Title: The Berserker
Fandom: MCU
A/N : Another Idea that won't leave me. The MC is the Warrior who stayed from the Agents of Shield TV show. He is someone I've never seen used before, so I took it on.
It's kinda an SI, but not. You'll see.
This one I'd actually begun as a new fic, before I'd begun rewriting Mason Aves, but my depression hit back, causing me to drop it after the second chapter. This chapter is the merger of the two chapters which I had posted on Pat-reon, so there's no other chapter coming in.
I might write it, I might not. But it won't happen yet. IF it does happen, this story will be very slow paced, kinda like The Celestial God, and focused more on the Past of MCU.
Once again, anyone who wants to adopt it is free to do so. I won't ask you to drop it if I do take this story up in the future. I promise! Just inform me you're writing it.
Read on!
~~~
965 AD: Tønsberg, Norway:
War.
I am so tired of it. For centuries, I've fought for my Realm, ever since I was drafted in the Berserker Army.
Eldor, a Berserker. That's who I am.
Before though, I used to be Eldor, the Mason. I was one of the hundreds of people that would break rocks, and work in the mines.
2000 years I've broken rocks, and mined Gold, Diamond, and Steel, and the mines were still not empty. Many of us had already suspected the AllFather of using his Magic to refill the mines again and again, just to give us something to work on.
Bloody bastard.
Then, came the Jotun war. Just like my father before me, and his father before him, I was asked to join the Berserker army, only this time, it was under Odin's lead, and not under his dau.. never mind. I'm not allowed to speak of it, or her.
Of course, I accepted. I was given the Berserker staff, the same one my father used to use when he was killed for following.. her, and then I went through a measly 2 years of training. I was taught how to use the staff, and how not to go "Completely Berserk" when using it.
And now, 300 years after the start of it, the war was finally over. I was finally free to go home, to Asgard, in my small hut, where I can return to breaking rocks oncr again.
Sigh. Obviously, I have no interest in doing it, but it's not like I have many options.
...
Well, there is this.. Midgard. I love this place, it's so peaceful here. Mortals have no worries, they are so.. full of life, ironically. Plus, nature. It's so beautiful. Asgard's Golden palace has nothing on the greenery on Midgard.
I'm already here anyway, and it'll still take time to clear everything up. We need to take the bodies back on Asgard.
Can I do it, though? Can I try and stay back? Will I succeed?
--
Long story short, yes I did. I succeeded in getting away from my camp, and hiding from the sentries for 3 months, until every other Asgardian had left Midgard. Leaving only me behind.
"Ahem." Or so I thought.
Stopping my walk up the mountain, I put my hand on the Staff and feel the familiar strength come over me. As the rage tries to take over, I push it down, turn around, and ask, "How can I help you, my Lady?"
The person who called for me was a woman, the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. She was fair skinned, with hair as golden as the setting sun on Asgard. Her eyes were green, and glowing with mischievousness.
But, I could also feel that she wasn't all she showed herself to be, which was the cause of my being vigilant.
She looks me up and down, and says, "You're running away from Asgard, Berserker?"
That does it. I pull the staff off it's holder on my back, and point it's tip at her neck, but she doesn't even flinch. Contrarily, she just smirks.
I ask, "What do you want, witch?"
"My, my. Is that any way to talk to a superior? I am a Goddess, you know. Goddess of Love, to be exact. What are you again? A tiny, insignificant, Berserker." The lady, Goddess, says, taunting me, and daringly walks forward.
Knowing she's a witch, just by instinct, I stab the staff's blade right in her neck, and blink. It passed right through her neck.
Dammit! Witch! It's an illusion. The image fades, and another image of the Goddess appears, most likely a fake too.
Gritting my teeth, I ask, "What do you want, Goddess of Love?" the last 3 words are spoken with enough contempt to tell her I don't respect her, at all.
Still smirking, the blonde witch waves her hand pointing upwards, and says, "What were you going to do about Heimdall and his all seeing sight, Berserker? He would have surely known you were here, and brought you back. Or did you not know it?"
Truly? Heimdall can see me now? Getting a bit afraid, I look up, hoping the Bifrost does not return.
"Oh, he can't see you for now. I'm making sure of it." The witch says, like I'm supposed to thank her for it.
Well, I probably should. I would have been in Asgardian prison otherwise, and there's no escaping Asgardian Prisons. "Thank you, my Lady." I say.
She chuckles, and mumbles, "Lady to witch to Goddess to witch to lady. Came right back to the beginning, didn't you?"
I squint my eyes, confused. I never called her a witch. Not out loud at least.
"Oh, you have so much to learn, Berserker. Mind Arts is just the beginning of it. Yes, I read your mind, and the memories within. Why, that is the reason I approached you." The Goddess says, again smiling at me.
I relax a bit, at the smile. Something about the smile just lets me know, I'm not in any trouble. The Goddess won't harm me.
"How can I help you then, my Lady?" I ask, wanting to pay her back, as I put the staff on my back.
The Goddess puts her hand in a pouch on her hip, her very attractive hip, and pulls something out. She hands it to me, and says, "That, my dear, is the Lifeline Potion, taken straight from the Tablet of Life and Death, but obviously, you don't know what it is."
I blush, confirming her statement. I say, "By it's name, at least, I guess it heals ailments, my Lady..."
"Amora." The Goddess, Amora, says, smiling again, making my heart beat even faster. She says, "My name is Amora, Berserker. And yes, it heals anyone, from any ailment, and even stops death from claiming a life for a while. But.. it's not just that."
Seeing her pause, I put the flask in front of my eyes, and examine it, not that I understand anything. It just looks like Golden water to me. I ask, "What else does it do, my Lady Amora?"
"Why, Berserker, it brings people to their highest evolutionary potential. For a mortal, it'll just make them a tad bit stronger, immortal, and nigh omniscient. Alas, mortal bodies are not meant for such powers, and they die soon enough, despite their so called immortality. But.. us Aesir? It does exactly as promised. Or so I hope." Amora says, frowning at the end.
The frown she shows me makes my heart skip. Immediately, I ask, "What can I do to help you perfect it, my Lady? I am not a Potions Master, but I can help you get the harder to get ingredients, and search for more of the stuff?"
Amora waves her hand, and says, "Oh, no need, Berserker. I have already perfected it."
"Then what's the problem? Why not take it and attain the highest evolution you can?" I ask, getting confused, and disheartened that I am unable to help my lady.
Amora becomes a bit sad, and says, "The problem is that I don't know if it'll actually work.. Eldor. I haven't tested it yet, beyond the 27 monkeys, 5 humans, and one wolf. Alas, all of them died. And I can't just ask any Asgardian soldier to try it now, can I?"
"I'll do it! I'll test the Potion, My Lady! If it means helping you, then I'll do it!" I say, readily volunteering for the task. It's the only way I can help my Lady Amora.
Amora smiles widely, making me smile too, and my heart starts beating faster. She approaches me, and puts her hand on my cheek.
She says, "I can't ask you to do that, Eldor. You've just gotten out of one war, and I can't ask you to risk your life again."
My Lady Amora is so considerate! She cares for me! Steeling my resolve, I push her hand down gently, and smiling at her, I say, "Don't worry, my Lady. I will be fine."
Done with reassuring my Lady Amora, I pull the cork out, and swallow the golden liquid within the flask in one go. The last thing I see is my vision getting a bit Golden, as I black out.
--
As Eldor drinks the Lifeline Potion and falls down, unconscious, he misses the smirk on the face of Amora, as she picks him up. She carries him on her shoulder, and teleports to her current residence, in a palace of a dumb mortal King.
Dropping the Berserker on one bed in a room, she dusts her hands, and says, "Dumb Berserker. I never would have figured it's so easy to manipulate a Berserker. Usually they're so mentally resilient. Well, my good luck. Hopefully the Potion works as advertised, and I can evolve further. If he dies, well, there's a lot of dumber people I can manipulate."
Throwing a last glance at the trembling Berserker, Amora turns around and goes to her room. The Evolution will take a few days time anyway.
~~~
Amora looks at the whimpering Berserker, and scoffs, thinking him a weakling.
'I think the Potion actually works, but I'll still keep vigilant, just in case this one dies. Any potion that requires stuff such as this one, is bound to be risky.' Amora thinks to herself, remembering the dangerous ingredients she used in the potion.
The Tablet of Life and Death was an artefact, said to be written by a mortal, on the behest of a God. It does a lot of things, but Amora was only interested in one.
The Lifeline Formula. A Potion, made using Alchemy, that required highly dangerous stuff like Uru, Celestial Brain Matter, tooth of a Royal Asgardian, an apple from Idunn's tree, energy of an Elder God, and even a flower from Queen Frigga's garden.
Thankfully, being a friend of the Goddess of Immortality herself, getting a few Golden apples was not that hard. The rest of the Ingredients, she had either stolen, or bought from the Collector. The energy of an Elder God was hard, but not impossible if you know where to look.
And she knew right where one particular Elder God had her resting place. And it's not like Gaea ever does anything to those who steal from her.
All this, used in a complex Alchemical process lasting 7 days, and 7 nights, ending when the full moon rises overhead, gives rise to a cauldron full of Golden Liquid, called the Lifeline Formula.
As she'd explained to the Berserker before, it unlocks to complete evolutionary potential of any being that takes it. But, there's a condition. The body of the being that takes it, as well as the mind, should be resilient enough.
Humans become immortal, gaining the Cosmic powers of their Eternal Cousins. The other super powered mortals get an enhancement to their powers, as well as the promised Immortality. Both of these groups get physically stronger, strong enough to challenge this Berserker himself in strength, although sans his staff.
But, since they're still weak mortals, every one of them dies, their bodies not able to handle all the power coursing through it. Their minds snap, not able to cope with the new knowledge, and the instinctual Cosmic Awareness.
All this happened to dozens of humans, and none of them survived the Potion beyond 2 months. During those 2 months, Amora kept them with her, feeding them lies of their new Godhood. But no matter how much she tried, the mortals died anyway.
So, she thought, 'Maybe I need better bodied beings. Why not Asgardians?'
And that, brings us to now.
It's been 3 days since the Berserker foolishly drank the Potion. Amora was proud to note that her seduction techniques were still up to task, and glad that the Potion was at least showing some signs of success.
In these three days, the Berserker had gone from a relatively tiny 5'10, to a respectable Asgardian height of 6'4. His muscles had filled up nicely, and the stomach he'd grown eating had flattened up, giving his abs a nice look.
If he wasn't a moron, Amora would have been tempted to have some fun with his sleeping body. Alas, he was still just a Berserker.
Then, there was his magic. Where before it was barely there, enough to keep him alive for these centuries, now, it looked like it was enough to keep him alive for 10 thousand more years!
He had no trace of Divinity, yet, but it looked like he would awaken it sooner or later. All in all, this barely stronger than human Berserker, had gotten as strong as a respectable Asgardian Warrior.
'And all this, is under my complete control.' Amora thinks, smirking to herself.
Suddenly, Amora notices something, that makes her stop. The Berserker's heart was getting weaker, making him give out. The Berserker was dying.
Before she can even get up to cast her spells, the Berserker's heart stops, and he dies.
-- With Eldor--
'Where am I?' Eldor wonders, looking around.
'Last I remember was drinking the Potion Lady Amora gave me.' He recalls, thinking back on his memories. This makes him pause, though.
'Lady Amora? Why am I calling the witch Lady? Why the hell did I drink something that killed humans? Norns, no! The witch used her Sorcery on me!' This starts a string of expletives from Eldor, cursing the Goddess of Love and her feminine wiles.
Ending his cursing, Eldor looks around, and wonders, 'And now, I'm probably dead. Is this Valhalla? Doesn't look like it.'
There was just.. black.. everywhere, with a few silvery wisps floating around in this void. Like a sore thumb, he struck out. He was the sole Golden wisp, in all the silver wisps.
Sardonically, he muses, 'Looks like the Lifeline Potion, whatever in Hel it was, made my spirit brighter. I should have never run away from Asgard.' He says the last part cursing himself, blaming himself for his current situation.
Suddenly though, he sees a hole form in the void in front of him, and before he can do anything, it pulls him in and through it, he goes back to the mortal plane.
Unknowing to him, at the time, the wormhole in the Realm of the Dead, manages to pull another soul through it, right before it can close.
That soul, a weak, silvery soul, unfortunately, exits out in the mortal plane, at the exact same place where the Golden soul of the Berserker came out, and immediately enters the only available body there.
The Berserker's.
Unfortunately, for the soul, again, it's presence is pretty weak, and insignificant, as compared to the Soul of an Asgardian. Even if said Asgardian was once a puny Berserker, said soul still has over 2500 years more baggage, than the silver human's soul.
So, the Golden soul, using it's newly Awakened Powers, thanks to the Lifeline Potion, absorbs the Soul within itself, but still manages to keep it's own dominance.
--With Amora--
The Berserker's heart giving out brings Amora to her feet, and she teleports right near the sleeping warrior. Putting her hand on his chest, she thinks, 'He's dead? But.. he should have at least survived a week! And be should have been awake before dying!'
Frowning angrily, Amora whispers, "I am not letting this dumb brute die, not before I get the Potion perfect, at least." And summons a Lightning spell to her hand.
While not as strong as the Lightning from the bitch Hela's hammer, this Lightning still contains the Divine Energy of an Asgardian Goddess. So, when she slams her hand on the heart of the Berserker, the fact that it beats once does not surprise her.
Summoning the spell again, Amora slams it down again, and again. Finally, a minute after his death, the Berserker's heart starts beating again, letting Amora finally breath out in relief.
Amora sighs, and looks at the still sleeping Berserker. She asks, "Why did he die? Did the Potion react to something in his body? I have no idea what potions they give to the Berserkers, and this Eldor probably doesn't know either."
Casting a Medical Diagnosis spell, Amora compares the previous results, with the one now. "Bones are stronger, muscles are more defined, and his magic store has increased yet again. No Cosmic Energy, yet, so that's a relief. Hm.. what's this? His brain activity has increased a bit, not much, but still.. This is the first mental effect he's shown, yet. This is good.. progress.. Cause of his temporary death? Still unknown.."
Shaking her head, Amora wipes the sweat off, and murmers, "Well, never mind now. He's alive, and well. I'll see when he wakes up.. if he does, that is."
As Amora stands up to leave, she's suddenly stopped by a hand pulling her down and putting her in a choke hold. Quicker than her attacker can see, Amora conjures a dagger, and stabs it behind her in her attackers chest.
--Eldor POV--
As I begin waking up again, I immediately feel the changes done to my body. Somehow, I was bigger, and a lot stronger. I don't know how strong though, and I wouldn't, unless I test it out. There's also a few years of new memories in my head, but my original memories drown them out, and I have no idea what they contain, yet.
"...wakes up... if he does, that is." I hear a familiar voice saying, as I'm back to the realm of consciousness.
Amora! The Witch! She mind controlled me, and made me drink an experimental Potion!
Knowing that surprise is the only way I'll win against an experienced Witch like her, I open my eyes, seeing her turn her back to me, and grab her hand.
With a surprisingly firm pull, I pull her on top of me, and put her in a choke hold, hoping to break her neck, or in the least, choke her out. I even use my legs, to make sure she doesn't free herself.
Unfortunately, I have no weapons of my own, for now, while she's a witch. She summons a blade from somewhere, and stabs it in my chest, making me wince.
Thank Bor for the height difference. Her dagger stabs me a few inches below my heart. Grunting in pain, I loosen the hold for barely half a second, and now include her hands within the choke.
She starts stumbling around, using her still superior strength to make me leave the chokehold. She even uses her head as a weapon, and hits me on my chin a few times.
"Stay still, you foul Witch!" I snarl out, hitting my own head forward.
"Uck- ugh!" Amora chokes out, as I keep my inner elbow on her neck, stopping her airflow. As another dagger stabs into my hand, conjured and sent with the vile magic of hers, I feel my hands slipping.
'Please! Don't fail me, my body! I can't let her go now! She'll either kill me, or she'll control me to do her bidding! AllFathers, give me strength.' I pray, in my mind, putting some more effort at making sure she stays still, ignoring the two daggers stabbing my body.
Surprisingly, I feel a change immediately. I feel a tingle on my skin, and then see, my body changing into the silver metal of her daggers, as if in answer to my prayers, and I feel myself getting even stronger.
Somehow, I was absorbing her metal daggers, and turning my body into them. 'Absorbing Man!' a voice whispers in the back of my mind, which brings a few memories forth, of a man touching stone and turning his own skin to stone.
Another memory comes forth, of a man my mind whispers 'Agregor', touching a turtle and killing it immediately.
I know.. I know, that these memories belong to the set of memories I woke up with, and that they are supposed to be just stories, but I trust it anyway.
"This is for trying to control me, Witch!" I snarl out, and force the absorption magic to work faster, this time, focusing on absorbing the witch herself.
Although I lose my new metal form, I feel the witch losing her own strength, as her Magic enters my body. She still stumbles around, although now a lot weaker than before, trying real hard to save herself.
It hurts like hell, all this extra Magic and memories, but I grit my teeth and persevere. Amora, though, has no choice but to keep choking, as life leaves her body. She tries to cast a few spells, but it doesn't work, as most of her magic is already within my body.
As the light finally leaves Amora's eyes, I absorb the last vestiges of her Magic, and her Life, killing her. I see her body get turned to a dry husk, and feel 1033 years worth of memories enter my own mind.
"What the hel is this shit?" I whisper, feeling myself loosing consciousness.
Knowing I'm going to be knocked out, I use the new memories, and instinctively cast a few spells, barring entry for anyone, from anywhere, so that no one disturbs my sleep.
As I wonder how I know all this stuff, I close my eyes, letting sleep claim me.
~~~
A/N: As you can see, it's not a pure SI. Self Inserts have majority control over their bodies. In this case, it's the Berserker that absorbed the SI soul.
So, the main personality is still the Berserker's.
The MC's powers are as follows:
1. Material Absorption: Like the Absorbing Man, or any decent Osmosian(Ben 10), MC can mimic material, and turn his skin, and body to it.
2. If he's willfull enough, MC can absorb life force(like Agregor, and somewhat like Rogue) and absorb memories within himself. But, sufficiently strong beings can fight him for it. And, he needs constant physical contact for it to work.
3. This one's not a power, but a limitation. Only one power will work at a time. If he wants to absorb someone, he loses the Metal form, and he can also only absorb one material at a time.
That's it for now. Rest, you'll see when it comes, if it comes. But.. no matter what happens, he won't just copy mutant abilities. That's a real OP move and I'm not ready to implement it.
The only way he can copy powers is by killing enemies and absorbing their souls. I have no idea if any character has this ability. But, even if he does absorb powers, he will still be a purely Physical fighter.
Until then, Tata!