Vortex World,
Minatogawa Stateside Town, Assembly of Nihilo, Urd's Well
Kagatsuchi 7/8 Waning
"It's you." Ryoko repeated.
"It's me." The woman across from her agreed with a smile. It looked like a grimace.
"You're actually…you're here." Ryoko continued. "But-this-you told me to find you in the Amala Network."
A brief shadow overcame the woman's expression before she nodded with a slow hum. "I see, is that so?" She said.
"Ryoko…" Tenchi murmured, "Are you sure this is the same person?" He looked at the woman in concern. There was an ethereal, almost unreal beauty to her that placed him on edge. It made his hackles rise, made the hair along his arms and the nape of his neck raise in alarm, and somewhere, deep within his body, he felt Kamudo writhe. The lilim. He thought, She reminds me of the lilim before I…before I blacked out.
Am I—am I afraid of her?
No. No—yes. Yes, I'm afraid of her, but not because of the lilim. No, it's something else. I can sense….something from her, and it-it terrifies me.
There was something dangerous about the silver-haired demon.
Before him, the stranger's smile never wavered. "Do tell," She purred, and leaned over the counter, giving Tenchi an ample view of her cleavage. Any other time, Tenchi would have taken the opportunity to enjoy the view; yet for the life of him he found no enjoyment in the sight. Her gaze darted to him, and Tenchi realized all at once what it was about this woman that placed him on edge.
Her eyes. He thought, watching as the violet orbs, hard like amethysts and twice as sharp, returned to Ryoko.
There was something cold and calculating in those eyes.
The woman turned back to address Ryoko. "Tell me, how do we know each other again?" For all the easy friendliness in her voice, her eyes never softened. "Were you a previous client of mine?" She asked, "I feel like I would remember someone as unique as…you."
Ryoko bristled. "What's that supposed to mean?" She demanded. "You're the one who approached me, not the other way around."
"I did, did I?" The woman hummed softly. "And what did I tell you again?"
The pirate stared at the woman, as if trying to see how much of what the stranger was saying was in jest. Yet the silver-haired demon-if that truly was this person's identity, remained deadly serious beneath a smile that was ever-so-slightly edging closer and closer into a snarl.
Ryoko gripped the counter top. If Tenchi listened carefully, he could hear her nails biting into the lacquered wood, scratching past the surface layer and digging into the wood fibers beneath. The woman narrowed her eyes, and the tip of one lip peeled upwards in a snarl. "How about…" She began, and Tenchi could hear the fading patience in her voice. "You tell me instead. I didn't make my way here to be toyed with."
"Ryoko," Tenchi reached a hand out, gripping the demon lord's shoulder. "Take it easy. You don't know if this is the same person. It was a dream."
Ryoko ignored him.
The Silver-Haired Demon glanced between Tenchi and Ryoko, her gaze guarded and measured.
Then she leaned back with a large, open smile. "…How about some drinks." She said warmly. "You two are new in town and drinks are on the house to welcome you to Shijima's shadow. Let me pour you both the house special, I call it 'Loki's Mallet." She turned to the bar in a deliberate move, grabbing a bottle of amber liquor from one shelf and a bottle of vodka off another. "What's your name by the way?" She asked, "Normally its customary for one to introduce themselves when barging in one's house so abruptly." She grabbed two whiskey glasses, and began to pour the amber liquid into them both.
Tenchi grunted when something bumped into both him and Ryoko, and with a snarl the space pirate wheeled on the stranger, growling at the lankly man who'd been the sole custodian prior to their arrival. He held his hands up. "'Scuse me." He muttered, swaying on his feet and making his way back towards the exit.
With his departure, Tenchi looked back at Ryoko, who's attention had already returned to the silver-haired woman. "Did I ever tell you my name, by the way?" The violet-eyed demon asked, placing a whiskey glass full of golden liquid before both Ryoko and Tenchi. "You know, in these dreams of yours." Despite the absurdity of the prospect of a dream guiding Ryoko to the woman, the stranger's words were not mocking at all and were in fact, quite serious.
Tenchi pushed the glass back towards the stranger. "I'm too young to drink." He said.
The woman shrugged without concern and took the glass back. She looked at Ryoko with a raised silver eyebrow.
Ryoko bore her teeth at the woman. "Of course not." She growled. "Even when I asked for it, you told me 'no' and to prove I'm worth your time by finding you in person." The woman raised a hand, gesturing around them. "Well, here I am! You going to reveal your identity now, Silver-Haired Demon?"
"Urd."
"What?" Ryoko stared blinking at the woman.
"My name is 'Urd'." The woman said, and held up Tenchi's abandoned drink. "Toast?"
The space pirate looked at her warily, then raised her own whiskey glass. "To…what?" She asked.
Urd smiled, her face the picture of serenity. "To…silver-haired demons and the trouble they cause they Waking World."
"…Right." Ryoko grunted, and brought her glass against Urd's.
Together, the duo downed their drink, and Urd flipped her whiskey glass over and tapped it twice lightly on the countertop. "Pitter patter." She murmured, and her hand wrapped around the bottle of amber liquid. With one fluid motion, she brought the bottle down atop Ryoko's head, where the force of the blow knocked the woman's head down atop the counter. "…Let's get at 'er."
The glass shattered on impact, and Tenchi released a shout of surprise.
Ryoko, more stunned than injured, looked at Urd in shock.
Urd smiled at her and grabbed another bottle. Bolts of electricity danced across her fingers and over its surface. "By the way," The woman said, and broke the bottle over the counter's edge. The lightning bolts danced like wicked spirits across the broken shards. "I'm a goddess, you unmuzzled hair-brained barnacle."
Tenchi's eyes widened. "Oh…shit." He breathed, and looked up at Ryoko right as the pirate dove over the counter with a roar.
"I'll fucking kill you!" Ryoko howled.
"Try it, you flea-bitten hedgehog!" Urd laughed. "You come into my house and make demands of me?" The woman thrust the broken bottle towards Ryoko's face, who dodge it at the last possible moment.
"You think a fucking bottle is going to hurt me?" Ryoko snarled. A cut, so thin and clean the woman was unaware of it, began to seep blood down her cheek, and Urd retreated, her expression savage and violent.
"If it bleeds, you can kill it." Urd replied. "And I don't need anything more than a bottle for you." She tossed the broken bottle, where it spun in the air before the violet-eyed woman caught it by its neck once more. Lightning snapped and popped against the residual beads of alcohol on the glass, making the bottle smoke. "You aren't even worth the broken glass."
"Ryoko, be careful! Tenchi exclaimed, "She's dangerous!"
"Fuck off Half-pint needle-neck!" Urd exclaimed. "Either grow some balls and join your girlfriend or get the fuck out, but I won't take comments from the peanut gallery." She pointed a hand towards him, and Tenchi found himself suddenly rendered mute, his voice lost to him against the woman's strange magic.
"Oy Bitch, your fight's with me!" Ryoko snarled and lept back, holding a hand out towards the goddess. "Leave him out of this!"
"Then you better stop talking and show me you can take a punch!" Urd retorted. "What are you even doing?"
Ryoko's hand remained pointing at the woman, yet nothing happened. No energy gathered in her palm, no chi condensed into a sword, and Ryoko paused, staring at her hand in confusion. "What—fuck!" She looked back towards the entrance. "That fucking guy! He sealed my abilities!"
"Looks like it." Urd agreed, and smiled viciously before lunging forward with bottle in hand. Ryoko darted to the side, avoiding the glass but exposing herself to the bolts.
She snarled in pain, retreating against the counter top and clutching her side. "The shit?" She muttered, her eyes wide with panic. "That-its worse than the damned sword!"
"You think there's anything which can compete against the magic of a goddess?" Urd laughed, "Girl, I'mma learn you something today!"
"Your funeral." Ryoko growled. "Demon, goddess, woman, I don't give a shit. You're in for a hell of a time if you think I'm reliant on my powers." A hand reached behind her, and she grabbed the bottle of vodka which remained on the bar.
Urd smirked. "Now we're talking."
With a roar, Ryoko broke the bottle against the counter top and lunged at the woman. Urd sidestepped, grabbed the Demon Lord, and threw her over her shoulder without a second glance. The pirate hit the ground hard, only to grab the goddess by her left ankle and roll, knocking the goddess off her feet and sending her crashing to the ground with an undignified squawk. Ryoko climbed to her knees, only to take an elbow to the cheek. She rolled with the strike, grabbing the woman by her shoulder and slamming her against the corner of a wall with enough force to rattle the cabinets holding the rest of the alcohol.
Urd grunted, pausing as she looked up at the cabinet, and Ryoko used it to her advantage. "Don't you know better than to look away from a threat?" She snarled, and wrapped her arm around the woman's throat in an arm bar.
Urd snarled, leaned back into Ryoko, then used the small amount of give brought by gravity to lurch forward, throwing the pirate against a wall with enough force to jostle the grip loose. She slipped free with all the ease of a snake, then lashed out in a left hay-maker, striking the woman in the solar plexus. "Who said you were a threat?" She hissed.
Ryoko buckled over in pain with a wheeze, and Tenchi raced to the bar, scrambling over the top of it only for a pair of hands to wrap around him. He smelled smoke. "Where do you think you're going, Kid?" The blond from outside murmured in his ear, and he looked at her with a start. "What did I just say prior to you fuckers entering?"
Tenchi stared at her helplessly, unable to speak.
"That's what I thought." The blond grumbled, sounding tired as she hurled him further down the pub and onto a table. Tenchi crashed into it wordlessly, his mouth opening in a silent scream as the wood collapsed beneath him, leaving him breathless as the horn in his neck impacted the hard ground. His world exploded in stars and white noise, as if he'd struck his head rather than the horn, and gasping he rolled onto his side, the world spinning nauseatingly around him. At some point, he thought he saw a gold monster-something that looked less like a human or demon and more like an Eldritch abomination made of fangs and fires, and then the hem of his haori was grabbed as he was yanked off the ground with one hand.
The world snapped back into focus, and the blond glared at him with an irritated scowl on her face. "You gonna settle down, or am I gonna have to get rough with you?" She asked.
Tenchi nodded quickly.
The woman sighed. "At least one of you has sense." She looked back over her shoulder, and Tenchi watched the woman grimace as she witnessed Ryoko smash a fist into Urd's chin. "Those two idiots, on the other hand…"
Urd laughed. "You think your little fairy kisses hurt? My little sister hits harder than you!"
"I'm just getting warmed up!" Ryoko wore a smile that was half-mad and as twice as savage as Urd's. "Ain't no two-bit half-wit arrogant enough to claim she's a fucking goddess gonna stop me!"
Urd grabbed her and slammed her face into her knee. Ryoko grabbed the knee with both hands, blood streaming from her nose, and slammed her into the sink behind the bar as if the goddess was little more than a rag doll. The faucet broke, and water geysered upwards, drenching Ryoko and Urd both.
Urd cackled.
It sounded like Ryoko was laughing too.
"Great, there's two of them now, and their both drunk." The blond sighed and turned back to Tenchi. "Imma set you down." She told him. "And you are gonna stay seated or I'm going to hammer that nail in your neck to the wall with my fist. You get me?"
Tenchi swallowed and nodded.
Grumbling to herself, the blond turned away, shoving her hands into the pockets of her red leather jacket as she moved towards the two fighting. Tenchi leaned over in the booth, his own curiosity getting the better of him as wincing, he watched Ryoko throw Urd over her shoulder, sending her sprawling on top of the bar. Urd scrambled to reorient herself, only to yelp as the blond reached out, grabbed her by both ankles, and dragged her off the bar and to the other side of the counter. The goddess hit the ground floor none-too-gently face first, with the blond still holding her by the feet as she looked down at Urd.
The goddess looked at the woman. "Marller, what the hell!"
Marller glared at her. "You're gonna wreck the bar!" She snarled.
"I can repair it!" Urd exclaimed, "I took several classes in structural architecture magic. Lemme go!"
"No." Marller replied. "I ain't worried 'bout the bar. I'm worried 'bought the booze!" She snarled, "How many bottles have you busted already?"
Urd was silent.
"That's what I fucking thought." Marller released her, then turned her attention to Ryoko, who was already crawling on top of the counter after Urd. "And you."
"You want some too?" Ryoko demanded. Blood flowed freely from several gashes on her face and arms, and her hair rested limp and wet against her hair from the faucet water which had soaked it. "I'll take you both on. Fucking try me."
Marller raised her hands. "Hold up." She said, and keeping her hands raised, approached the space pirate. "I ain't in any mood to fight. You wasting the booze we took so much time gathering and I really don't want to waste more of it."
"Marller-" Urd began.
Marller kicked her. "Shut up."
"Fuck you Marller!"
"Fuck you Urd!"
The two glared at each other before Marller turned back to Ryoko. "She's an idiot, right?"
Taken off-guard, Ryoko blinked, then nodded. "Absolutely."
The demon leaned on the counter near the pirate. "She claims she's a goddess, but you saw what she did! A freaking demon, this one, am I right?"
"Yes!" Ryoko exclaimed. "Thank you!"
"So," Marller waved her over, and Ryoko, in a moment of drunken naivety, leaned forward to hear what the demon had to say. "Who sent you?" She whispered. "And what do they want with Urd?"
Ryoko pulled back, staring at the blond in confusion. "What—"
Without warning, Marller brought two cupped palms to the side of Ryoko's head, boxing the woman's ears without any forewarning or the slightest hint of bloodlust to warn of her intentions. Ryoko, who's ears were one of the more sensitive parts of her body, assisting her not only with hearing and direction, but also acting as an internal navigation system as well as keeping her stabilized in both flight and teleportation, shrieked once as one if not both eardrums ruptured from the pressure of the strike before collapsing on the counter with a heavy groan.
Marller stared at the Demon Lord. "Huh." She said, rubbing the back of her head. "She dropped like a fly."
Urd stumbled to her feet. "Marller…" She grunted, "I don't—I don't think she was sent by anyone."
Marller looked at the goddess. "You don't?"
"Did you scent her?" Urd asked.
"You mean outside of that double shot of vodka and mead she downed?" The blond shook her head. "Hard to smell anything past the alcohol."
Urd sighed, looking down at the unconscious woman, then back at Tenchi. "Hey Kid, who sent you?"
Tenchi stared at her, then shook his head and gestured to his throat.
"What, demon got your tongue?" Urd asked.
Tenchi stared at her in aggravation, then nodded, pointing to Urd.
Marller looked at the woman. "You do something to the kid?"
Urd ran a hand through her hair. Her palm came away pink. "Not that I can remember…"
Marller stared at the soiled hand with a frown. "With how much your thorny devil here busted your skull open, I'm surprised you can remember anything right now." She said flatly, shoving her hands back in her jacket and approaching the teen. "Hold still Kid, let me get a whiff of you."
Tenchi leaned away from her at the woman's approach. You want to sniff me? He thought, and sure enough the blond leaned over the table and towards him, a hand grabbing his head and holding him still. He cringed, and watched her nose visibly twitch. "I don't smell good." He tried to warn, forgetting the spell placed on his vocal chords, and flinched when the woman recoiled with a sneeze, almost falling over herself in her efforts to retreat.
"Marller?" Urd trotted over the demon in open concern.
Marller waved her away, one hand covering her face as she looked accusingly at Tenchi. "It smells," She began, "Like he hasn't bathed in a month." She sent an accusing look towards Urd, then glanced past her to Ryoko. "They both do!"
The door opened, and the goddess, demon, and demi-fiend turned to look at the door, finding the man from before waltzing in and whistling a tune to himself. A cheerful expression on his face, he looked to Ryoko, limp on the counter, the faucet which was still gushing water in a powerful geyser, and then Urd and Marller, surrounding Tenchi a if interrogating him.
The man raised a bag. "I brought soap and food." He said, as if the flooding bar, the woman passed out on top of it, and the two women surrounding the underage youth imprisoned in a booth were all perfectly normal day-to-day occurrences. "The kids smelled like they're allergic to soap."
Urd sighed and straightened, once more touching her head and noting the dying trickle of blood. "Thanks Loki." She said. "Marller, let off the kid, we've traumatized him enough." She looked over at Tenchi. "Lets get you and your friend patched up and washed."
Tenchi gaped at the goddess in open astonishment. This woman is nuts. He thought, and glanced over her shoulder at Marller, who stared at the self-proclaimed goddess flatly, then caught his eye, shrugged, and shook her head. She goes from beating the ever-loving shit out of Ryoko, stealing my voice, and destroying her own bar to offering us a bath.
"Welcome to Urd's Well!" The teen jumped and looked up, finding the lanky man from before sliding into the booth on the other side of the table, a large, toothy smile on his face. "Where if you don't get decked in the first thirty minutes by my lovely ladies here, you're no friend of ours!" Bright blue eyes sparkled with amusement, and above all, friendliness, and despite himself Tenchi found himself returning the smile, drawn by the playful, easy nature the man exhibited. "I'm Loki, the best thing to come from Aesir and Jötnar relationships since Odin and his brothers murdered Ymir in his sleep, cousin to this fine specimen of Aesir and Falkin blood, Urd, Goddess second class, restricted, Norn of the Past, and the proprietor of this fine establishment," He gestured to Urd, who flicked a bolt of electricity at him. He caught it, and Tenchi watched mystified as the electricity danced harmlessly across his knuckles with the same ease as if he were rolling a coin across them. "And her friend Marller, Demon First Class Unrestricted who usually hangs with the High Rollers, now regulated to bar bouncer." He leaned over the table, and gestured Tenchi to do so as well. Raising a hand, he whispered loudly to the demi-fiend, "They're roommates."
"I can beat you." Marller growled, and her lips pulled up in a snarl.
The man fell back in his seat as Tenchi looked between him and the two women in confusion. "After I spent all this time sealing these two kids' magic so they wouldn't total the bar-lot of good that did-informing you of the brewing fight, and getting some soap and shampoo for our two little waifs?" He sent Marller a wounded look. "I'm hurt. Crushed. Absolutely decimated." He looked at Urd. "She's mean."
Urd rolled her eyes. "She's a demon." She retorted, "Whom you antagonized."
Loki sent Tenchi a pleading look. "They're both against me." He said, "Do you see what I have to go through? Cycle in, cycle out, 'no Loki, don't do this, no Loki, that is your fault." He shook his head and tittered.
Urd raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You're free to leave any time." She reminded, then glanced at Tenchi. "Ah…I think I remember now. I sealed your voice, didn't I?"
Tenchi nodded, sighing with relief. Finally, we're getting somewhere. He thought.
"Alright, hold still for me." She slipped into the booth next to him, leaning towards the youth. Tenchi tensed as she drew near, watching with growing trepidation as the Norn leaned forward. She invaded his personal space, and he felt her lips touch his, and was suddenly engulfed in a memory; and Tenchi stared into green, emerald orbs, and felt his heart skip a beat. "…You came." She murmured. "…I knew you would." A hand wrapped around his haori, plush lips met his own, and-
"No!" Tenchi jerked back with a yell the palm of his hand rising and connecting solidly with Urd's nose.
"Fuck!" Urd roared, and collapsed backward, grabbing her nose as tears leaked from her eyes. "The hell was that for!"
Marller started, then looked between the Hitoshura and the goddess before laughing uproariously. "Finally! Someone puts you in your place!" She exclaimed, clutching her sides. "That was fucking beautiful! I ain't never seen you get put off so fast in my life!" She buckled over with fresh laughter.
Tenchi stared at the Norn in first shock, then horror. "Oh no, I'm sorry!" He exclaimed. "I didn't-I didn't break anything, did I?!" He was barely aware of his own voice's return.
Loki, amused, leaned back in the booth, placing his arms behind his head. "Looks like the little man is either already taken or swings for the home team." He smiled, looking smug.
Behind them, Ryoko rose with a weak arm, still disoriented, and slipped off the countertop, crashing amidst the various barstools that lined the custodian side of the bar with a pitiful moan.
"Shit, Ryoko!" Tenchi all but climbed over the booth, falling onto the table on the other side with a curse as the table collapsed beneath him.
Marller laughed harder.
Loki tossed his head back and laughed as well.
Urd groaned and leaned her head back, silently willing the blood which was flowing out of both nostrils to clot. "Just another fucking day at Urd's Well." She muttered. The words sounded stuffy.
Vortex World,
Minatogawa Stateside Town, Assembly of Nihilo, Urd's Well
Kagatsuchi 6/8 Waning
"Hold still and stop grumbling." Urd said, holding Ryoko's head carefully to one side. "Yggdrasil, you'd think I was going to kill you or something." She held a small vial of eardrops in one hand, leaning over the countertop table as Ryoko, her head resting in her arms and one ear aimed up, glowered at her.
"Are you saying you aren't?" The pirate growled.
Urd scoffed. "If I wanted you dead you'd have been blown to smithereens before you so much as stepped foot in this place." She said, "Besides, you busted my faucet and three bottles of alcohol; that costs money. You aren't leaving for the Underworld until I get my due back."
"Funny, as I recall you broke one of those bottles on my head." The pirate narrowed her eyes.
"Well, maybe if you weren't so hard-headed, the bottle wouldn't have broke against you." Urd retorted, and when Ryoko began to squirm in aggravation, grabbed her by the ear's cartilage and began to twist. "Settle down or I swear on my father, I will rip your ear off."
Ryoko snorted. "It'll grow back." Urd twisted-gently, but enough to cause Ryoko to twist with the hand. "Ow ow ow ow!" She slammed a fist on the countertop with enough force to crack the wood.
"Ryoko, please stop fighting." Tenchi leaned over into the woman's view. "Listen, I know you got off on the wrong foot, but I promise, Urd means what she says. Her potions are really good and, well…"
"Marller wasn't holding back." Urd grumbled, easing her hold on the Demon Lord's ear in favor of gently squeezing two drops from the vial and into Ryoko's ear canal. "I was." She cast a glare at the blond, who was mopping up the water from the newly repaired faucet.
A fist came up, followed by a middle finger. "I don't hold back against my opponents." Marller said. "You know that better than anyone, Urd.
Urd sighed. "Self-restraint was never your forte." She said.
"It was never your forte." Marller retorted. "I'm not the one who let herself get goaded into a fight with some spiky-haired asshole."
"You want to fight?" Ryoko snarled. "Don't think I can't fight just because-ow!"
Urd twisted her ear again. "Oops." She said, and released her. "Wait, raise slowly, raise slow-"
Ryoko jerked her head up, watched the world spin around her, and fell out of the barstool chair that had been supporting her.
Urd looked at Tenchi. "Your girl's not too bright, is she?"
Tenchi frowned. "She's not my girl." He said.
The Norn raised an eyebrow. "With how poorly you reacted after I kissed you?" She asked, "Could have fooled me."
"I don't like being kissed without permission." Tenchi growled.
"I approve." Marller exclaimed. "About time another man you tried preying on set some boundaries with you."
Urd wheeled on the blond. "I am not preying on him!" She snapped. "It was the fastest and most direct way of removing the spell!"
Marller stared at her, leaning on the mop, then sighed, grabbed it, and brought the wet mop head up at Urd. Urd dodged it, where it collided with Tenchi instead, and the goddess instead grabbed the mop handle, pulled it forward-burying Tenchi's face further in the dirty cloth-before thrusting it back towards Marller. Marller released the handle, sidestepping the thrust, and began to smile.
"Would you both fucking stop!?" Tenchi grabbed the mop at its base and pulled, throwing Urd off balance as he yanked it from the Norn's hands and tossed it across the room. Urd and Marller paused, looking at him with a start.
"My mop…" Marller said.
"Yeah? Well maybe if you'd stop stuffing it in my face I wouldn't have thrown it!" Tenchi snarled.
"Maybe you had a dirty mouth." Marller retorted.
"Phrasing, both of you." Urd said, then sighed, leaning over the contertop and looking down at Ryoko, who sat clutching her head. "Go pick up your girl and drag her back up here. I still need to take care of the other ear."
"Would you stop-"
"Then who is she to you?" Urd asked, looking Tenchi square in the eye and making him stop.
"Ryoko." Tenchi replied. "My best friend and the closet thing I have left to family in this nightmare."
Urd eyed him, then shrugged. "Either way, pick her up so I can tend to her. I deal with enough drunks as it is; I don't need someone stumbling around and breaking things when they aren't drunk."
"Fuck you and your girlfriend." Ryoko replied from the ground.
"Ryoko!" Tenchi exclaimed, then looked back to the two women. "Look, I'm sorry, she's just stressed."
Urd, unphased, leaned over the contertop. "Name a time and place and we can make that happen." She winked, smiling when the pirate looked up at her with startled golden eyes.
Marller cuffed her in the back of the head. "Stops scaring the kids." She said, and leaned over as well. "Half the things that comes out of her mouth is bullshit." She said. "Just ignore her and she'll go away."
Tenchi wiped his face against his haori. "I'd rather you just fixed Ryoko's ear." He muttered, "So we can be on our way. We've caused you enough trouble." He hopped off his own barstool and knelt, wrapping one of Ryoko's arms around his shoulders and hoisting her to her feet. The pirate leaned into him with a low moan, squeezing her eyes shut with a tight grimace, and Tenchi guided her back to the barstool, helping her sit down and orient her untreated ear up.
"Do me a favor and hold her head steady for me." Urd instructed, and with a nod Tenchi did as instructed, feeling Ryoko tense, then visibly relax when she realized who was holding her. "Don't let her move. I can't waste these eardrops anymore than I can afford to overdose her." With still hands, the Norn squeezed two drops into the woman's ear canal and the swiftly moved away from the pirate as Ryoko shuddered. "Slowly let her raise her head." Urd told him. "Slowly-the drops need the chance to absorb into the eardrum and repair the damage, and they mess with her equilibrium during that process. Any sudden movements will make her dizzy."
"Got it." Tenchi nodded, and carefully removed himself from Ryoko's person, letting the woman rise on her own as she cast a glare to Urd.
"I'm not some dog." She growled. "I can understand you."
"You certainly don't act like it." Urd replied, capping the bottle and placing it back within the foam cushioned box it and an apothecary of other vials rested in. She shut it, where it locked with a click, and stored it back under the countertop. "You're a fussy patient is what you are."
"And you're a—"
"Ryoko!" Tenchi snapped, and the woman wheeled on him with a snarl, only to sway in her seat once more. "Damn it," He hissed, and grabbed her shoulders, steadying her. "Stop trying to start something! We've caused enough trouble."
Loki emerged from behind the bar. "Bathroom's good to go once more." He looked drenched. "You guys should have said something sooner when the faucet broke." He scolded, looking at the group together with amusement. "Turns out you busted the water pipe in your little family feud. It's fixed now, but the toilet was acting like its own internal shower for a hot minute there."
A look of disgust passed over Urd. "Gross." She muttered, then bowed her head. "Thank you Cousin."
Loki smiled at her. "Hey, we both need that bath more than anyone else here-even the two dirty strays you picked up."
"Who are you calling a stray?!" Ryoko growled.
Loki threw the towel he'd been using to dry off at her. She caught it with one hand. "Shut up and go shower." He said cheerfully. "You smell like a dead body."
"I do not!" Ryoko snapped.
"You do." Urd assured her.
Marller nodded. "You…really, really do." She said. "No one is joking about that."
Tenchi flushed. "We ah…both smell bad, Ryoko." He said. "Neither of us has properly showered since waking up in the Vortex World."
"You smell like you've been rolling around in something dead." Marller grumbled. "Seriously, go take a shower before I grab a fucking hose."
Ryoko stared at the group in growing anger.
"I stink too, Ryoko." Tenchi held his hands up in peace. "I'm taking a shower right after you. I figured you'd probably want to go first for whatever hot water's left."
The pirate glowered at him, then grumbling, slipped off the stool, grabbing the countertop for support as she blinked, swayed, regained her balance, then setting off for the bathroom with the towel Loki had thrown her way. "Soap's beneath the sink!" He called after her, and slid into the barstool she'd once occupied.
"So." Loki said, spinning once in the seat before coming to face Tenchi. "What's your story?"
Tenchi ran a hand through his hair, "Well…" He began to talk, sharing a story of demon and devils, youkai and summoners, Conception and the travels which came afterwards, and, with a bit of hesitation, of what he knew of lilim and the Assembly of Nihilo. He found his audience quiet and attentive, showing neither a disregard for his journey nor an uncomfortable amount of interest in any one particular event, and for that Tenchi was grateful; there was something cathartic about telling his story, about bleeding out an infection he himself had been unaware of, and sharing it with a group of kindred spirits who seemed to not only understand but shared his pain.
By the time he was finished Ryoko was out of the shower. She was visibly more relaxed as she stepped out in a fresh pair of clothes, this one a blue and gold kimono which Tenchi had to do a double-take on. "Ryoko…is that a tail?"
"Relax, its an accessory." The tail moved as if it were a part of her, and the woman took up a seat on the other side of Tenchi. "There's still a bit of hot water left if you want it." The teen could almost feel the steam coming off the woman, who, between the time before and after the shower, seemed to have become an entirely different person.
Guess we both haven't been taking care of eachother as well as we could have. Tenchi thought. I forgot part of that includes basic hygiene. Ryoko took a dip in the Fountain of Life but…that only washed off some of the residue from the Lilim; it didn't really clean her.
Ryoko looked at him, then leaned away. "As much as I hate to admit it…they're right. You stink, Tenchi."
"I know." He said. "Let me give the water heater a bit of time to catch up, then I'll take one as well." He took a deep breath, at ease for the first time since entering the bar, and looked at the cyan-haired woman with a start. "You…smell really nice though."
"Course she does, I picked out the soap and shampoo!" Loki said with pride.
Urd rolled her eyes.
"Okay, so…what's your story than?" Tenchi asked. "I told you about Ryoko and I but…Loki used a lot of terminology I didn't recognize."
"Who, us?" Urd asked. "Nothing to it. Just some folks who are part of the End of the World Club, same as you." She said. "Woke up around here post-Conception searching for my two younger sisters. Found this place by chance and figured it'd be safer to set up shop here rather than risk my chances out in the Badlands—its hard finding two needles in a haystack, and it becomes near impossible if both you and those two needles are moving around." She thumbed over at Marller. "This asshole happened to be nearby when I was looking to set up shop, and she hasn't stopped harassing me since."
"Stop acting like I'm the pest when you know its the other way around." Marller grumbled. "I found the fucking bar, not her."
"I repaired it."
"You refurbished it, and I got the alcohol!" Marller snapped.
"And both of you have done an outstanding job!" Loki praised, reaching over the counter and wrapping an arm around them both. "I'm so proud of you both! Look at you, adulting all over the place!"
"Why does everything that comes out of your mouth sound obscene?" Marller demanded, fighting him off as the man laughed and released her.
"Relax Marller, it's just Loki being Loki." Urd said, embracing the man in turn before kissing him on the cheek with sisterly affection. "Loki ran into our place a cycle or two after the original world's end." She explained. "I wasn't about to kick him out."
"Us black sheep have to stick together." He winked at her. "Something which Little Miss Demon Lord can relate to, me thinks."
Ryoko leaned back against the barstool, raising one eyebrow in question. "Why would I relate to either of you?" She demanded. "I have nothing in common with either of you."
Marller burst out laughing and walked off. "This girl's a fucking riot!" She exclaimed.
Urd smiled slimly. "Cute, coming from a woman who claims she's some kind of demon." She said.
The space pirate bristled. "Oh, this again?!" She demanded. "What, are you going to tell me I'm some kind of bastard goddess too?"
The laughter died immediately from Marller, and both women looked at her with sudden seriousness. "…what are you talking about?" Urd demanded.
Loki looked between them with a raised eyebrow. "You mean you two honestly couldn't tell?"
"Loki, I swear to Odin—"
"I'm being serious!" He held his hands up in defense. "I sensed it as soon as I touched her! She's Unregistered!"
Tenchi stared between all of them with growing apprehension, watching as Ryoko paled as she was suddenly surrounded by the trio. "What are you…are you guys serious right now?" She demanded, her head darting between the demon, the god, and the goddess in disbelief. "I'm not a goddess!" Ryoko snapped. "For fuck's sake, I'm a demon!"
Urd pursed her lips. "Let's test that theory." She said, and held out a hand. "Give me your hand."
Ryoko stared at it in the same manner of trepidation that her nemesis, Yosho, had less than a full cycle ago. "What are you going to do?" She demanded.
"I'm going to tell you what you are." Urd said simply. "But in order to do that, I need a sample of your DNA. I'm a goddess of the past, of potions, and of love, but I'm not a goddess of science; this doesn't come naturally to me without a small bit of outside assistance."
"I know what I am." Ryoko said. "I'm a bio-engeneered humanoid weapon designed by a mad scientist."
"And what did he make you from and how?" Urd raised an eyebrow.
Ryoko was silent.
Urd sighed, withdrawing her hand. "Listen, I'm not going to force this on you. Some people don't want to know their origins and prefer being left in the dark. For that, I can relate." She sent a glare to Marller when the demon opened her mouth. "And so if you don't want to go through with it, then that's fine. I personally want to know, but I have enough decency as a goddess and moreover as a person to have your consent first."
Ryoko frowned. "It was you who told me I was a goddess." Urd looked at her sharply. "Or at least…the one who looked like you." She paused. "Wait, do you have like, a sister or something? Was that who it was?"
Marller looked at Urd with a pensive frown. Urd looked back at her with a subtle shake of her head before turning back to Ryoko. "It…was not." Urd revealed. "I have two half-sisters, but none of them look anything like what you're describing."
A puzzled frown fell across the pirate's face. "Than who…"
"Was it your mom maybe?" Tenchi asked, and suddenly found himself under the unrestrained gaze of the Norn of the Past. The teen felt his breath catch in his chest, felt his throat lock under pressure, and felt a terrible fear dig its way into his gut and down his spine. The magatama within him began the thrash, and a wave of nausea-brought on by terror-filled his stomach. He met the woman's violet gaze-once guarded, once open, once mischievous-and found them dark with an emotion he could not put a name to. She caught his eyes, and the youth found himself unable to look away; there was something horrible in her gaze, something which reminded him of the dead earth and those creatures-those snakes, those serpents, those monsters-which crawled within it.
"Urd! Cousin!" Loki's loud voice broke through the terrible stare, and the woman directed her gaze to the god. "How about a drink? I'm parched!"
The woman didn't move.
Shrugging, Loki rose from his seat and vaulted over the bar with one hand. "Fine, how about I make us all one myself?" He said, "Go have a seat. My treat."
"Urd." Marller jostled her, her voice a low grumble. "Sit."
The woman closed her eyes and drew in a long breath, releasing it in a hiss. For a moment, Tenchi perceived steam leaving her mouth. But its not steam. He thought, Its not steam or smoke or breath. Those are…serpents. She's not hissing-they are.
Tenchi's skin broke into goosebumps, and once again, his thoughts from his initial meeting with the goddess returned to him. She's dangerous.
Ryoko eyed the woman, one hand curled into a fist and the other drumming a tempo on the countertop. "Try it." She said, and her voice was low. "I dare you." The tail-accessory or not-had fluffed up to twice its original size, rising stiffly behind the woman as she bore her teeth at the goddess.
Urd looked at her abruptly. "Try what."
"Whatever's egging you on." Ryoko replied. "You do it, you better be ready for the fight of your life." She said. "And you better focus on me, not Tenchi." She narrowed her eyes at the woman. "Could be you were having fun during that bar fight of ours…could be I was having fun too." She revealed. "But if you so much as touch him, I will kill you-that is a promise."
Urd stared at her, and a smile slowly spread across her face, the darkness which had so dwelt within her eyes melting away as the goddess took another cleansing breath. "I think," she began, "That you and I are going to get along just fine."
"So long as it doesn't involve Tenchi, I'm fine with it." Ryoko said briskly.
Urd released a bark of laughter.
"Shots!" Loki shoved his way between Urd and Ryoko, his hands held high with a tray containing new glasses. "Shots for everyone!"
"Is this more of 'Loki's Mallet'?" Ryoko asked, allowing herself to get distracted-if only for the moment-at the premise of more alcohol.
The man sent her a dazzling smile. "Not this time, Love." He said, and placed a shot glass before first Ryoko, then Tenchi, before handing Urd and Marller one as well. "That's Urd's specialty. Mine is…" He paused in consideration. "Ah, I know! In honor of one of my sons. 'Jormungdr's Venom'."
"I'll drink it." Urd and Marller said together, and then looked at each other with matching glowers.
Tenchi sighed, pushing the glass away. "Look, I appreciate it, but really, I don't drink." He re-emphasized.
A corner of Loki's lips twitched downward in a frown, and an alien expression overcame the god's face. "Are my services not to your liking?" He asked, and his tone grew cold. "Do you find our hospitality lacking?"
"What?" Tenchi looked at the man with a start. "Um…no?"
Urd wrapped an arm around the god's shoulders, a look of visibly-contained panic on her face. "Cousin! Loki! Come now, before we imbibe tell me what you put in the drink-and how is my favorite second-cousin, anyway?!" She sent a look to Marller, then shot a look to Tenchi as the woman guided the man to the wall of alcohol.
With his back turned, Marller grabbed Tenchi's glass, downed the contents without paused, grimaced, then raced to the sink faucet, turned on the tap, and replaced the contents with water. Just as quickly, she returned the glass, held a finger up to her lips, gestured to Loki, and drew a finger across her throat.
Tenchi and Ryoko stared.
"How about a toast?!" Marller's voice wavered unsteadily.
Urd and Loki turned back to the bar, a scowl on Loki's face as he cast a glower at Tenchi.
Urd thumped his shoulder. "Leave him alone!" She said. "This isn't Asgard and he's not Aesir; his views on hospitality differ!" She raised her glass. "Now, a toast!"
Tenchi shared an uncertain look with Ryoko. Behind Loki, Marller gestured to them both to raise their glasses. With fresh wariness, they did so. "What are we toasting to?" Ryoko asked.
"To the Ragnarök Club!" Urd announced, "May her survivors gather at the Holy Well, and may the Great Tree of Life shelter them from the Vortex's Storm and its many Eyes!"
"I'll drink to that." The dour look faded from Loki's face, and together the gathering-gods and goddesses, demons and demifiends-let their glasses clink together before downing their shot.
And though the alcohol had been drained from the glass, Tenchi still felt fire race down his throat, and as he looked around, he saw those around them in their truest aspects. He witness Loki in fridged, icy glory; an Aesir, a Jotun, an embodiment of Chaos who was yet more human than all of them combined. He saw Marller as a beast, an element, a creature of fire and darkness, temptation and death, her form as fleeting as the flames which licked her body. He saw Urd-and this one just for a moment-as beautiful and terrible as Time itself, nostalgic in her glory and as terrifying by what she represented, shadowed by something he couldn't see-he wouldn't see, for fear it might drive him mad.
He saw Ryoko, and the essence of the universe in all its terrible, unknowable alienness.
And he saw himself, reflected in whiskey glasses and polished counter tops; a god, a demon, a boy with power unknowable, unmastered, bearing in one moment a fiendish snarl the highlighted the frame of his skull, and in the next was filled with such life and vitality that it burned from his brow.
He passed out then, the taste of fire on his lips and lightning on his tongue, venom coating the insides of his cheeks as if indeed, a serpent's sting had slipped down his throat. Yet he fell with a smile, he fell with a laugh, for he was among kin, and like-minded individuals.
And though his consciousness slipped away from him, a part of him had to admit; the drink was damn good for what little remained in the glass.
Comments of a Madwoman: From Urd's Well lie secrets most deep. From its water is the fountain of life, pulled deep with Niflhiem, wherest the Great Wyrm rests, forever gnawing upon the roots its waters feed.
Cathedral of Shadows
Urd(r): Ancient Norse; One of the three Norns, her name means 'Fate' and is synopsis with the Christrian word 'Wyrd. She represents 'past', and dwells beneath the Yddgrasil, the World Tree, with her three sisters, drawing water from 'Urd's Well' which dwells there to nourish its roots.
Loki: Ancient Norse: A trickster god and one of the major deities of Norse mythology. While born a Jotun, he was accepted into the ranks of Aesir as an adopted deity. While many view him as a malignant entity, many of his actions-tricks or not-were often done in an attempt to help those he viewed as friends or family. His actions sadly led to the death of the Golden Child, Baulder the Bright, and his future trial and imprisonment underground.
Marller/Mara: Origins unknown; a common name found throughout the world in association of spirits, demons, and gods. From the Old English word 'Mare' for 'terror'; nightmares or night terrors were believed to have been demons which would sit on the victim's chest in their sleep, cursing them with terrible visions and dreams; i.e., a sleep paralysis demon. Similarly, Mara is a Buddhist demon who is a lord of evil spirits, using a host of demonic daughters to tempt the Buddha as he sat under the Bhodi tree. Also the name of a Death Goddess in Southeast Asian Hindu mythology.