Book III: Fictional Edification

Chapter VII: A Fatalistic Love

Dimension: Wulf-Edda/Midgard/Hindarfjall/Skatalundr

As they rode up the mountain, Sigurd and Grani gained enough traction toward Hindarfjall. When they arrived at the sight of a glowing light far away, Sigurd discerned the burning light. He sensed the heat burning in the air and saw it as a sign they were getting closer.

Upon arriving, they were far away from the wavering wall of burning flames that obstructed them from passing. These walls of fire were called the vafrlogi by the local townspeople. Behind the flames was the Skatalundr castle. Grani neighed loudly and distanced himself, terrified of the raging inferno. Sigurd calmed his steed down and moved him away.

The warrior turned and met the burning wave of flames. There was enough trepidation in his body as he initially felt unsure if he was up to this task. Then, he recalled what the bird told him. Once Fáfnir's blood fell on him, Sigurd gained abilities beyond a normal man. She even hinted that he could test his body against the flames.

Sigurd heard the stories that many men perished trying to climb the mountain. Others simply gave up. Sigurd made it this far meant the bird's word could be true.

As he slowly put his hand through the flames, Sigurd closed his eyes.

Nothing.

No pain.

He pulled his arm away. The flames didn't burn his arm.

"The bird was right. I am immune to the flames thanks to the dragon's blood," Sigurd was taken aback by this revelation. With his confidence restored, the warrior climbed the Castle of Searing Flamme. The more he climbed, the more amazed he was to know he was invulnerable to the flames.

After a long climb up, Sigurd entered the window and scanned the quarters. He veered to his left and spotted a bed. Lying motionless on the bed was Brynhildr still covered in chainmail armor. There was a thin layer of mystic light that enshrouded the sleeping maiden.

"Is that the maiden the town folk and the bird referred to? So, the rumors were true!" Sigurd was astonished. He casually walked near the bed and gazed over the sleeping maiden. Based on first impression, she appeared more peaceful and less furious than what Sigurd kept hearing about.

When he approached closer, flames burst from the mystic barrier surrounding Brynhildr. He quickly withdrew from the fire until he remembered his invulnerability to fire. He walked passed the flames.

Sigurd stood next to Brynhildr's bedside. When eyeing her, she noted how uncharacteristically less lady-like Brynhildr appeared. He assumed she'd have a beauty that matched the burning and passionate flames. However, he couldn't notice but found her sleeping face to be appealing.

"Can thou hear me, sleeping maiden? I hast climbed the treacherous mountain and survived the flames. I came to confirm if the stories were true. I am grateful," Sigurd genuinely said as he placed a hand on hers. "I hast become a wandering traveler. It is just me and my steed. I hast yet to find someone to talk to."

There was no response from the still-sleeping maiden.

"Thou can not hear me? Then, will a kiss wake thee?" The warrior leaned over and checked the chainmail. "No, perhaps this is keeping thou subdued." With that, he took out Gram and cut the maiden's chainmail armor.

With that, Sigurd took the opportunity to lean down for a kiss.

Until, Brynhildr's shot wide open and she awoke from her long slumber.

Her reaction to Sigurd leaning for a kiss ended with her fist in the warrior's face. This was an instinctive move meant for Odin, who was the last person she saw. However, it didn't matter who awoke her, that unfortunate soul was going to meet her unbridled wrath.

For Sigurd, he came at the wrong place and time.

The next thing Sigurd knew, he saw Brynhildr charged from out of her bed and tackled Sigurd down. She quickly pinned him down and seized his throat. Sigurd felt his windpipe about to be crushed by the enraged woman.

"FUKKA BASTARD! WHERE IS THE FUKKA OLD MAN?! WHERE IS ODIN?!" She screamed and slammed the back of Sigurd's head into the ground.

Feeling his head being cracked against the stone floor, Sigurd gritted and yelled. Brynhilldr didn't give him any time to recover and punched him.

"WHERE IS HE?! SHOW ME WHERE THAT OLD BIKKJE IS?!"

"Maiden, please…!"

Upon hearing the man just call her a 'maiden', Brynhidr clenched her teeth hard. Her face then contorted with anger. She choked him hard. Sigurd pushed his hands against her face. She quickly bit one of his fingers hard, forcing him to let go. Sigurd then tried kicking Brynhildr off him.

"THOU DARE CALL ME A FUKKA MAIDEN! SAY IT AGAIN AND I WILL BREAK THY NECK!"

Sigurd couldn't believe that the maiden he awoke turned out to be an unstable psychopath with a penchant for Odin's blood. The stories he had heard said the flames represented the maiden's anger. Those rumors turned out to be true.

Glancing over to Gram, he reached for the weapon. Brynhildr saw this and batted the weapon away. As a sadistic grin smeared on her face, the Valkyrie had an idea. She grabbed Gram. When Sigurd got up to stop her, Brynhildr pointed and angled the sword near his face.

"See here! Stop! I am not thy enemy!"

"Then, who sent thy here to rape me?!"

"No one! I came on my own accord! I thought a kiss wouldst awaken a sleeping maiden! I also heard the tales of…!"

Brynhildr snarled and shoved the pointed end near his facial skin. "Tales? What tales?"

"The local people. They said some maiden hast been asleep in this burning castle for a long time. Also, a bird told me."

"A bird?"

"That is correct and the local townspeople spoke about thee through my travels."

"How long was I asleep for?"

Sigurd nervously shrugged. "I-I hast no clue." He rubbed his neck where she had her hands on. "Thou almost killed me."

"Of course. No one tries and kisses me, except Sigrún!"

"Who is Sigrún if I may…?"

"That is none of thy business! Dost thou wish to die by thy own blade?!" Brynhildr prepared to shove Gram through Sigurd's head.

"If thou must, but hear me out first… please," Sigurd pleaded as he put his hand over Gram. "I am not thy enemy. I am a wanderer who lost a home. I hast traveled far. I overheard hearsay about thee and a burning castle."

"I hast been asleep inside a burning castle?"

"Take a look outside if thou dost not believe me."

Brynhildr looked out the window and was baffled by the wall of flames surrounding the castle. She couldn't believe it, but Sigurd was right. She wondered if the flames were Odin's doing, preventing any mere mortal from breaching through the burning wall of flames.

Brynhildr faced Sigurd and watched him beckon for Gram. Cautious, Brynhildr slowly put the sword back in his hand. She quickly jerked away and growled.

"Listen, I know thou probably dost not trust me."

"Why shouldst I? The last person who put me here was that fukka old man Odin."

"Odin? The Allfather?"

Brynhildr nodded. "Yes, the bastard that exiled me here. Granted, I went against his word, but I never liked taking his orders. He and I hast been at each other's throats."

Sigurd sheathed his sword. "Well, I am clearly not the Allfather. So, there is no reason to attack me. I am sorry I awoke thee." He started toward the window. "But know thou will wait a longer time for another to climb this burning mountain."

"A mortal like thou is immune to the flames?"

"Yes, it appears so after I slayed a dragon and the beast's blood covered me."

"Thou slayed a dragon?"

Sigurd paused and nodded.

"What is thy name?"

"Sigurd. Sigurd of the former Völsung clan."

"Sigurd? That sounds similar to Sigrún."

"Was he someone special to thee?"

"She was my closest friend," Brynhildr corrected him.

"Oh, I hadst no idea thou kissed another woman."

"She was a Valkyrie just like me. Well, I used to be a Valkyrie until that bikkje Odin took my powers and turned me mortal."

"I am sorry to hear that."

Brynhildr scoffed. "If thou wish to leave me, then go." She sat down on her bed. "Maybe I will find a way to force thyself to fall asleep for another long slumber."

Sigurd realized he could leave, but after finding out she'd been turned mortal, she was vulnerable. However, after witnessing her aggressive nature, he debated whether to risk taking her with him on his journey. And this was his first interaction with another person that wasn't a passing conversation with local town folk.

"I am willing to forgive thee."

Looking perturbed, Brynhildr blinked. "Huh?"

"I can forgive thou for nearly killing me."

"What art thou getting at?"

"I am still on a journey to find a good place to call home. Perhaps thou would like to join me? As a traveling companion?"

Brynhildr turned her back to him.

"So be it. This is where we part ways."

Scowling under her breath, Brynhildr turned around. "Hold on!"

Sigurd stopped next to the window and turned around to meet her resolute gaze.

"Thou truly slayed a dragon on thy own?"

"Yes, all on my own. With these swords, I slayed that beast Fáfnir," Sigurd proudly smiled.

Hearing this, Brynhildr began formulating an idea in her mind. She became thoroughly impressed that a Midgardian man not only slayed a dragon but was immune to flames. These are feats she thought only gods like herself could be capable of. Slaying a dragon was considered a norm for Asgardians. She thought if Sigurd could find a means to restore her powers. She also saw Sigurd as a means to help her get revenge on Odin. If she trains with this dragon slayer, she could enhance her strength and work off her fighting rust.

"Wait, Sigurd."

"What is it?"

"It appears I cannot leave. That old fukka bastard placed a binding spell that seals me here. Damn, if that was not the case, I wouldst be free from this Hel!"

Hearing this, Sigurd responded. "While I may not know a spell, but there may be a way."

"Like?"

"Brynhildr, can thou wait here a little longer?"

"So, thou art going to leave me."

"I intend to return."

Brynhildr furrowed her brows and scoffed. "Well, what I cannot dost anything in my state. If thou hast a solution, then go and find it."

"Before I go," Sigurd then took out Andvaranut and put it in Brynhildr's hand.

"A ring?"

"Something to remember me by and to remind thou I will return."

"That is utterly idiotic," Brynhildr snorted with annoyance.

Sigurd climbed out the window. "I vow to return, Brynhildr! And I will get thou out of here!"

"As thou sayeth," Brynhildr shrugged as she examined the ring. When he left, she lay on her bed and meticulously gazed at the ring. "Such an idiotic but interesting man thou art, Sigurd."

With that, Sigurd climbed down the flaming mountain and mounted Grani. They rode off as they searched far and wide for a mystical countermeasure to remove the barrier spell.

Sigurd searched far and wide across the country for powerful magic that could nullify barriers. Along his journey, he stopped by local shops for countermagic. However, shops had any available and others turned him away warning him to avoid meddling with witchcraft.

However, one innkeeper informed Sigurd to see Gunnar and Gudrun at the Castle of Nibelung. Rumor has it the family there has expertise in magical arts and could provide Sigurd insight on nullifying barriers.

Midgard/Castle of Nibelung

After a couple of days of travel, Sigurd and Grani arrived at their destination. He noticed a horse stable. He asked the stable master if he could hold Grani for him. When the stable master informed him the stable was reserved for the royal family, he queried if Gunnar and Gudrun were available.

"Thou wish to request an audience with the King Gunnar?" The stable master, a short and rotund man garbed in dull gray and olive green clothing, walked a horse into a stable. "The king is busy to listen to wanderers like thyself. Thou might want to leave."

Sigurd pleaded. "I need to inquire if he knows sorcery."

"What foolishness. The king dost not know magic!" The rotund man arrogantly laughed.

"But, an innkeeper informed me…"

"What thou heard is nothing but hearsay from the commoners. Now, unless thou wish to sell thy horse, then leave."

Sigurd frowned. "I dost not wish to sell Grani! Thou must see thy king!"

"What is the commotion here?" A man with a thick accent chimed in, startling the stable master.

"Oh! Thy highness, this wanderer just came and started causing problems! He wishes to leave his horse in thy stable!"

Sigurd pivoted and faced King Gunnar, a sandy blonde-haired man with a fair complexion with signs of red around his neck and cheek lines. He stood 5'8 feet tall. His hair was fairly long and neck length. He wore dark green armor, yellow clothing underneath, and armored boots. He looked less like a traditional king and more like a knight. His purple eyes were his most distinguishing features, which Sigurd noticed.

"Thy highness. Yes, I am a wanderer who hath traveled far," Sigurd bowed. "My apologies, but I wish to request an audience with thee."

"With me? Whatever for, wanderer?" Gunnar asked in a lofty tone.

"I heard thou know magic. Perhaps spells that nullify barriers?"

"Thou still on that nonsense, boy?" The stable master scoffed, prompting King Gunnar to beckon him with a hand.

"Leave us."

"As thou wish, thy highness." With that, the stable master left them.

"What is thy name, wanderer?" The young king queried, his purple eyes meticulously gazing over the warrior.

"I am Sigurd. As I said, I am a wanderer and recently faced a dilemma. There is a barrier that I hast trouble with that is preventing me from saving a maiden."

"Barrier? And a maiden thou say?"

"Yes, and I cannot free her until that barrier comes down."

Hearing this, King Gunnar mulled over Sigurd's story and considered helping him. However, he needed to extract more details that Sigurd was leaving out.

"Where is this maiden being held captive?"

"Hast thou heard of Skatalundr on Mount Hindarfjall?"

"The flaming castle?"

"Yes."

"So, there is a maiden there?"

"Yes, and I was able to meet her."

King Gunnar rubbed his chin. "And how were thou able to pass those flames? I heard anyone who tried to climb those fiery walls perished in the flames."

"I am immune to flames, thy highness."

"Was this due to some magic?"

"No, the blood of a dragon."

"Interesting. Sigurd, thy story intrigues me. Come. Follow me," King Gunnar invited Sigurd to his palace. He then pointed to the stable master. "He is an honored guest. Please ensure his horse is well taken care of."

"Oh, yes, of course, thy highness!" The stable master approached Grani, who snorted and neighed wildly.

"Grani, behave thyself while I am away," Sigurd instructed his steed. He followed King Gunnar passed the front gates of his castle.

The Castle of Nibelung looked like any medieval castle for its time. Its dark gray matched the color of the sky, which has been that way for the most part. Sigurd noticed several serfs working on their king's estate. Two guards garbed in knight gear greeted their king and granted him reentry along with Sigurd.

When they entered Gunnar's royal chamber, Sigurn scanned the royal decorum that covered the grimy and gray stone walls. He faced Gunnar's throne. It was a silver throne covered with royal purple and gold cloth draped over the armrests and seat.

Before speaking with King Gunnar, Sigurd noticed someone walking in. It was an alluring young woman.

"Oh. Nice of thou to join us, dearest Gudrun," Gunnar addressed the woman's presence.

"This is…?" Sigurd asked as Gunnar answered immediately.

"This is my sister Gudrun."

Sigurd faced Gudrun. She had a fair complexion like her brother but lacked the red he had on his neck and face. She had long back length sandy blonde hair and purple eyes much like her brother. Her choice of clothing was a purple and yellow gown. A silver neck collar adorned her neckline. She wore silver bracelets. She had on black hair bindings and black lipgloss. Standing opposite from her brother, she was a few inches shorter than Gunnar, standing roughly 5'6 feet tall.

"Good day to you." Gudrun gave a curtsy bow and spoke with a similar accent to her brother's.

"Yes, of course," Sigurd returned a bow. As he raised his head, he noticed Gudrun had a distant look on her face. And her manner of speech was slightly off. The pronounced use of 'you' threw him off.

"Sigurd?" Gunnar addressed him.

"Yes?"

"Thou wish to ask about spells to solve thy barrier situation?"

"Oh yes!" Sigurd said as he couldn't get his eyes off Gudrun.

"Dost my sister distract thee, Sigurd?"

"No, I am fine."

Gunnar sighed. "No, I understand my sister can act and speak a little… oddly, but I can tell her to leave us be?"

"No, it is fine."

The king shrugged his shoulders. "Well, as thou wish. Care to remind me of thy situation?"

When Sigurd explained about Brynhildr and the burning castle, Gunnar and Gudrun grew invested in his story. Gunnar seemed the most interested as he was already formulating an idea of how to bring down this barrier himself and take Brynhildr.

"Wow, a maiden trapped in a burning castle! Sounds like quite a dilemma! Isn't that right, Gunnar?" Gudrun turned to her brother.

"Indeed, and we wouldst be happy to help thee, Sigurd."

"Then, thou will show me some spells?"

"Yes, but it will be nightfall soon. Thou can rest in one of our quarters for the evening."

Gudrun nodded, smiling with her eyes closed. "Yes, you look very tired, Sigurd! A long night's rest is in order!"

"I can grant thee one demonstration, Sigurd," Gunnar said. With the snap of a finger, he produced a small purple flame in his palm.

Sigurd found himself entranced by Gunnar's spell demonstration. "Thou were not lying about using spells! Amazing!"

Gunnar chuckled. "My skills are modest at best. Now, Gudrun, her spells are superior to my own."

"Really?" Sigurd asked as he watched Gudrun produce a bigger green flame in her palm. "Incredible!"

Gudrun seemed half-enthused. "This is nothing for me. I can dispel barriers, too."

"Can thee?"

"Why yes. I am teaching my brother to dispel barriers."

Sigurd sighed happily. "I cannot thank thee two enough."

"We can discuss this more in the morning. Gudrun, wouldst thou be kind to show Sigurd to one of our guest quarters?" King Gunnar asked his sister.

"Of course! Right this way, Sigurd!" Gudrun offered as she walked Sigurd to his room.

Sitting down on his throne, Gunnar got all the entail he needed to know where to go and retrieve the maiden. However, he couldn't just go. The maiden was awakened by Sigurd.

A devious thought crossed the king's head. He considered using a transformation spell he learned from his sister. What if he went in disguise as Sigurd? He thought this long and hard.

Gudrun opened the door and invited Sigurd into his room. Sigurd's eyes fell on a bed covered in white and royal purple sheets. There was a window opposite from the bedside. The stone walls are as grimy as the rest of the palace. There was a thick piece of wood on the side wall. Gudrun cast fire to the wood to give light to the room.

"There. Your room is all set."

"Thank thee," Sigurd said with gratitude. He sat on the bed.

"If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask. I will tell the guards here you are a guest."

"Yes, thank thee."

As Gudrun turned to leave, Sigurd stopped her.

"Wait."

"Yes, Sigurd?"

"I-I was wondering how thou and thy brother learned spells?"

"Oh, it was passed down by our family. Our mother was a powerful magic user."

Sigurd nodded. "I see now."

"Is there anything else you'd like to ask me?"

"Thy manner of speech is very… unique. I never heard those few words thou said."

"Yes, my speech is unique. My brother doesn't like when I speak like that, because it makes me sound like a foreigner."

"Like a foreigner from a far-off place?"

"Yes, something like that," Gudrun said, turning her back to Sigurd. "Well, I think you should rest now. We have much to discuss in the morning."

"Thou art right. I am almost dead tired," Sigurd yawned as he lay in bed.

"Good night to you, Sigurd," Gudrun then shut the door behind her. Lifting her right hand, a flicker of green flames came out of the palm. She watched Sigurd asleep through the flames. "Let's see if you'll remember anything about that maiden by morning."

The fire on the lit torch in Sigurd's room glowed with a translucent green light. The green light from the fire filled the entire room. Sigurd wasn't awake to see the fire's light shroud him. Sigurd didn't feel any burning pain. Instead, he felt lightheaded. He didn't realize it, but his memories of his meeting with Brynhildr were being transferred over to Gudrun's hand flame.

Gazing over her flame, Gudrun's soft, demure features became fiendish and sharp.

"Gunnar, I have his memories of that maiden," Gudrun presented him with her flame.

"Good. Let me see."

As she approached his side, Gudrun turned the flame into a ball of light. She shoved the orb through his head. Gunnar felt a quick jolt as all of Sigurd's memories immersed him.

"My spell will also make him forget about his meeting with that maiden Brynhildr."

"Yes, his memories are all here! I can see the maiden's image," Gunnar smirked cunningly as he stood. Then, he used his transform spell and turned himself into Sigurd, even right down to the warrior's scent. "With this, even his noble steed will see me as Sigurd. Good work, Gudrun."

Gudrun took a bow. "Anything to be of service to my brother… no, my king."

"Now, to see if thy magic can dispel this barrier, Gudrun."

With that, Gunnar, under the guise of Sigurd, headed off and took Grani with him toward Hindarfjall.

Midgard/Hindarfjall/Skatalundr

It had been a week since Sigurd left Brynhildr inside the castle. Try as she might, Brynhildr spent much of her time attempting to break the barrier containing her. Her efforts were in vain. She became a caged animal just as Odin wanted.

All she could think about was carrying out her desired revenge against the Allfather, but she needed Sigurd to help her. She kept the ring he gave her to remember him by.

"Where the fukka art thou?" Brynhildr hissed as she closed her fingers over the ring.

"Brynhildr! I hast returned!" Sigurd called out.

Hearing the wanderer's voice, Brynhildr looked out the window and saw Sigurd riding Grani in mid-air to avoid the flames.

"I hadst almost given up on thee, Sigurd!"

"Hold on. I came back with a spell to bring this barrier down." And with that, he invoked an advanced spell passed over by Gudrun. Purple light formed in his hands as he shattered the barrier with a beam.

Taken aback, Brynhildr tried to move forward. To her surprise, she was able to jump out the window and land on Grani's back. She sat behind Sigurd.

"Yes! At long last, I am free!" Brynhildr hollered loudly. "Fukka thee, old man!"

Gunnar in the back of his mind was baffled by this maiden's barbaric use of language.

"Well, where to, Sigurd?"

"Back to King Gunnar's palace. He and his sister taught me this spell. Now hang on, Brynhildr." Sigurd beckoned Grani back to the Castle of Nibelung.

"I still hast the ring."

"Ring?"

She showed him Andvaranaut on her right ring finger.

"Oh, yes. Good, hold onto it." He eyed the ring on her finger and looked away.

"Understand just because I hast this ring, it doth not mean we can marry. Thou will train me so I can get my strength back and that king will teach me spells. That way, my revenge against Odin will be realized."

"Yes, as thou sayeth…" However, Gunnar had other ideas in mind for the former Valkyrie.

Midgard/Castle of Nibelung

Upon returning to his castle, Sigurd returned with Brynhildr. After getting by his guards, Sigurd left Grani with the stable master. He introduced Brynhildr to the stable master.

"How dost art thou, young lady?" The stable master asked as Brynhildr sniffed him. "Hmm?"

"Oh, dost not mind her. She is probably very hungry. I better get her into the castle."

"Perhaps thou shouldst. Have a good evening," the stable master took Grani away to the stables.

Sigurd turned to Brynhildr. "Why thou art smelling him? Doth his scent bother thee?"

Brynhildr frowned and said nothing. She walked and followed Sigurd into the castle.

While escorting the Valkyrie through a hallway, Brynhildr meticulously surveyed her new surroundings. However, this grimy and dark atmosphere of the medieval castle brought back unwanted memories of her Midgard birthplace. She remembered living in a familiar setting growing up. She even recalled the damaged property she caused to her father's castle and her delinquent actions giving her father many grievances.

Brynhildr paused as she stared at Gunnar's throne. A frown adorned her face.

"What is wrong, Brynhildr?" Sigurd queried to the Blood Valkyrie.

"Looking at this throne brings me discomfort," Brynhildr scowled at the throne.

"Is it because it reminds thee of Allfather's throne?"

"Not just the fukka old man, but my father, the very same man who brought me into this world."

Sigurd turned and addressed Brynhildr. "Didst he wrong thee?"

"I brought him much grief. He relinquished me to Odin. Neither man could tame me. No man hast successfully calmed my wrathful spirit," Brynhildr pivoted over to Sigurd. "How will thou tame me?"

Sigurd wore a calm and collected smile. "Because unlike them, I hast patience."

"We shalt see." Brynhildr then paused again as her nose seemed to twitch.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, but I smell a stench that reeks of rot. I dost not know why. It was the same scent from that stable master."

"Perhaps a leftover meal someone neglected to finish. Fear not, they have swine that devour food left behind."

Brynhildr turned away and scoffed. "Where to now?"

"Well, King Gunnar sayeth he would leave thee some clothes to wear."

"Oh yes?"

As Sigurd walked Brynhildr to his sleeping quarters, he showed the Blood Valkyrie a white gown lying on his bed. Brynhildr eyed the garment and snarled.

"Thou not propose I wear this filth, Sigurd?!" Brynhildr turned, shooting an incensed glare at him.

Taken aback by the Valkyrie's fury, Sigurd backed away. "Calm down! It is all the king could borrow from his sister!"

"Sister?"

"Yes, sister indeed," Gudrun's voice interjected, cutting into their conversation. Her presence drew Sigurd and Brynhildr's attention. "Ah, so this is that Valkyrie you were referring to, Sigurd?" Wearing a casual smile, Gudrun walked up to Brynhildr. "I must say you look ordinary for a Valkyrie."

Scowling, Brynhildr jerked herself away from Gudrun.

"C'mon now. I mean you no harm," Gudrun smiled. "I'm Gudrun, King Gunnar's sister. It's a pleasure to have you here. What I mean by ordinary is you don't seem divine."

Before Brynhildr could retort, Sigurd interjected. "Sorry, Gudrun, but she hast been through asleep in solitude in that castle. How about we grant her privacy to put on the new garments?"

Gudrun nodded. "But, of course." She turned and bowed. "Please excuse me and Sigurd, Brynhildr. We shall leave you to get dressed."

With that, Sigurd and Gudrun walked out leaving Brynhildr to disrobe and put on the latter's dress. Brynhildr faced the door being shut and furrowed her brows. She took a minute to discern the rotting smell she sensed earlier and the odd behavior Sigurd seemed to exude when he brought her into this castle. Sigurd seemed a little too familiar with a castle he had just discovered.

With a shrug, Brynhildr removed her chainmail clothing and put on Gudrun's dress. She walked over to a mirror and checked over the dress. She made a disgusted look on her face, conveying her real feelings about wearing a dress. It also brought back more painful memories of her childhood living in her father's castle. She ripped every dress the king's servants coerced her to wear. She wanted nothing to do with the dresses now.

And she was prepared to tear off Gudrun's dress.

Then, she stopped when she heard the door creak open. The Blood Valkyrie felt a cold shiver as she glanced over her right shoulder. She spotted Gudrun from the corner of her eye.

"Well, how about that? My dress does fit you. That's wonderful!" Gudrun said in a radiant tone.

Becoming irritated with Gudrun's tone, Brynhildr turned away and scowled. Undeterred, Gudrun approached Brynhildr.

"Now, now, there's no need to be shy. I think you look absolutely lovely in my dress."

"I dost not need thy praise."

The woman calmly whispered next to her. "Ohh, shh. I get it. You're too proud to consider yourself beautiful. Aren't you?"

"And why dost thou speak in this manner? It is nothing I hast heard of."

"Sigurd said the same thing. He asked if I was a foreigner, but I was born and raised on this land."

As Brynhildr turned away, Gudrun leaned over and grabbed the Valkyrie's arms. She was mesmerized by how firm and toned Brynhildr's arms were in comparison to her own.

"Wow, I'm quite impressed, maiden. Your arms are quite hard and certainly built for combat. Tell me how you got this buff, battle maiden. How unbecoming of you to be wearing my dress just so my brother can have his way with you…!" Before she could finish, Brynhildr whipped around and fiercely roared at her.

"THOU HAST THE FUKKA NERVE TO INSULT ME?! I WILL SHOW THEE!" Brynhildr savagely roared, exhibiting less than lady-like qualities much to Gudrun's surprise.

As Brynhildr lunged for Gudrun ready to strangle her, Sigurd intervened and seized her from behind. With a smile, Gudrun watched Gunnar, still under his Sigurd disguise, pulling Brynhildr away.

"UNHAND ME! I SHALT KILL THIS FUKKA BIKKJE FOR DISRESPECTING ME!" The Blood Valkyrie furiously bellowed while flailing her arms and kicking her feet into the air.

"Thou dost not want to kill Gudrun, Brynhildr! Easy now! We shalt go to the royal quarters!"

While 'Sigurd' carried off Brynhildr, Gudrun walked out of the room with a composed smile on her face. When that calm smirk became a conniving one, Brynhildr noted this and grew suspicious. Her nose had been picking up this revolting stench. Then, there was Sigurd's odd behavior, Gudrun's offputting nature, and the absence of King Gunnar. Brynhildr suspected that something about this environment didn't sit right with her.

"Excuse me, but the king wishes to see thee alone," Sigurd said, leaving Brynhildr alone in the royal chamber. He walked away and headed up a stairway. As he used his change magic, he turned back to King Gunnar and returned to meet with Brynhildr.

Brynhildr scanned Gunnar. "Thou must be…"

"King Gunnar, I am happy to meet thee."

"Thou sister is a troublesome bikkje. If she crossed me again, I shalt kill her."

"Well… let us not get physical and violent. That is unbecoming of a maiden as beautiful as thee."

Hearing this, Brynhildr savagely growled, which shook him.

"Or, perhaps thou prefer to be called 'mighty and powerful'?

"I was once Asgard's mightiest Valkyrie until that fukka old man took my power and turned me mortal. He then cast me here to be saved by a Midgardian man."

"Sigurd, I presume?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

"Thou shouldst not speak poorly of such a valiant man."

Brynhildr growled irritably. "Like I give a fukka."

"And that is ruffian talk. We will not have that here…" To which, Brynhildr snarled again, causing Gunnar to flinch. "Or, I shalt be silent and let thee speak?"

"I know Sigurd came here to learn magic. I wish to learn magic from thee, so I may find a spell that restores my power and then I can take my vengeance on Odin!" Brynhildr announced her ultimate plan as clear as day.

Having heard Brynhildr's intentions, Gunnar smiled. "Well then. Thou came to the right person and place. After all, Sigurd learned how to dispel that barrier that kept thee inside that castle. I may have magic to not only restore thy power but to destroy Odin."

"Thou can pass that knowledge to me?"

"Surely I can, Brynhildr. Let us start thy training."

For the past few days, Gunnar taught Brynhildr some basic magic attacks. Brynhildr learned a few attack, defense, and counter spells to compensate for the loss of her divine powers. Despite the setbacks, the Blood Valkyrie learned to better utilize the spells and this helped to restore some of her lost powers.

During their magic duel, Brynhildr conjured a barrier to stop Gunnar's light beam. When Gunnar tossed a fiery blast, Brynhildr rolled to the side, conjured a knife in her hand, and ran up to put the blade to the king's throat. Two guards witnessed this and moved in to stop her, but Gunnar beckoned them off.

"It is fine. This is just a practice duel," Gunnar grunted as he felt Brynhidr's knife pressed against his throat. "That will be all for today, Brynhildr. Well done."

Withdrawing her knife, Brynhildr chuckled. "If thou hadst been the fukka old man, I wouldst hast cut thy throat open."

"Surely thou wouldst hast," the king sat down on his throne. "Thou can leave now and rest in thy quarters."

Brynhildr walked away and headed for her room. As she left the royal chamber, Gunnar rubbed his throat.

"She can be quite rough."

Having spent a couple of days in the Castle of Nibelung, Brynhildr reminisced bad memories of her previous castle life. The hallways were as dark and grimy as her father's old castle. It has been ages since her father handed her off to Odin. By now, her father, King Buðli, has long since passed, leaving Brynhildr as the one who could've taken her father's throne, but those days were behind her. Brynhildr sought only one throne: Odin's.

"Only a matter of time. This foolish king and Sigurd are only furthering my goal. Sooner than later, I shalt not require their help anymore," the Blood Valkyrie chuckled as she conjured a red ball of magical properties. "No, perhaps I can allow Sigurd to accompany me. I will not be able to kill the old man on my own." Then, the warrior's name reminded her. "Speaking of, where hast Sigurd been? The last I saw him, he brought me to see the king. What hast thee been doing, Sigurd?"

With that, Brynhildr scored the halls in search of Sigurd. When she headed for Gunnar's quarters, she paused when she heard a loud moaning from the opposite way. She veered away from the king's doors as her keen ears heard moaning exuding sensual pleasure.

"That sounds just like…" Her nose then picked up the scent of two people. "No, no!" She stormed the hall and headed straight for the doors leading into Gudrun's quarters. She crashed and broke down the doors, catching two individuals in the middle of sexual intercourse.

The Blood Valkyrie's eyes widened when she caught Gudrun mounted on top of Sigurd. Both were fully nude. Sigurd's hardened penis was inside Gudrun's vagina. Sigurd had ceased thrusting himself inside Gudrun. They turned and faced Brynhildr, whose face displayed anger and horror. Sigurd had a look of pained discontent. On the other hand, Gudrun appeared shameless in her actions and smiled.

"Wh-WHAT THE HEL IS THIS?! SIGURD, WHAT ART THOU DOING WITH THIS HORA?!"

"Brynhildr, it is not what thou think! She hast been forcing herself onto me and raping me!"

"And thou can not fight back?!"

"She hast subdued me with magic! I couldst not move my body for a moment!"

Gritting her teeth, Brynhildr quickly shot an intense glare toward Gudrun, who maintained her smile. Gudrun gave an incessant laugh.

"THOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY, FUKKA BIKKJE?! GET OFF HIM!"

Seemingly ignoring Brynhildr's demand, Gudrun grabbed Sigurd's cheeks and slapped him.

"Oh, but I can't. He's been a pleasure to toy with! Sigurd has given me all the pleasure I can ask for!"

Clenching her fists, Brynhildr rushed Gudrun and grabbed her. Brynhildr pushed Gudrun off the bed and pinned her down, readily putting her knife to the rapist's throat.

"I WILL FUKKA KILL THEE!"

Giving a conniving smirk, Gudrun licked the knife and taunted Brynhildr. "Go ahead. Cut my throat and spill my blood all over the floor. Just know my brother will find this out and you'll be executed."

"THOU HAST PUSHED ME TOO FAR!"

Just then, Gunnar heard the savage roars of Brynhildr from his sister's quarters and beckoned two guards to follow him. Once they arrived, they caught Brynhildr with a knife to Gudrun's throat.

"Oh, look who's here…" Gudrun giggled in a mocking singing tone.

"Gudrun?! Brynhildr?! Guards, seize Brynhildr!" Gunnar demanded as the guards hurried over to grab the Blood Valkyrie, but Brynhildr slashed her knife around to ward off the guards. "Brynhildr, what is the meaning of this barbaric act?!"

"Thy sister was raping Sigurd! I know, I saw it with my own eyes!"

Upon hearing Brynhildr's testimony, Gunnar turned to Gudrun on the floor and veered over to Sigurd covering himself.

"Thou were having intercourse with my sister, Sigurd?!"

"Thy sister forced herself in here and violated me using her magic!"

Gudrun got off the floor still shamelessly nude. "No, I came here to check on him, but then Sigurd forced himself onto me and raped me! I even cried for help!"

Brynhildr scowled. "THOU ART LYING!" She lunged for Gudrun, but Gunnar seized the Blood Valkyrie and dragged her out while kicking and screaming. "SHE RAPED HIM LIKE THE HORA SHE IS!"

"Gudrun, leave the room now!" Gunnar ordered his sister out. He pointed to one guard. "Thou escort Gudrun away!" He then motioned for the other guard to stay with Sigurd. "After I am done with her, I will return to further question thee, Sigurd!"

As Gunnar took Brynhildr to his quarters, he closed the doors behind them. He turned around and saw Brynhildr throwing her knife at a mirror.

"Thy sister is a fukka hora who needs to be disciplined!"

Gunnar sighed. "Yes, well, if anyone else needs to be disciplined, it is thee, Brynhildr."

"Me? Surely thou art not comparing me to that hora! I am a proud Valkyrie!"

"Were a proud Valkyrie! Thou art not anymore! Thou art much as a hora as my sister. No, thou art much lower. Thou art a savage beast."

Brynhildr growled. "Compare me to a beast? Fine, but I am no hora."

Hearing this, Gunnar smirked. "No, but thou shalt be my hora." With that, he conjured a spell that quickly paralyzed Brynhildr, causing her to freeze in place.

"What is this…?! Release me now!"

Gunnar sighed. "I can not do that, Brynhildr. I can not discipline my sister, because she can not help herself. I hast tried everything to stop her. But, thou interest me more, Brynhildr. Now that thou hast told me of thy upbringing, I can use thy power." He walked over and grabbed Brynhildr's cheeks. He then grabbed her jaw and gave a conniving smirk. "The moment thou entered my palace, thou hast become my property." He leaned over and kissed Brynhildr's lips.

Brynhildr tried to bite Gunnar, but the magic binding her sealed her mouth shut. She was unable to speak, finding herself at Gunnar's merciless kissing and groping. Continuing to lock lips with the Blood Valkyrie, Gunnar grabbed Brynhildr's left breast and tore off a section of the dress, exposing her breast. Brynhildr couldn't believe what was happening. The once strong warrior was reduced to being a king's play toy. Had he not put a paralysis spell on her, Brynhildr would've easily butchered this rapist king.

As Gunnar shoved Brynhildr onto his bed, he mounted the Blood Valkyrie and sucked on her exposed breast. She screamed furiously inside her mind as the man had his way with her. As if Gunnar didn't sink any lower, he slowly shoved his hand toward Brynhildr's crotch and grabbed it. Brynhildr could feel the king fingering inside her as she started spilling vaginal juices all over his bedsheets.

At that moment, the king noticed the ring on Brynhildr's finger. It was the very same Andvaranaut, which Sigurd gave her.

"Yes, that ring thou mentioned. How about I hold onto it for thee? Since slaves art not meant to wear jewelry!" As Gunnar reached for the ring, Andvaranaut gave off a blinding glow that stunned him.

The light from Andvaranaut broke the paralysis spell placed over Brynhildr. When this happened, an unbridled fury exploded within Brynhildr. She summoned a counterspell that knocked Gunnar off her. Brynhildr slowly regained her bearings and covered her exposed breast. The Blood Valkyrie momentarily stared at Andvaranaut on her finger, realizing this ring had the power to break spells, which she hadn't realized it could do. She mulled over why she couldn't have used it to break free from her castle imprisonment, but that was neither here nor there.

Setting her sights on the fallen king, Brynhildr then conjured a red magic ball and hit Gunnar with it, sending him crashing against a wall. She conjured a small sword and hit Gunnar's left shoulder, wounding the king. Brynhildr lunged at and pinned her foot against the sword, shoving it through his shoulder.

"I SHALT KILL THEE FOR VIOLATING ME, GUNNAR!" She roared in his voice.

"Pl-Please do not kill me! If I die, my kingdom, my people, my sister… all will fall into ruin!"

A furious scowl adorned Brynhildr's face. "Thou shouldst hast thought that before violating me, Gunnar!" With that, she produced a knife. "And thou shouldst hast never taught me magic because now I can use this to kill thee with before I confront Odin."

"Brynhildr, I… I didst not mean to… I was merely testing thee…"

"Test me?! Violating me was a test?! Surely thou art jesting. Gunnar!"

"Spare me, please…"

Gritting her teeth, Brynhildr quickly slashed Gunnar's throat with her knife, causing blood to spill out and soak the floor mat. Gunnar grabbed his bleeding throat and gagged.

"No...Now thou hast done it… Brynhildr…"

Confused by what he meant, Brynhildr noticed the entire room darken. The rotten stench she smelled before returned, but the stench was far more nauseating and covered the air more. Brynhildr covered her nose and mouth as the revolting smell got the best of her. She ran over to the window and saw the entire kingdom's atmosphere change before her eyes. Whatever spell had been placed over the kingdom seemed to become undone, unveiling the horrid truth.

That horrid truth was this kingdom was already dead before Sigurd's arrival. The entire townsfolk outside the kingdom transformed into ghastly and horrific-looking walking and rotted corpses. Brynhildr had seen such entities. They were reanimated corpses of the Asgardians called Proto-Draugar.

"No, it cannot be…" Brynhildr paled in shock. "That wouldst explain the rotten stench when I came here."

"Heheh, now thou hast learned the truth…" Gunnar chortled and coughed blood. "Yes, this kingdom was long dead before thy arrival; The people here all died of a plague that killed all but myself and Gudrun… thou and Sigurd will not escape here alive..." He gave a low chuckle as Brynhildr stormed out of the room.

As she left, Gunnar himself vanished into thin air.

Upon arriving outside Sigurd's room, she saw the warrior fully clothed and fighting the guard with Gram. She smelled the same horrid stench from the guard, who became a Proto-Draugr. The walking corpse let out a ghoulish moan and swung down his sword. Sigurd countered with Gram.

"Sigurd, we must leave now!" Brynhildr called out.

"Yes, I know, but what trickery is this?!"

"We were fooled! This place was already dead before we came here!"

"Then, the king must hast used his magic to hide this insidious truth from our eyes!" Sigurd quickly disarmed the Proto-Draugr and chopped its head off.

Brynhildr quickly seized Sigurd's hand. "Come! We must leave now!"

As the two ran down the hall, another Proto-Draugr came out of a corner and swung its sword at them. Brynhildr quickly produced a small sword to stop the reanimated corpse's attack. She then fired a light beam through the Proto-Draugr's torso, tearing it into two. After wiping out the Proto-Draugr and taking its broadsword, Brynhildr grabbed Sigurd and ran down the stairway into Gunnar's royal chamber. There they spotted the king's loyal subjects. All of them were reanimated corpses. The chamber was filled with the nauseating scent of rotted flesh, causing Brynhildr's strong smell to kick into overdrive. She collapsed and vomited on the floor. This prompted Sigurd to protect Brynhildr and slash at the group of Proto-Draugar.

"Brynhildr, can thou stand?!" Sigurd asked while swiping at and beheading several Proto-Draugar.

"I...I can now…" Brynhildr covered her nose and mouth. "The horrific smell from these creatures is too much to bear!"

Looking ahead, Sigurd pointed toward the hallway. "There! That is the way out into the stables!" He grabbed Brynhildr's hand and rushed toward their only way out.

On the way, they were sidetracked by the next most disgusting thing: a Proto-Draugr swine. Its skin, once brown, was puke green and yellow. Its eyes were white like egg shells and devoid of the life they once had. When it opened its mouth, maggots and insects spilled out onto the floor. Brynhildr and Sigurd kicked away at the creepy crawlers. The swine let out a ghoulish screech and lunged for Sigurd. Brynhildr conjured a barrier that stopped the swine from attacking them. Brynhildr and Sigurd quickly headed out toward the stables.

Upon arriving, they saw the stable master, now revealed as a Proto-Draugr. His complexion was sickly gray and half his face exposed his skull. Worms crawled inside the skull and poked out. The stable master gave a ghoulish moan and slowly walked toward the two. Sigurd quickly cut him down with Gram.

"These art not like the Draugar I hast seen before," Brynhildr noted the different characteristics these particular reanimated corpses gave off. "These art slow-moving and dost not roar much. The ones we Asgardians faced were fast and far more dangerous."

"Well, I am glad we art not facing those types. Now, where art thou, Grani?!" He whistled for his steed, who quickly came out of his stable. "Ah, there! Let us leave, Brynhildr!"

With that, Sigurd and Brynhildr hopped on Grani. As they departed, an army of the Proto-Draugar emerged in unison. They amassed like the infected plague they had been reduced to. The army consisted of townsfolk, serfs, knights, guards, and animals. Their ghoulish moans filled the air with dread and trepidation.

"Let us leave now, Grani," Sigurd muttered as Grani flew them off from the kingdom.

Casting one look at the Proto-Draugar-filled kingdom, Brynhildr looked away shuddering with disgust.

"Brynhildr, what happened? How didst thou expose this?"

"Gunnar. I killed Gunnar."

"Thou… what?!"

The Blood Valkyrie frowned. "It is as I said, I ended Gunnar's life and his death…"

"Everything we saw was all an illusion?"

Brynhildr nodded. "Yes, an illusion spell was put into place. He mentioned he and the hora art were the only ones not affected."

Upon hearing this, Sigurd bit his bottom lip. "Then, I wonder about Gudrun now."

Meanwhile, Gudrun, fully dressed in her gown, scoured past all of the Proto-Draugar. Not one of the reanimated corpses attempted to attack her. A few even followed her lead. Naturally, anyone would be utterly terrified in the presence of these undead creatures.

But, not Gudrun.

As she opened a door leading into the dungeons, Gudrun walked down a stairway into a barely lit dungeon. Once there, she saw Gunnar holding his slit throat and bleeding.

"Gudrun… they hast escaped…" He croaked and spilled blood from his mouth.

"And no surprise. Even an illusion version of you is useless, Gunnar," Gudrun evilly smirked as she tapped Gunnar's shoulder and made him vanish into thin air. Her eyes scanned the prison cell where 'Gunnar' once stood. She spotted the real Gunnar huddled in a corner and shivering fearfully. He was shown to be pale and malnourished from a lack of sunlight and food.

When Gudrun opened the prison door, Gunnar screamed fearfully. His screams didn't deter Gudrun. Instead, she incessantly giggled at her brother's terrified reaction to her. When she reached behind her. Gudrun took out a long whip, which suddenly silenced Gunnar.

"Now, brother. You screaming like that is too adorable," Gudrun chortled while slapping the whip on the floor.

"Thou hast deceived everyone who hast come here into thinking I am still king and all is well! But, that is far from the truth!"

Hearing this, Gudrun nodded and tapped her cheek. "Hmm, yes that's true. Anyone who has entered our property thinks you're still the king, but little did they know it was an illusion. As you already know, this whole kingdom was placed under my Illusion's Touch."

Hearing this, Gunnar growled. "THOU ART NOT MY SISTER! THOU ART A MONSTER! EVER SINCE THOU CAME INTO CONTACT WITH…!" Before he can finish, Gudrun cuts him off with a lash from her whip.

The whip made contact with Gunnar's chest. He rolled on the ground writhing in pain. When he rolled over, he exposed his back. His back showed numerous scars from being whipped by his sister.

"Now, let's not point any fingers here, Gunnar. Unless you want another taste of Attila the Hun's whip that our dear father acquired?" She heard him painfully groan. "You brought this on yourself thinking I'd idly sit by and let you do whatever you please," Gudrun responded with a sadistic grin on her face. "Once I came into contact with it, I became enlightened." She watched as her brother crawled away. She put her foot on his back and gripped the whip with her hands. "You know what else I did after coming into contact with this dark entity? I tested its power and used it to infect every one of your people and subjects with a terminal illness, taking the lives of everyone here, but you and me."

Hearing this, Gunnar shouted. "IT WAS THEE?!"

"Yes, and they all died as a result of this plague. But, I made sure to reanimate all your subjects and used my Illusion's Touch to make it seem like nothing happened. I concealed everything so nobody would notice. I even created a false illusion of you to occupy the throne in your place. As far as others outside this kingdom are concerned, you are still the king of Nibelung."

Gritting his teeth, the man stared into the gleefully sadistic eyes of the creature. The creature that once was his sister.

"Have you ever wondered why my manner of speech seems different from you and the others? It's all thanks to the dark entity, my dialogue has altered to suit my transformation once I've severed ties from this place."

"I will not permit thee to leave!" Gunnar shouted as he lunged for Gudrun, but she kicked his face and knocked him down.

"I do not need a useless sack of shit like you, brother." Gudrun sadistically grinned. With great timing, she heard the ghoulish groans of the Proto-Draugar entering the dungeon. "Oh, wonderful. Your subjects are here to see their king."

As he turned over on his side, Gunnar's face paled with fright as the Proto-Draugar, some of whom used to be his royal subjects, guards, and townsfolk, entered the dungeon. Their ghoulish moans filled the already dreary atmosphere with more dread. Gunnar's throat became dry as he was unable to properly speak but gave faint gasps.

"By the way, brother," Gudrun leaned over and whispered into his ear. "I could give a damn about our father's passing. He died a weak fool's death leaving a weaker fool for a successor to take his throne." She tilted her head and broadened her sadistic smile. "Oh, and I have no interest in inheriting the throne from you, brother. This kingdom is already dead."

"Thou bikkje…!" He spat on her dress.

"Now, that wasn't very nice, brother. Oh well, there's nothing left for me here." She held the back of Gunnar's head, grabbing a handful of his hair. "I have to thank Sigurd and Brynhildr. Thanks to their meddling, I finally have the chance to leave this corpse-filled kingdom behind me. And thanks to your illusion, I made an interesting discovery. Want to know what it is? Hmmm?"

Shutting her off, Gunnar cursed behind clenched teeth.

"Brynhildr has a powerful ring that undid your illusion's paralysis spell. Now, I must have that ring. And that's good enough reason to leave this wretched place!" Gudrun declared her impending departure in a gleeful tone. "Well, brother, it's been fun, but this is where we part ways." She then ripped open Gunnar's pants, revealing the man's penis and testicles. "Here's something to remember me by." She took out a knife.

"What art thou planning to do…?! What art thou…?! GUDRUN, STOP! STOP AT ONCE!" Gunnar screamed with horror as Gudrun shoved the knife into his crotch. She quickly carved the blade through his crotch and horrifically castrated his testicles off. What followed were the most ear-piercing, blood-curdling screams enough to make the boldest of men wince and cry.

The ghoulish moans from the Proto-Draugar were drowned out by Gunnar's screams. Crying with tears, Gunnar stared fearfully at his sister. Gudrun knelt next to him seemingly unfazed by the wretched stench coming from his wound. Gudrun then cupped his mouth shut and placed a finger to her lips, telling him to 'hush'. Then, she pinned him against the wall and slit his throat with the knife. After that, she kicked him to the side and wiped the man's blood from her knife.

Watching Gunnar writhe in agony and twitch with blood spilling from his throat, she was seemingly not satisfied.

"No, no, this won't do." She then cast a spell and conjured maggots to appear on Gunnar's testicles and neck. "There. That'll do. Now eat up, my flesh-eating pretties."

Smelling the fresh meat presented for them, the maggots proceeded to devour Gunnar's testicles and dug into his neck wound. Gunnar's dreadful screams once again filled the room until they ultimately ceased. The maggots that devoured the neck wound ate so much of it that Gunnar's own head fell off and hit the ground. Gunnar's mouth still twitched, giving inaudible movements as if he were still screaming in gruesome agony.

Turning around, Gudrun opened the door for the Proto-Draugar to enter.

"Ok, it's chowtime, sweeties!" Gudrun announced as the reanimated corpses slowly entered the prison cell.

The Proto-Draugar piled over the king's corpse and started tearing into the body. A few tore off his limbs and others dug their fingers into the corpse's flesh, ripping it open to spill Gunnar's entrails. The Proto-Draugar happily devoured their king like a full-course meal. Then, a Proto-Draugr pig entered the cell and headed straight for Gunnar's maggot-filled head. The swine grotesquely crushed the king's head between its jaws as if it were a pumpkin. The swine then lapped up the maggots, the brain matter, the eyeballs, and the skull pieces of the former king. They devoured their king until nothing was left, but a few bones.

Upon arriving outside the castle, Gudrun raised both hands. In her right, she conjured her green flames. In her left, she summoned her brother's purple flames.

"Let it all burn," Gudrun smirked as she burned everything, including the reanimated corpses and the kingdom. As she left the kingdom and its subjects to burn, Gudrun placed her personal belongings in a satchel, including the whip and a grimoire.

The former princess of Nibelung set off to find the ones who escaped her illusion trap.

Having escaped a great distance from the castle, Grani landed Brynhildr and Sigurd between a forest and an open plain. There was enough of a forested spot for Brynhildr and Sigurd to rest after enduring that horrific experience. Sigurd sat on a large stone and set Gram down. Brynhildr brought Grani over next to a pond, letting the horse drink.

"That truly happened, didst it not?" Sigurd queried Brynhildr, wondering if they had been experiencing the same nightmare.

"It was real, Sigurd. Dost not even deny what thou saw was a dream. What we saw was real. What we saw before was an illusion created by Gunnar and his hora sister."

"How couldst I be a fool to fall for such deceit?"

Brynhildr scowled with irritation in her tone. "Thou dost not have senses as refined as mine. The moment I stepped into that castle, I sensed something was off. While Gunnar still managed to conceal much of the smell, I couldst pick up on the horrid stench."

"And thou didst not do anything?"

"I wanted to be confirmed and so I spent time investigating the castle," Brynhildr noted Sigurd smiling. "What? Thou find something funny?!" She snarled, furiously clenching her teeth at him.

Sigurd genuinely chortled. "I am happy we art still alive. That is why I am happy."

Brynhildr frowned. "Thou art annoying me, Sigurd."

"Sorry."

There was silence among the two. That momentarily silence was quelled by Grani's audible snorts. Grani trotted toward the nearest bush, leaving the two alone to converse.

"Listen," Sigurd got up as he approached Brynhildr, who hissed and jerked her hands away from him. "What?"

"Nothing."

"Didst something happen with thee and Gunnar?"

"No!"

As he discerned Brynhidr's perturbed look, Sigurd furrowed his brows. "He didst something to thee. Didst he not?"

"That is none of thy business!"

Sigurd knelt down in front of Brynhildr. "Thou can be honest with me. After all, thou saw what Gudrun didst with me. She raped me… which I admit is a scar I will sadly carry with me."

Hearing this from Sigurd, Brynhildr sighed. "Gunnar… he raped me. I dost not wish to tell anymore. But, I didst kill him for violating me!"

Clenching his fists, Sigurd scowled. "That bastard. No, thou didst right ending his life. I just wish I hadst the fortitude to stop Gunnar. I shouldst hast killed her."

Brynhildr gave a mocking chuckle. "Thou can slay a dragon, but a mere woman? She didst not look like a threat to me. She probably seduced thee. After all, that hora is still a good-looking woman. A normal man wouldst been entranced by her beautiful looks…"

"Except she used a spell to put me to sleep and took advantage of me."

"It dost not matter now. It is over," the Blood Valkyrie said.

"Perhaps, but our wounds can be healed," Sigurd said as he patted Brynhildr's shoulder.

"How?"

"Dost thou trust me?"

Brynhildr mulled over the man's inquiry. Thinking long and hard, she responded well. "Yes. Thou art going to help me restore my power."

"So, thou can take thy revenge on the 'fukka old man', right?"

Brynhildr openly smiled. "Yes! Thou remembered!"

"How can I forget? I hath nothing else to lose now I am just a wanderer. I wouldst like to see Asgard for myself."

"Heheh, I knew I couldst count on thee strength, Sigurd, slayer of dragons."

"Well, I only killed one."

"One or a hundred. It dost not matter! Thy art no ordinary man! I trust in thy strength to help me overthrow that fukka old man!" Brynhildr propped herself down next to Sigurd. Staring at him closely, she smiled. "Thou art quite handsome, Sigurd…"

"And thou art…"

"What am I?"

Sigurd stammered. "Um…"

"Well?! Sayeth!"

"...thou hast a pretty face."

Upon hearing this, Brynhildr grumbled. "Is that all?"

"What else dost want me to say?!"

Brynhildr yelled in his face. "I dost not know! More than just 'pretty'!"

"Ok, thou art cute!"

"I am just fukka 'cute'?! Thou art a fukka idiot, Sigurd!"

This led to them bickering until tension cooled between them. Suddenly, Brynhildr and Sigurd realized they were attracted to each other's argumentative and heated spirits. The Blood Valkyrie leaned over and kissed Sigurd's lips. Taken aback by Brynhildr's surprise kiss, Sigurd initially didn't know how to react. This was the same Valkyrie that nearly killed him and he just now had a heated argument with.

Pulling himself off her, Sigurd stared at Brynhildr. The man smiled. He then kissed Brynhildr. The two engaged in a lip-locking contest until their lips met. Brynhildr draped her arms over Sigurd's shoulders. Sigurd quickly undid his clothes. Brynhildr ripped Gudrun's dress off. Without a second thought, the Valkyrie and the man held each other in a nude embrace.

Sigurd leaned forward and lip-locked with Brynhildr. The Blood Valkyrie straddled on his lap and kissed his lips. Sigurd kissed and licked her breasts. She gave a sensual gasp while he licked her nipples. The more he licked, the harder her nipples got. Her eyes gazed downward and to her delight, she saw the man's hardened penis. She grabbed his long and hard member, giving the man a handjob. After a few swift thrusts, semen splattered all over her, which she licked with a devilish grin.

"I dare thou to shove that into me. But, dost not hold back!"

Not one to disappoint, Sigurd promptly shoved his hard member into Brynhildr's vagina. Then, he gave a few thrusts, rocking the Blood Valkyrie back and forth. Brynhildr threw her head backward and let out a couple of loud and audible sensual cries.

"Oh, Hel! Fukka me harder! HARDER!" She screamed, demanding the man to go further.

Sigurd shoved his penis deeper into Brynhildr and made her scream with delight. He followed it with a few swift and hard thrusts. Brynhildr gave loud moans and low, heavy pants. Sigurd felt his member ejaculating inside Brynhildr. As she felt the man's semen enter her and spill out of her vagina, the Blood Valkyrie's eyes rolled back and she smiled sensually.

Brynhildr collapsed on Sigurd and grabbed his shoulders. Sigurd winced from her sharp nails digging into his bare skin.

Brynhildr leaned over and whispered into his ear. "Is this thou first time?"

"Yes."

"Thou art an impressive man, Sigurd." She smiled as she and Sigurd continued their intercourse.

During their intercourse, Brynhildr and Sigurd managed to heal each other's physical and mental wounds. Their sexual intercourse felt more genuine unlike what their rapists did with them. Brynhildr healed Sigurd from Gudrun's rape. Likewise, Sigurd made sure to heal the Blood Valkyrie after being violated by the Gunnar illusion.

Brynhildr lightly shoved Sigurd to the ground and sat on top of him. She put her hands on Sigurd's and kissed him.

"Consider this a 'making the beast with two backs'," Brynhildr sensually smiled as she let Sigurd thrust his penis inside her again.

Brynhildr was under no belief she required a man to bring her happiness. No man before has brought her the joy she was experiencing in this instance. Having consensual sex with a man for the first time seemingly brought Brynhildr true happiness. This true happiness might be what changes her, slowly moving her away from her berserker nature. She was conflicted. In her mind after overthrowing Odin, she wondered if she could settle down and produce a family with her first true love. She wondered if her future child could be happy and not turn out a monster like her. She feared if she became an 'Allmother', she might bring untold destruction to the Nine Realms.

"Sigurd… thank thee…" The Blood Valkyrie smiled as they locked eyes.

"Thou look prettier with a smile."

"Oh, shut up!" Brynhildr scowled as Sigurd rolled on top of her and shoved his penis into her.

"Yes, yes! FUKKA YES!" Brynhildr screamed with sheer ecstasy.

While the couple continued their intercourse, a hand grabbed Sigurd's Gram, which he left lying on the floor. Grasping Gram, the figure wearing a white mask shoved the blade through Sigurd's right shoulder in the middle of the intercourse. Sigurd howled with pain as he saw his own sword's blade shoved through his right shoulder. Brynhildr gaped in shock as she saw the masked figure pulling the sword out of the man's shoulder. Blood seeped from Sigurd's shoulder wound and drenched Brynhildr's face.

The figure promptly removed the white mask, revealing herself. It was Gudrun wearing a devious grin. She wiped Sigurd's blood across Gram and pointed it toward Brynhildr.

"I'm sorry. Did I interrupt your sex and candy moment?" Gudrun asked the two. "Oh, dear. I must've stabbed him too deep?" She casually shrugged. "Oh well, too bad. I already had fun with him. Now yours is done."

"Sigurd! SIGURD!" Brynhildr held him, who was bleeding profusely from his shoulder.

"You better cover that wound or he's going to bleed to death."

"Damn…" Sigurd gritted as he started to feel cold from the blood loss. "So, she exploited my weak spot, which she found while she raped me."

"Weak spot?" Brynhildr was confused.

"The one place where the dragon's blood didst not cover…"

Gudrun answered. "I discovered a leaf-shaped mark on his right shoulder. I didn't think much of it, but there had to be some kind of significance to it. I sensed that spot was not well protected compared to the rest of his body." She raised the bloodied Gram in front of her face. Her evil grin broadened with sadistic glee. "And so I exploited that weakness and that became his undoing!"

"That leaf spot was the one place not absorbed by Fáfnir's blood," Sigurd revealed.

"What? No…" Brynhildr growled as she sensed Sigurd's body growing colder. "Sigurd! Dost not die on me! That fool Gunnar didst not teach me healing magic!"

Chortling, Gudrun lowered Gram. "Yes, about that. All that magic you learned from my brother? That was all an illusion. Every magic you used was part of my Illusion's Touch. I made you believe you learned any magic. And the king? He was an illusion, too. And you didn't kill my weak fool of a brother. I had my real brother imprisoned in our dungeon while I turned the whole kingdom into an undead realm. I killed the real Gunnar and then set off to finish you two off. Well? What do you think?! Are you impressed how real I made the kingdom appear to you?!"

Upon hearing this, Brynhildr was at a loss for words. She couldn't believe she was under Gudrun's illusion. Not even the Blood Valkyrie's keen senses ould have discerned such mind trickery.

"Thanks to the Illusion's Touch, I altered your perception of reality. All of you became my little pawns in my own game." Based on her nonchalant response, Gudrun thoroughly savored Brynhildr's utter silence.

"Then, all I hast learned… the magic… the power… everything I need to kill Odin?! It was all a farce?!"

"Sorry to say, but you're as powerless as you were when you first stepped foot inside the palace. I can easily kill you now in your broken state," Gudrun evilly smirked as she lifted Gram. As she walked over to Brynhildr, Sigurd stood ready to stop her, but he collapsed to a knee and succumbed to the blood loss he was suffering.

"Stay down, fool!" Brynhildr berated him.

"Still haven't keeled over? Oh well, I can help accommodate with that," Gudrun chortled as she blasted a beam through Sigurd's right shoulder, directly hitting the critical area where the leaf mark was. She watched Sigurd collapse as his wound bled out profusely.

Snarling with anger, Brynhildr lunged at Gudrun and tried prying Gram from her. The two tugged hard on the sword, trying to disarm the other.

Then Grani came charging out of his hiding place and defended Sigurd from Gudrun. Grani quickly got between the two women. The horse hopped on its hind legs and raised its front legs to trample on the sadistic woman. However, Gudrun yanked Gram from Brynhildr's grasp and slashed through Grani's body. She not only cut the horse but gruesomely eviscerated it. A single swing opened up a giant wound and spilled from the steed's intestines all over the ground. As a result, Grani collapsed in a heap and bled to death.

"GRANI!" Brynhildr then turned toward Gudrun. "THOU BIKKJE! THOU WILL DIE FOR THIS!" She lunged at Gudrun, but the former princess was more than ready to stop her.

Gudrun cast a paralysis spell that froze Brynhildr. She swung Gram at Brynhildr and delivered a vertical slash across the Blood Valkyrie's chest. Brynhildr collapsed on her knees and gazed over the large gash on her chest. Blood profusely spilled out from Brynhildr's wound.

"Heheheh, know your place, you foul-mouthed beast," Gudrun evilly smirked. Her eyes veered over Andvaranaut on Brynhildr's finger. "That must be the ring that nullified my brother's illusion's magic. Yes, there's a great corrupt power emanating from it." She walked up to Brynhildr and knelt, looking her dead in her fading eyes. "If I remember correctly, based on what the dark force told me, anyone who wields it either gets corrupted or faces great misfortune later in life. Well, it seems the ring has led you and Sigurd down a path to misfortune. Here. Why don't I hold onto it, dear?" She pulled on the ring, only for Brynhildr to grab her hand. "Hmm? Hey, let go." She frowned as the Blood Valkyrie tugged on the ring.

However, Brynhildr willfully tightened her grasp around Gudrun's hand. The princess tugged on Andvaranaut and gritted.

"I shalt not let thee take it, hora…"

"Defiant beast. Very well then, I'll take it by force," Gudrun grinned sadistically as she kicked Brynhildr's face in, knocking a few teeth from her mouth. She then stomped on Brynhildr's head and shoved Gram through her back. "Don't cross me, beast. I shall have that ring now!" She reached and tried to yank the ring off, but Brynhildr covered it.

Gudrun quickly seized Brynhildr's hand and put her foot on it. She then sliced off the Blood Valkyrie's ring finger. Brynhildr let out a blood-curdling scream as she rolled around and grasped her now bleeding hand. Gudrun picked up Andvaranaut and examined it. A sadistically gleeful look smeared over Gudrun's face.

"Well, aren't you a beauty?" Gudrun giggled, probing the powerful corrupt energies emanating from the object. "I just know with this ring, I can tap into its power." She cast an apathetic look on Brynhildr. "More than you'll ever know. Want to know why?" She knelt and grabbed the back of Brynhildr's head. "Because I see a future where I can freely do what I wish. Neither you nor Sigurd are a part of it. So, this is where we part ways."

With that, the baneful woman dragged Brynhildr next to Sigurd's body. Brynhildr didn't hear Sigurd breathing anymore and saw the life in the man's eyes tragically fade away.

"Thou… THOU FUKKA BIKKJE! THOU WILL NOT GET AWAY WITH THIS!"

Gudrun used Gram to slice through Grani's wound, opening it up as a horrid stench from the steed's internal organs filled the air and attracted the insects to the carrion. Gudrun dragged Sigurd's body and pushed him inside his own dead steed.

"And now you'll be joining Sigurd in Hel," Gudrun seized Brynhildr's hair and dragged her into Grani.

Struggling to crawl out, Brynhildr was overtaken by the foul stench from the horse carrion. As she tried to escape, Gudrun kicked her back in.

"THOU SHALT NOT DENY ME REVENGE ON ODIN! I CANNOT DIE BEFORE HE!"

Hearing this, Gudrun's smile twisted. "Oh, don't worry. You will still have your vengeance on the Allfather. I intend to see it through."

"But, if thou kill me…"

Gudrun then placed Andvaranaut on her right ring finger.

"No… NO! DOST NOT!"

"If this ring can grant any power, I will use it to make sure your revenge is realized."

"How?!"

Clenching her hand, Gudrun saw the ring come to life and glow with golden light. Streams of mystic energies coursed through the woman's body, seemingly empowering her. Feeling an exhilarating rush of the mystic power flow through her, Gudrun let out a deep and relaxed gasp.

"Ah, yes! This is more like it! The power of Andvaranaut has accepted me without resistance," Gudrun proudly displayed Andvaranaut on her finger. "It certainly suits me better than it ever did with you, Brynhildr." Then, she materialized green flames in her right hand. "Now, I believe this is where we part ways."

"THOU WILL NOT GET AWAY, FUKKA BIKKJE!" Brynhildr savagely cursed at the woman and crawled with all her might, fueled with anger. "I SHALT KILL THEE FOR SIGURD AND GRANI!"

"Farewell, beast. Burn," Gudrun whispered with a cruel smirk. She then tossed a green-flamed blast that set Brynhildr, Sigurd, and Grani ablaze.

As she was quickly covered in green flames, Brynhildr howled in agonizing pain. The flames seared through engulfing Brynhildr. Grani and Sigurd's corpses burned, but unlike Brynhildr, they were not alive to feel and see themselves being burned. Brynhildr was not so fortunate. She witnessed her mortal skin being melted and burned away by the intense flames. She was burned right down to her skeleton. Her hair had long since burned into dust. The still burning skeletal Brynhildr let out horrific inhumane screams, sounding more like a beast. Once her screams ceased, the Blood Valkyrie's skeletal remains fell and withered into dust, sealing her fate.

Just then, Gudrun noticed Andvaranaut glowing. The ring shot a ray of light that seemingly grabbed an orb of red light from the burning pyre. The red orb was then pulled in and absorbed inside Andvaranaut.

"So, the ring acted according to my will and collected Brynhildr's soul? Well now, this could lead to interesting possibilities," Gudrun gazed over Andvaranaut. "That's right. I told you I'd see to it your revenge against Odin won't be a waste. You will act according to my will from now on, beast. Too bad you won't be joining your lover in the afterlife."

With her evil smirk not leaving her, Gudrun walked away having accomplished her task. She got rid of the last remaining witnesses to the destruction of her former family's kingdom. Before departing, Gudrun picked up Gram. The sword's blade turned red like blood. The weapon had absorbed the blood from Sigurd, which was already mixed with Fáfnir's.

Eyeing the flames being put out by the arrival of rain, Gudrun stepped over the ashes of her former enemies. With her hunt accomplished, the witch walked off with her loot and searched for some solitude to decide her next move.

Having vanquished the last obstacles that would've deterred her path, Gudrun achieved her freedom from her princess responsibilities. She was no longer beholden to remain with a dying kingdom. The ring had presented her with visions of her future, including one of meeting an imprisoned trickster god.

"I can see it all. What my new purpose is, who I'm supposed to meet, and how I'll change the world. The dark matter already told me, but this ring has presented me with visions of what I can and will accomplish," Gudrun monologued as she lay on a rock with the sound of crashing water from a waterfall in the backdrop. Gazing over Andvaranaut, the former princess mulled. "But, now that I've severed ties with that decaying kingdom, I must rechristen myself. Give me a new identity since I am a free spirit. I must put behind Gudrun, but what shall I call myself?"

After a few moments, the ring glowed with life and Gudrun blinked. She smiled and 'conversed' with the ring as if it were a sentient entity.

"Hmm, I never would've thought of that for a name. I like it." Gudrun stood as she raised her ring while it glowed. The light from the ring enveloped the young woman, changing her outward appearance to reflect her new given name. Her long, sandy blonde hair lost its natural color, turning white like snow. Green lime streaks surfaced through her white hairlocks. Her purple eyes turned lime green. Her clothing altered as well; her gown gained green, black, and yellow colors. Despite the outward changes, her necklace and bracelets were maintained. Her lips became lime green.

After the ring changed her new outward appearance, Gudrun embraced the new her.

"Yes, this will do nicely. With this, Gudrun is no more. From this point forth, I am Kriemhild!"

Dimension: Akane-no-Mai/Yggdrasil/Urðarbrunnr

Having witnessed the events play out toward the tragic end, the group fell into deep silence momentarily. As if Gudrun's presence and the events shifting into a horror-like atmosphere weren't disturbing enough, the end of Brynhildr and Sigurd shook them to their cores.

The silence was broken by Io speaking up.

"I know for most of you, this comes as a shock. In truth, this is the fate Brynhildr and Sigurd ultimately met," the Persona Vein logically informed them.

"That was a horrifying way to go out," Sumire candidly remarked.

"I feel more for poor Sigurd and his horse. They didn't deserve that," Tori stated.

"Not much remorse for Brynhildr, Tori?" Hiroshi smugly said, chuckling under his breath, which didn't faze his police partner a bit.

"Nah, not really. Yeah, she found her first love, but that was karma coming back to bite her ass," Tori replied.

"I can't fully disagree with that. But, a bigger villain killed them both," Ren said, reminding them of Kriemhild's presence in the tale.

"I shudder to even think what she's planning to set into motion next," Skyler said.

"You and me both. I have a terrible feeling about what's going to happen next," Hifumi concurred with Skyler.

"Well, for those of us familiar with this tale, we're not surprised. We knew this would happen, but how it happened… well, it was certainly not what I expected," Leonard stated.

"Geez, we've been following those two nearly this whole time and now they're freaking dead?!" Ryuji exclaimed. "Like, that's it?"

"And now what? We're going to follow this Kriemhild's point of view?" Rachel queried.

"After what she's done to her own kingdom, her brother, and those two, I'm almost afraid of what she's going to do next," Yusuke stated his displeasure for the horrific turn of events.

"Hell, once zombies started coming into the picture, the mood changed fast!" Futaba exclaimed. "Like we went from some edgy take of a legendary tale into something straight out of a horror movie!"

"Seeing all those zombies was pretty disturbing," Makoto concurred with her friends' sentiments.

"Dudes, that wasn't as disturbing as that crazy bitch cutting off her own brother's balls! Like, holy fuck!" Ryuji shouted while sighing with much relief he wasn't Gunnar.

"You better be nice to Miyako then, my dude," Futaba said, sneaking a maniacal grin.

"No way, Miyako would never do that."

"I couldn't believe Gudrun had all that planned out before Sigurd showed up," Haru said. "How was she able to know Sigurd would come?"

Skyler deduced. "I surmise the Yami Matter might've told her. What else has enough influence to compel an individual to commit insidious acts lately?"

Hifumi added. "So, the Yami Matter was responsible for not only communicating with Gudrun but possibly telling her about Sigurd's arrival."

Ren surmised. "And it probably informed her about the ring. So, now we see it's switched hands from Sigurd to Brynhildr and now Gudrun took it."

Ann nodded. "Then she changes her look and calls herself Kriemhild. She's a complete psychopath!"

Mulling, Makoto leaned over with a hand on her chin. "But, that name Kriemhild sounds familiar. Louis, is that a name Gudrun used in the Norse Mythology?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"I know where else the name Kriemhild comes from. It reminds me of that dreaded Kriemhild Gretchen from Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica!" Futaba related this to everyone. "But, they're obviously different characters."

"Of course, but it's good you reminded us," Yusuke genuinely smiled at his otaku colleague.

As she looked over and noticed Aslaug's silence during the entire conversation, Tori tapped the Valkyrie's shoulder.

"Hey, are you ok? You haven't said anything," Tori asked, getting no immediate response from the usually chatty Aslaug. "Aslaug? Did that whole zombie part scare you?"

Aslaug just nodded. "No, I just… how could he kill them like that?"

Hiroshi tried consoling her. "It's what happened. They couldn't escape their fates I'm afraid."

"They could've…" Aslaug muttered as she stood up and walked out of the room.

"Art thou ok, Aslaug?" Blue curiously asked the distressed Valkyrie.

"I know that was a scary part of the story, but there is more to tell," Cheza said.

Baldr II closely watched Aslaug leaving the room. "I think Bynhildr and Sigurd's deaths deeply affected her."

"Everyone reacts differently toward something that gruesome," Skuld said.

"Let's give her a little time to clear her thoughts before we continue," Sága suggested. "Please, let us continue thy conversations."

"Why don't we go check on her?" Tori asked as she and Hiroshi started outside to check with Aslaug.

Watching them walk outside, Akechi rubbed his chin. "Hmm, perhaps I should have a conversation with Aslaug."

"What can you possibly say to make her feel better?" Rachel scoffed.

"I won't know until I try," Akechi replied with a half-hearted chuckle and headed out of the room.

"This could turn out ok or badly depending on what Akechi has in mind," Morgana remarked.

"It's Akechi. It has to be the latter," Ryuji scoffed.

"Hmm, well I'm glad Tori and Hiroshi will be there. They can stop Akechi if he crosses any line," Makoto stated.

"I think it should be ok as long as Akechi doesn't say anything that upsets Aslaug," Haru said, cautious about Akechi's approach on this matter.

"Since we're on the subject of those zombies, I couldn't believe the revelation of Gunnar's kingdom being a zombie-infested place," Rachel reminded them of the horrific twist after Brynhildr killed the illusion Gunnar, which undid the reality warp spell Gudrun placed over the already deceased kingdom.

"She's a complete monster for committing such a heinous act," Jacob remarked.

"And then killing her own brother while leaving him to die and be devoured by the undead," Madeline reproved Kriemhild's actions.

"I was clinging to Ren the whole time those zombies showed up!" Ann cried out, folding her arms around her husband's neck while shaking him hard.

"Them being the slow-moving zombies made them much scarier," Leonard said.

"Yes, very scary!" Ann shook her head, her face nearly became pale with fright.

"Ok, they're gone now. You can let go!" Ren gagged as Ann squeezed him too hard.

Withdrawing herself from Ren, Ann apologetically whispered. "Sorry."

"I wasn't too scared, but I know Hifumi was creeped out," Skyler said, holding his girlfriend's hand.

The Shogi player softly sighed. "Well, yes. I kinda was."

"The Proto-Draugar art horrid abominations when a necromancer reanimates corpses," Skuld informed them. "My family and I hast seen what they can do to villages and kingdoms. They're the perfect army for necromancers since they lack all forms of emotions, including fear."

"Yes, and I hast forbidden our people to use necromancy," Sága clarified to the guests.

"Well, to be fair, thou people never believed in the use of necromancy, Lady Sága. Thou people always believed the dead shouldst pass on and that their spirits shouldst become one with nature." Harald said.

The sage nodded. "Yes, but sometimes we hast to be sure newer generations art informed."

"I've heard of Draugar, but Proto-Draugar is new to me," Leonard said. "I know in the mythologies, the undead are called Draugar."

"The Draugar art more sentient than the Proto-Draguar. Draugar art capable of speech and hast the memories while they were still alive. They art also capable of speaking as if they were still alive." Urðr explained.

"Yes, and Draugar dost not have the taste of flesh like Proto-Draugar do!" Verðandi stated.

"Ah, so they're more revenant-like than the traditional undead," Leonard nodded, getting a clearer distinction between the two types.

"Hey, remember when the Vamkyries insulted us and called us Draugar?" Rachel reminded her Revenant friends. "By their logic, we're like these Draugar?"

"The main thing we have in common is that we were once human and revived into non-human entities," Kaito said, clenching his fists and staring into his own hands. "Based on our memories, we were revived into Revenants and required blood to survive."

Leonard logically applied. "Yes, but we've learned to cope and manage our thirst very well. And when we do need to feed, we have friends to provide us animal blood or in some cases a human partner willingly offering their own blood to drink."

"Thou need blood to survive? And somehow thou art able to control thy urges?" Skuld asked the Revenants.

"Yes, it's difficult, but we've managed to find ways to adapt," Skyler said.

"Thou art not like the Draugar!" Blue chimed in as he looked at each Revenant. "I only see nice people!"

"We art good judges of character," Fang said. "Speaking for myself and my siblings, we see thee as good people and not monsters."

"Thank you," Mia genuinely responded to the quarter-Homo Yggr children.

"Yes, we like thee all!" Cheza replied with another bright smile.

"You're all too kind," Leonard nodded with a composed smirk.

"If the children see thee as good people, then so do we. However, I wanted to be sure after meeting Miss Io that thou all wouldst be most trustworthy." Sága stated. "We hast made the wise choice to entrust thee with our universe's hist'ry."

"Can I also add Brynhildr and Sigurd didn't start on the right foot?" Ann addressed the lovers' meeting.

"I would say it was not what I expected, but this Brynhildr's character has shown us otherwise," Yusuke spoke for everyone's conviction about the unruly and rebellious Valkyrie they've been exposed to.

"On the one hand, it's sad they died the way they did," Makoto added before shaking her head. "But, I'm not the least bit sorry this Brynhildr met her end after seeing her behavior. I do feel bad for Sigurd and Grani dying."

"Still, she's not the worst of the Valkyries we've seen," Haru said.

"Can I also speak on the amount of sex we've seen up to now?" Ryuji pointed out. "I mean, goddamn. I'm not complaining, but man am I glad Miyako isn't here to see that or the zombie stuff!"

"Well, I don't consider Gudrun raping Sigurd to be hot stuff," Ann expressed her displeasure at seeing an innocent man being violated.

"Don't worry. None of us do," Ren said.

"Ok, so Kriemhild has the ring. What's next?" Futaba wondered about the evil manipulator's plans.

"What I want to know is how she's directly involved with Ragnarök," Makoto's intrigue matched everyone else's.

"Well, we shalt see for ourselves," Sága utilized her staff to recall the events following Brynhildr and Sigurd's deaths.

Having distanced herself from the others, Aslaug used the interim to decompress before Sága resumed the story. She heard a set of steps approach behind her. She quickly faced the opposite way to see Tori and Hiroshi.

"You followed me?" Aslaug was taken aback.

"Of course, we were worried, kiddo. Are you feeling better?" Tori worryingly asked her.

"Don't force yourself to tell us anything you're not comfortable getting off your chest," Hiroshi said.

"Well, you see… Brynhildr and Sigurd, yes, those two…" Aslaug stammered before recollecting her jumbled thoughts together. "I was connecting with their story and I wanted to see them happy together. Brynhildr was scary at times, but I thought she was cool and Sigurd's pretty handsome."

"Oh? And what else?" Tori curiously asked.

"And… I felt this strong connection with them as if I somehow know them."

"Do you know them?" Hiroshi queried.

"No, remember they died in that story and they died before I was even born. So, there's no way I would've met them, but I can't help being familiar with them," Aslaug said, wondering about this odd connection with the story's couple.

"So, what do you think your connection with them is, Aslaug?" Akechi interjected, surprising Aslaug, Tori, and Hiroshi with his startling presence.

"What the hell do you want, Akechi?" Hiroshi grunted, intensely glaring toward the fugitive's direction.

"Don't mind my curiosity, but I was worried about Aslaug, too."

"Mind your business, Akechi," Tori scowled at him.

Quickly throwing his arms up, Akechi conveyed to them no ill intentions. "I'm not here to start a conflict. I just want to ask Aslaug a question if you'll permit me."

"It's ok. I'll answer anything he asks," Aslaug nodded.

"Ok, but make it quick," Tori directly responded to Akechi.

"So, Aslaug. What can you tell us about this connection you have with Brynhildr and Sigurd? You said you've never met them. What are they to you?" Akechi asked the Valkyrie.

"It's hard to explain."

"Is it? You seemed awfully distraught when you saw them burn to death, especially that Valkyrie who burned to death alive and screaming in agony. That had to have disturbed you, but hy did it affect you so deeply?" Akechi proposed the hard questions for Aslaug. "My detective skills might have figured it out, but I'm not going to give out spoilers. Tell us what they might be to you."

Aslaug deeply sighed and nodded. "I think…"

"Yes?"

"I feel like we're family somehow."

Tori gasped. "What? You think they're your parents or something?"

"I don't know. Maybe I was reincarnated from one of them?" Aslaug surmised.

"Well, it has to be Sigurd since Brynhildr was revived as a Vamkyrie," Hiroshi said.

"That's a good theory, Aslaug, but we've yet to find out the hard truth. Perhaps some light will be shed after we've heard this whole story?" Aslaug asked as he held his hand out for Aslaug. "Shall we go inside? I'm interested to see where you factor into all of this."

C'mon, everything is going to be ok. Hopefully no more zombies. I know those probably scared you, kiddo," Tori said.

"Nah, those zombies didn't scare me much, but that zombie pig did gross me out!" Aslaug cried out with disgust.

"Well, you seem to be back in your chipper mood, Aslaug. It's a demeanor that suits you best," Akechi said.

Taking Aslaug's hand, Hiroshi walked Aslaug back into Urðarbrunnr. "Come on, we don't want to keep our friends waiting."

"Yeah, and your new friends have to be worried sick about you," Tori said, referring to Baldr II, Blue, Cheza, and Fang.

"Yeah, I want to know if I'll be in this story. Hopefully not too long," Aslaug said.

Walking behind them, Akechi followed back to Urðarbrunnr where the others awaited their arrival. "You and me both, Aslaug. I wonder where this chaotic tale will lead. I'm curious where the Yami Matter factors into all of this. I'm also rather interested in Kriemhild's story. Is she someone we should be concerned about today?"

Chapter Soundtrack
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim OST - The Gathering Storm - Sigurd climbs Hindarfjall and finds the sleeping maiden.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim OST - Caught off Guard- Brynhildr attacked Sigurd till she stopped the assault. Gunnar attempted to rape Brynhildr, but the Valkyrie stopped him.
Berserk OST - 04 Guts - The first proper interaction between Brynhildr and Sigurd. Brynhildr and Sigurd's intercourse.
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles OST - Berceuse (Alexia's Lullaby) - Gudrun (Kriemhild)'s theme.
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles OST - Theme of Alexia Type I- Brynhildr saving Sigurd from Gudrun.
Final Fantasy VII (Original 1997 video game) - Trail of Blood - The song that transitions the genre from gritty Norse to absolute horror. The horrible truth of Gunnar's kingdom is already dead. Escaping the kingdom from Proto-Draugar. Gudrun tortures and kills the real Gunnar, before she burns the kingdom and the undead. Gullinbursti's corpse shocks the Asgardians as a warning, the golden boar rises as a Proto-Draugr before being quickly killed.
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles OST - Theme of Alexia Type II- Gudrun killing Grani, Sigurd, and Brynhildr.

A/N: The flashbacks for this chapter are packed with lore and content.

For starters, Gudrun/Kriemhild is a reversion of a character from my old fanfics (who was funny enough named Gudrun/Mist). Not only is this Gudrun revamped from the other I've written, but her personality was rebooted to rebuild her as a villain to take more seriously in an already gritty Wulf-Edda world.

My friend and I also intended for her to be a mix of borderline horror monsters with slasher tendencies and an agent of chaos. The fact that she kills off Brynhildr and Sigurd, Wulf-Edda's protagonists up until their deaths, should already give you the impression that no one is safe or sacred in the Wulf-Edda world. Not even her brother, Gunnar, was spared and was given the worst kind of torture before becoming Proto-Draugar chow. We enjoyed crafting her character and writing her parts. Although, based on her actions, it's funny how Kriemhild behaves more like Loki than Loki himself.

For the record, yes, Gudrun/Kriemhild being the only character in the flashbacks to speak in modern English instead of Norse/Old English was intentional. There's a reason why she can speak in modern English, which will be shown and explained in the next chapter. Furthermore, by speaking modern English, she stands out from the rest of the Wulf-Edda crowd like she's a foreigner, an individual straight out of time, or an alien placed in a medieval setting.

Yes, Brynhildr, Sigurd, and Grani got rather gruesome deaths, didn't they? That's not what you'd expect for your story's protagonists to out. And to make their deaths suck even worse Kriemhild got away without so much of a scratch (though, she and Brynhildr had a bit of a tussle over the ring).

A personal favorite part of these flashbacks was the sudden shift from the gritty Norse mythology tale into straight-up horror. Having an entire kingdom changing into a zombie-infested zone will do that. As a fan of horror myself, this was a welcoming twist for the narrative.

And Aslaug walks out after seeing Bynhildr and Sigurd's horrid deaths. Not that anyone can blame her. Tori and Hiroshi going to comfort her is no surprise but Akechi…? Of all people? Well, being the ace detective he is/was, he might've figured out a clue about Aslaug related to the Wulf-Edda couple. That said, he won't share spoilers with them and prefers to let Aslaug figure it out.

And so Aslaug will have to find this out once the dark Norse tale is over.

Until the next chapter, leave a review and see you soon.