Chapter 11: Awakening

A/N: Sorry for mistakenly referring to the door in the Ginn as a gate. It just seems like that ought to be the proper word for it. Anyway I went back and corrected it all...though I'm surprised nobody pointed it out to me. Also many apologies for taking forever to update. I discovered recently that I could read comics on youtube. Over 350 issues in less than a month... I am the master of time-wasting.

The prospect was so mind-numbing that Emil could do nothing but stare in complete shock at this man who claimed to be so sympathetic.

Genji sneered down at him, saying, "You must have some dear memories to be giving me a look like that. Or maybe it's the realization that your days of freely manipulating mankind are over. Either way, goodbye."

As the Munin arte stripped away all that he cherished, Marille could see the panic fade from his eyes, turning to a purposeful look that also had a sort of emptiness to it. She watched with a growing sense of dread as her father rose to his feet and began to walk away, his sword lying on the ground, forgotten.

"Dad...?" she called.

"The door...is in danger..." Emil's voice sounded almost lost, no emotion coloring the words.

"Dad, wait!" She managed to push herself up onto her knees. Most everything was starting to glitter now, but she could still distinguish him apart from the rest. "Don't go!"

Genji turned on her. "You have even less right than any half-elf to be alive. You will singlehandedly tear apart the door and release all of Niflheim on the world. As much as I regret doing this to a child, killing you is necessary to prevent that."

Marille cringed back as Genji approached. "Dad, please help me!"

At her cry, he suddenly stopped. He stood at the edge of the clearing amid the dead monsters, fallen tents and half-loaded carts, almost as though undecided.

Then suddenly he straightened, turning to look at them. Emil's eyes had turned red for the first time in seventeen years, and his voice grew deeper with a hint of viciousness to it. "There is one thing you overlooked: two different psyches means two different sets of memories—and you only erased one."

Genji's katana came out as Ratatosk practically flew across the field, diving for his sword. His fingers closed on the hilt and he rolled forward into a crouch, deflecting the oncoming blow with such force that his enemy was flung three paces back.

Rage tinted his eyes, but it was clear the summon spirit was in full control of himself. "I was ready to rip your head off the moment I saw what you did to Marille. But the other half of me insisted I keep hidden until we knew for sure what you were up to."

Genji's scowl twisted his face into something almost inhuman. "So that's why I could never see your memories: two minds in one body. Yet more proof that you're nothing like us even though you do your best to fake it."

But Ratatosk ignored the comment. "I'm not stupid enough to go yammering on about every facet of my life. I know everything I need to know about you, and that's the fact that you tried to to kill my family and reduce me to a mindless gatekeeper. You are not getting away with it!"

An instant later their blades met. Marille watched as he moved with a quickness and strength she'd never seen in her father before. When before, Genji had seemed to block Emil so easily, now he was barely able to defend himself.

She had to help any way she could. Did Genji have a weakness? She focused on everything she'd seen of him and then suddenly she had it. "It's his right arm!"

Ratatosk caught on immediately and threw her a grateful nod. All his attacks now came from the left, effectively preventing the ninja from freeing his hand to use Munin. He was relentless, hammering with such ferocity that Genji was forced back. He looked worried, and now that the key to using his arte had been discovered, his situation grew even more critical. He blocked and dodged, but there seemed to be no room for him to strike. A wild plan occurred to him then, born of desperation.

The next instant he was running headlong at Marille, who was far too weak to get away. Genji skidded to a halt, gripping the girl's arm with a steely hand.

"I suggest you toss the sword aside unless you want your daughter to suffer the loss of everything she's ever known."

Ratatosk stopped mid-stride, growling, "Don't do it."

He gripped the hilt tighter, bringing his sword back as though ready to fire off Ain Soph Aur when he saw Marille's expression undergo a radical change. She blinked in confusion and then blanched, covering her eyes with one hand as if to shield them from something incredibly painful.

"Wh-what's happening?" she whimpered.

Then awareness came back to her and she tried to shy away from Genji only for him to dig his fingers deeper into her arm.

"It's that easy for me to do. Now, it's her memories or yours. Choose."

Losing everything and then regaining it in a matter of seconds was disorienting to say the least. But Marille recognized the helplessness behind her father's mask of anger, and she knew what his choice would be. She glanced around for anything she could do—when something flashed to mind.

About half a year ago the twins had been sparring to show off their skills to her. In a stroke of good luck Geo had managed to disarm Leo of both swords and had been ready to declare victory, only to find his brother inside his guard and a dagger at his throat. She could still remember Leo's boastful grin as he slid it back into his boot's hidden sheath.

Now she stared at the lip of Genji's boot, recognizing the outward bend that revealed something straighter and stiffer than just an ankle inside. Molding her thoughts into a single course of action, she made the slightest jerk with her head just as her father was about to put down his sword. He saw and paused.

Marille's hand darted out to seize the hilt, wrenching it out and in the same movement driving the dagger directly into her captor's thigh. Unexpected and excruciatingly painful, the wound caused him to collapse and she rolled out of reach. Ratatosk was there a split-second later, one foot on his enemy's wrist and the tip of his sword pressed against Genji's collarbone.

"He was going to kill me no matter what you decided. I couldn't let you surrender," Marille said. A second later she added more quietly, "Am I really harming the door simply by being alive?"

Ratatosk's red eyes found her. They were completely unreadable, so unlike her father's openness. Mentally she slapped herself for the thought. Despite their differences, they were both her father. The girl raised a hand to her abdomen, her brow creasing as knots started to tighten and untighten in her gut.

But instead of answering, he turned his attention to the villain who continued to glare at them.

"Oh yes, great demon. What do you intend to do about it? Drain her mana? Confine her within the door itself? Or was it your plan all along to release the rest of your kind from Niflheim?"

Ratatosk didn't respond to the questions. "I can't let you live if you have a skill that dangerous—one you're willing to use so casually. But if you have no way to use the arte..."

With that, his sword sliced through the air, biting flesh. The severed hand landed on the ground, staining the grass red and the ninja gave a deep grunt before going silent, refusing to show any weakness for his enemy to mock. Blood poured from the stump at the end of his arm and from his thigh where the dagger was embedded up to its hilt in his flesh.

"Now you will hear what Emil tried to tell you," Ratatosk began. "You most likely joined Sheena's scouts so that you could become strong enough to kill the one who slaughtered everyone in Palmacosta, but I got to him first. Your parents were avenged, but that wasn't good enough since you'd had no part in it. You couldn't let go of your desire for revenge and finally misplaced all those feelings on me instead. Hating me gave your life some purpose again, but it was misguided."

"So says the cobra," Genji said through gritted teeth, squeezing the vein in his wrist to stem the blood flow.

"Emil!"

The cry came from behind. Everyone looked back and saw a fenrir charging through the fairgrounds with two riders. Raine and Sheena spared a few seconds to admire the amount of carnage achieved in less than twenty minutes just as their mount came to a halt beside them.

"Sheena-sama!" Genji looked terrified as his mistress dismounted and knelt beside him. "I did it for you! I tried to free you and your husband from the spell of this demon. All I've ever wanted is to protect the ones who took me in when I had nowhere to turn. I did everything I could—but I failed."

The woman's attention was focused more on his injuries and she carefully removed the dagger from his thigh. "Raine, please heal him before he bleeds to death."

He grabbed her arm with his one good hand as Raine chanted her spell. "He'll betray you all!"

Sheena peeled his fingers off her sleeve, giving him her most serious expression. "I trusted you with the most powerful arte Mizuho has at its disposal because I thought you were worthy of that trust. You proved me wrong in the worst way possible by attacking my friends. Genji, you are the one who betrayed me."

There was little else she could have said that would have struck him such a blow. He seemed to crumble.

"You don't believe me... I can no longer protect you... What have I got left?" He dipped his head to hide the pain in his face from her. "Know that I was always sincere when it came to you and your husband. Goodbye."

A faint glow covered his body for a moment and when Genji looked up at them, there was no recognition in his eyes. The leader of Mizuho recalled Old Kioku telling her that the only spell Munin could use on the wielder was one that shredded all his memories with no hope of recovery.

Ratatosk snorted a laugh as he realized what had just happened. "That's one way to solve his problem. We can't convict him of any wrongdoing if he doesn't know what he did."

"Maybe without his memory of the past he can make a new future," Sheena said, her expression softening slightly. "Just not as a member of Mizuho."

Genji has gained the title Permanent Amnesiac
There's nothing like losing your memory to dodge blame for all the dumb things you ever did.

Raine looked at the young girl apologetically, "I'm sorry we were late. It didn't occur to me until last night that Genji might come here to go after you."

Marille tried to suppress the mounting pressure that seemed to come from deep within, giving a noncommittal shrug.

Sheena nodded. "Raine figured it out from the note you left with her. It was written on paper we make ourselves, meaning—"

But she was cut off as Ratatosk made a slashing motion toward her with his hand and knelt down beside his daughter. "We can learn all the details later. Genji destroyed the only thing keeping Marille's body from absorbing more mana than she could handle. Can you still use your voice?"

She started to answer when the pressure inside her skin suddenly grew painful. Marille cried out, holding her middle as though trying to keep herself together. After a few seconds it ebbed.

"It feels like something is trying to stretch my body to make room for itself. Every time I feel it, my eyes go nuts. All I can see is sparkling."

Ratatosk lifted her into his arms, noticing that her hands were beginning to shake. "You're seeing mana. It's just like what happened years ago, but this time being near me isn't helping. You can talk, so it's not critical yet, but at this rate it won't be long. It's increasing exponentially every minute, and I've got to get you to the door before it gets any worse."

Sheena beckoned her fenrir to come closer. "We can get you to the Otherworldly Gate—"

He shook his head, standing up. "We wouldn't be able to reach the door from there anyway. There's only one way in. Verius!"

The summon spirit's voice came immediately as if he'd been expecting to be called. "I understand your need, Ratatosk. I shall help you."

—

An instant and a flash later they were in a place Marille had only heard about in stories when she was young. The dim light only served to emphasize the barrenness of the place. Everything was in varying shades of reddish-orange except for the shield in front of the door, studded with the gleaming powers of each Centurion.

In front of the shield stood Richter, one hand outstretched as he tried to keep mana from surging out. Every seal pulsed frantically, the Centurions doing their best to hold back the demons and keep the door itself from weakening further.

"Richter, I have Marille."

The half-elf turned with obvious relief. "Maybe you can find a way to stop the mana from bleeding out. I've been trying to stem the tide since you left to help Emil, but it's just too much. And Niflheim is already on the attack."

The summon spirit set Marille down and she gave a choking gasp. "Dad, it hurts so much more here...!"

He wiped away the sweat beading on her forehead, saying, "I know. It affects me worse here too."

Marille's breaths were growing ragged and her whole body had begun to be illuminated with the overabundance of mana that continued to pour inside. Her iron grip on Ratatosk's arm was enough indication that there was very little time to find a solution.

Richter stood looking down at her beside him. "It's only a matter of hours if we do nothing."

"Minutes," Ratatosk corrected. He strained with effort of keeping the door closed. "Marille's body can't stand much more and there's no way to stop it without—"

Her whole body arched with a sudden bout of pain, but no sound issued from her throat. Being so near the door had thrust her to the very limit of her body's tolerance for mana.

Her father gave an infuriated shout and fell to one knee, punching the floor with as much force as he possibly could. "That idiot! If only he hadn't removed the Sorcerer's Ring this wouldn't be happening!"

"Ratatosk," Richter said from behind. "Her body is already on the verge of breaking apart from the strain. It won't be long before she dies."

The Lord of All Monsters could hardly move. His whole body had gone numb at the prospect that appeared to be their only option. This was the biggest risk he was taking since they had no way to confirm whether the theory was correct first.

"Let me do it," the half-elf said.

"If it fails I won't be able to stop myself from killing you," he countered. "I would rather have no one but myself to blame."

With that, he drew his sword and got to his feet. Through the haze of streaming lights that seemed to be everywhere now, Marille somehow managed to focus on him for a moment and wondered why his weapon was poised directly over her heart. Ratatosk squeezed his eyes shut and forced his arms to thrust the blade into his daughter's chest. Her eyes widened for a split second but then she jerked in a single death throe before going limp, her expression frozen into one of disbelief.

Ratatosk threw himself away, unable to look at her blank, unseeing eyes. He would much rather have killed himself, but that wouldn't have helped her.

She's not bleeding despite a mortal wound, Richter thought to himself, but he said nothing aloud yet. No sense in giving the summon spirit hope prematurely.

The draw of mana from the door ceased and steadied, and the attacks from demons grew less fierce. The Centurions' seals stopped pulsing madly as the invisible strands of stolen mana were restored to their rightful place.

Richter crouched over Marille's body, touching her arm. Already there was something intangible about it and a light stemmed from her heart, encompassing all of her until she faded away. All that was left was an object in the shape of a large, green rosebud.

"It worked."

The summon spirit snapped around and stared with intense relief at the core. "She's alive?!"

Richter picked it up and the pale green petals unfurled. The sphere glowed brightly for an instant, then a creature appeared in midair.

At first there was nothing but a ball of fur, then a long, luxuriant tail unwound and Ratatosk stared into a pair of familiar ice blue eyes.

"What happened? Why do I feel so—oh!"

She stared incredulously down at her paws, for the first time realizing that she was no longer human and also that she wasn't standing on the ground. If she'd had a mirror she would have seen a mink-like creature with a tail longer than her body, all green except for a spray of black diamonds along her chest and forelegs. She jerked in surprise, only to find herself going upwards—an action that was so novel in itself that Marille turned the movement into a corkscrew spin, intoxicated by the sheer freedom she'd discovered. Her girlish laughter resounded inside the heads of the two men below.

Richter leaned toward Ratatosk, saying, "She looks a lot like your original form, but smaller...and a little more colorful."

"What did you expect? She's a summon descended from a summon." He seemed almost elated now that the danger of her death was gone. It was actually more than a little amusing to watch Marille dancing in midair, her body ululating like a Chinese dragon's.

As a child she'd tried to imagine what it must be like to be a fish, able to swim in any direction within its own element. There was a firmness and security about it that she'd never quite understood until this moment as she moved about with no danger of falling or losing her balance.

Eventually her eyes found Ratatosk again and she sobered, returning to ground-level. "I—I'm sorry. I forgot everything for a minute. This is just so different! How is my...the other half of you?" she asked timidly. "His memories...?"

"The Munin arte was only meant to affect mortal creatures. He's more human than I am, in a way, so it was worse than it would have been if Genji had done the same to me. Still, the effects will fade and he'll remember everything in a few days, but right now he has no idea what's going on. He thinks you make a very pretty summon, though."

"Oh! Thanks, Dad. But how do I become human again?"

"Not until you learn to control mana without thinking about it, otherwise the same thing will happen all over again and I'll have to force you into your core form to keep you from damaging the door."

"How long will it take me to learn?"

"A few years."

Marille leaped back in surprise, unwittingly finding herself well above him. "Years?! But what about Mom and the twins and everybody else I know? I don't want to be away from them that long!"

He tried to reassure her. "If you fall asleep it won't feel long. It will seem as if you've been here only a few minutes, and your mastery over mana will be second nature."

"But that's not what I want. I want to be with my friends, with you and Mom. It will be so long before I'd be back that it would be like suddenly waking up with a bunch of strangers."

Ratatosk looked around at the place that to him was little more than a prison. He couldn't blame her for not wanting to remain. "If you don't stay here then you will experience each day as a day—but in your present form."

"If that's the only choice I have then I'll take it," she said without any hesitation. "I don't care what I look like. I want to be with the ones I love."

Behind them, Richter gave a wry grin. "A summon spirit trying to live like a human. Wouldn't be the first time that happened."

"Nope. Just the second," she said with a humorous lilt, glancing back at him.

Her father's face was still solemn. "Things won't be the same, even so. Not only will you have to physically learn to control mana, but you'll be living in a world not natural for summons. I'll help you where I can, but the adjusting is still going to be hard."

"I've made my choice. No matter what I have to do now, I want to be home."

Ratatosk gestured to someone she hadn't noticed was there with them. "All right. Verius, you heard my daughter."

"Welcome, little sister. This way to the realm of mortals."

Marille saw the giant fox-like summon spirit step into sight, the air quivering behind him as though from heat waves. She drifted forward slowly, wondering if she was making the best choice after all. What would people think of her? Could she even go out in public without being seen as a monster?

"Ithunn..."

At the word, she turned back to look at her father. Marille tilted her head to one side and closed her eyes, focusing on the name he'd said under his breath. It sounded...right.

"Ithunn, the Tanglewood Maid... That's me, isn't it? It's my name and I never knew it until just now. Did you?"

The corner of his mouth lifted in an amused smile. "Since before you were born. But your mother liked 'Marille' better. I always hoped it meant you could become a summon."

Somehow, having this new name gave her more courage. It was more than just a symbol of her new identity; it was her in a way she couldn't explain. Yes, things would be different, but she knew intimately that she was strong enough to face them.

Marille has gained the title Summon Spirit Ithunn
The Tanglewood Maid, a summon with powers over all that grows in the earth.

A/N: This was supposed to be two chapters but they were so short and I had taken so long to update that I decided to combine them. There is actually a conversation or two that I wanted to include occurring shortly after this, but they just didn't fit into the story, so I'm debating whether to make them into a special final chapter or not.

Anyway, thank you for sticking with me through to the end. It was a bumpy ride and for the longest time I wasn't sure where I was going. I hate writing stories that way because there's always the chance it'll peter out into a pathetic attempt to tie up loose ends without good narrative to back it up. ...Of course I might have fallen into that swamp anyway, but you'll be the judges of that.