. Obviously the gates were not open, but a smaller section at the bottom was swung open, allowing ingress and egress. Oddly enough, no one seemed to be acting as guards.
Filing this under 'suspicious' in my mind, I advanced and eventually entered the city. I sighed in relief as the warmth of the city washed over me. They must use some form of wide-area heating magic, combined with the skyscraper-sized walls, to make this place livable.
I was interested in the number of different races I saw here; there were elves of all varieties, lizardmen, dwarves, undead, demons, and others I had no clue about what they were, all wandering intermixed with only the occasional hostile look or body check to express it.
Some were in armour of a single unified design and colour, with the symbol of a crystal in the claws of a reptile, possibly a dragon, embossed on their shields. These, I presumed, were the guards belonging to the lord of this city. Everyone gave them a wide berth, so I followed suit.
The first priority I had was finding an inn or somewhere similar to sleep. I had grown tired of sleeping up trees and in caves.
"Wheeeee!" a fairy randomly dive-bombed me and I ducked reflexively. Crazy things.
"Hey! Whatcha lookin' for?" the fairy asked as it fluttered in front of me.
"An inn, if you know one that isn't lice infested." I answered waspishly, not being too happy about being buzzed by a tiny thing like her for no reason.
"Yup. I'll lead you there for two coppers." The tiny woman said. She had pink hair and agate eyes, with red admiral butterfly wings. Her skin was light green and, aside from a fair-sized sword and sheath on a belt, was totally naked.
"Sure. Lead me into a trap and it's your wings." I informed her sternly.
"Jeez lady. You're seriously in need of a good massage." The fairy raised an eyebrow at me. "What the hell crawled up your ass?"
"I got randomly teleported to the edge of Helheim from Svartálfaheimr, had to run, fight and dodge my way through the entire world until I made my way to a part of this damned floor that was full of zombie animals that I've fought through for a week." I sort-of-ranted at her. "And now I've just been randomly dive-bombed by a fairy. I want to do nothing but sleep for a couple of days so…the inn, if you please."
Somewhat stunned, the fairy did as I asked and led me to a nice little place off the beaten track that was nice and shadowy. It was called, somewhat improbably, the Drunken Goose.
"Here's your payment, plus two extra for putting up with my temper." I gave the fairy the coins one by one. As the little thing put the coins into her Item Box, she had obviously taken at least one combat class. I had to wonder which one.
"Pleasure doing business with you." The fairy nodded at me. "Do you need a guide once you've finished recovering? Anywhere you wanna go for a silver."
I considered it. "Eh, why not? Meet me back here in a couple of days."
"Sure thing." The little woman nodded. "The name's Karen. See ya in two days….?"
"Taylor." I supplied.
"You Shadow Elves have the weirdest naming sense." Karen shook her head. "That's a Human name, isn't it?"
"You could say that it meant something to my mother." I said lightly before heading off to see about getting food, a bath and a bed, in that order.
Two Days Later
"You look better." Karen observed as she fluttered into the Drunken Goose's tavern section. I was there having a surprising modern full English breakfast. It wasn't called that, but that's what it was.
"Not having to worry about being eaten by rabid zombies when I go to sleep does wonders for my temperament." I answered in between swallows. "So, you still up for the guiding job?"
"Yup. Payment up front for this one though." The fairy said.
Shrugging, I took out a silver piece and flipped it to her. "There."
"Once again, a pleasure." Karen grinned as she caught it and stored it in her Item Box. "So, where do you need to go?"
"Anyplace around here that I can get rid of some necromantic loot I picked up out there?" I asked. "I'm not interested in it."
"Sure. Niflheim's bread and butter is necromantic stuff." The fairy said. "What kinda stuff is it? It'll give me an idea of where to take you."
"Zombie teeth, bones, negative energy crystals, wands, a couple of swords formerly belonging to demi-death knights…" I listed. "Some Tutelary Scrolls with basic necromancy stuff…you know, that sorta stuff."
"Huh. Sounds like you cleared out a few tombs on the way here." She blinked. "I have a good idea where to take ya. It's a sorta necromancer's bargain basement store. So long as you don't bargain too high, the owner'll pay what you ask for."
"Good to hear." I said before finishing up my breakfast and standing up. Unlike when I'd entered the city, I was wearing my casual clothing, so I didn't look nearly as intimidating. Fortunately, I had discovered that I could basically change my equipment on the fly with little more than a thought. I had left my dagger at my waist, as this place looked like the kinda place you'd want to advertise your ability to deal damage if necessary. "Let's go."
As I walked, I looked at Karen out of the corner of my eye. "So what's a fairy doing in Niflheim? Would've thought Ljosalfheim would be your preferred location."
"You and every person who sees me." The fairy groaned. "Do ya have any idea how stiff and formal it is there? All of them stand around acting formal and stuff all day, every day. It was enough to make me go nuts! So I snuck into a dignitary's bag and ended up here. I want to travel the worlds…well, not Muspelheim, but the others? Definitely. Until I find a way to do that though, here I am, in the Realm of Primal Ice and Cold."
"I hope to find a way to go back to Svartálfaheimr." I mentioned. "If I do, wanna come with?"
"Sure. IF you find a way." Karen snorted. "I've been trying for over a decade to find an Apple of Idun or someone who already has a World Pass to take me. No luck. The thought's nice, but pardon me for not holding my breath."
"Fair." I nodded.
The visit to the shop Karen recommended went well; the owner, an orc, paid me two gold, three silvers and twenty coppers for all of my useless necromancer stuff, which was pretty good. The next place I had Karen take me to was a shop that sold spells.
"In most other Realms, the Mage's Guild is in control of what spells are sold and who sells them." The fairy explained as she led me along a street. "In Niflheim though, the Mage's Guild knows better than to cross Lord Gojulas and the Council of Twelve. Especially here in Hvergelmir, where the Realm Lord's power is absolute."
"So this Lord Gojulas is intimidating enough to stop the Mage's Guild from pressuring him?" I asked, somewhat impressed. As the clone of a person who had controlled the criminal underworld of a city, I knew the troubles that entailed, so the additional stress and bother of being the legal ruler must be a royal pain in the rear.
Karen snorted. "He's a Level 100 Archdemon, with Job Class specialties in Sorcery and Summoning. Not only that, the Council of Twelve aren't just his advisors; they're all level 60-plus powerhouses that act as his enforcers. Anyone who attempts to defy Lord Gojulas has at least one of them sent after them."
Huh. Note to self: stay out of this guy's way.
Shouting from up ahead drew our attention. The clashing of blades and shouting of men made Karen slap her head in frustration.
"Gah! Looks like those idiots are at it again!"
"Who?" I asked as I headed towards the fighting.
"There are multiple gangs in Hvergelmir, each competing for control of certain areas of the city, and the attention and favour of Lord Gojulas." The fairy explained as she fluttered alongside me. "Two gangs that have been kicking up a fuss recently are the Bombers and the Regency. Both are less than a year old, but both of their leaders are really powerful for newbies. The leader of the Bombers can create explosions, an Explosion Mage, and the leader of the Regency can usurp the control of someone's body or even interfere a group of people's control of it, some sort of Psionic Mage."
My heart skipped a beat. Could it be…?
"FUCK YOU, YOU WIMPY LITTLE BASTARD!" a female voice shrieked.
"Make me, bomb bitch." A cocky and familiar male voice retorted.
Peering around the corner, I spotted two groups of people dressed in odd clothes, even for around here. One group wore robes and armour coloured like flames, while the other side wore black robes with small crowns perched at jaunty angles on their heads.
The leaders were studies in contrast. One was female, wearing a skintight outfit that left little to the imagination. It also had several metal spheres hanging from a loose bandolier slung over her shoulder and a plain red mask over her face. The other wore loose black robes fastened at the waist with a belt and a silver mask on his face with a mocking smile embedded into it.
"No one mocks Bakuda!" the now familiar woman shouted.
"Izzat so? Tough shit bitch; I just did!" the masked man sneered. "I'm Regent! You may remember me from when I kicked your ass way back when, along with the other Undersiders? We owned you, bitch!"
Bakuda was almost ready to explode…literally. An aura of violence surrounded her and I was not looking forward to seeing her let loose. What should I do here…?