Story was taken down and reposted due to changes in the story. The major change was the final chapter in chapter 10, completely rewriting the story to a different direction. Sorry for any issues this may cause.
"Issei!" Freya exclaimed, dashing forward with inhuman speed, quickly slamming down onto her knees next to the familiar human. She quickly turned him over, getting a much better look at the boy. His clothes were falling off of his body, as if they were several sizes too large for him. She didn't have to look underneath the clothes to know what was going on, just by his face alone. Issei looked like a shriveled up prune, if it wasn't for the fact that his skin was just hanging loosely like a turkey's neck. Issei also had aged within Helheim, looking as if he was in his early adulthood. Eighteen. Nineteen. Maybe even twenty. Though his real age was only 16. His body had matured in the frozen wasteland. 'This place… what has it done to you?' She thought. She hugged the boy tight to her chest, holding him. "Oh Issei… I found you." She whispered. When she pulled away, she found the boy starting to stir. He slowly opened his eyes, his chocolate brown eyes finding her crystal blue ones. Soon, a smile started to spread across his face but with his lips also being a little loose, it looked really really bad.
"If… I knew..." Issei coughed hard, coughing up black tar. "This is what it took." Cough cough. More tar. "To get you on your knees..." He said, a smirk growing on his face from that. Freya looked at the boy incredulously and laughed, her chest shaking in mirth.
"The first thing out of your mouth is something perverted?" Freya asked in a playful tone. "You have no tact human."
"Still." Cough. "Made you laugh." Issei said, before his eyes shuttered and closed, the boys energy having depleted, forcing him to sleep.
"Issei? Issei? Issei?! ISSEI!" Freya became frantic as she felt the boys breathing start to weaken and his heartbeat start to slow. Issei was on his last legs of life. "Not now! Not now!" Freya said, her eyes wide as she quickly got up, lifting the boy with her. "Fight Issei! We're going home now! Fight!" She declared, making her way through the crevice and out into the wasteland. As soon as she stepped into the frozen stone, she was immediately battered by an intense gust of wind. 'Why?! Why do you fight?! It just gets worse!' She roared with frustration. Helheim was putting her to the test for sure. Freya, however, didn't stop. She kept on walking, her head down as she braced against the wind, the snow, the ice and the cold. She had found her human and she was going to bring him home.
Back in Asgard, Frigg, Odin, Thor, Göndul, Ölrùn, Eir, and Heimdallr were all standing at the platform, watching the portal of Helheim closely. They could see into the realm from where they were, but the vision didn't go very far due to the mist and snow that blanketed the frozen realm. Two days had passed and it was time. Heimdallr moved from his spot and took his sword, heading over to the portal.
"No! Please! You can't!" Frigg said, knowing what he was going to do.
"If I keep it open any longer, we risk the dead of Helheim entering Asgard and the other realms. I must close it. I am sorry." He said, only for Thor to get in his way. "Now you stand in the way?"
"That is my little brother out there. If that was Loki, I would have gone out of my way to rescue him myself. Do not close this portal. Give her time."
"There has been enough time given. I already gave her more than I should. We are already attracting attention with the portal being open as long as it has been." He said, gesturing to the portal. Sure enough, there were ten undead humanoids starting to make its way to the portal.
"Then I will handle them, but you keep that portal open!" Thor ordered, hopping into the portal of Helheim before anyone could say anything.
"Damn fool." Heimdallr said with narrowed eyes. He lifted his sword to slash at the portal to close it, but he clicked his tongue and put it down. He went back to standing watch, his eyes never leaving the portal.
When Thor landed, the frozen wastes immediately battered him with ice and snow, wind and fury. His cloak blew out from behind him, forcing his hood to go down. Thor was a rugged looking man, having a lumberjack-esque look to him. His hair was a dark brown and shaggy, as if wild and unkempt. He had a full bushy beard all around as well as a bushy mustache. His eyes were golden and fierce, with lightning bolts streaking in his eyes every so often. The God of Thunder. One of the Top Ten strongest beings in the world, even more powerful than Odin himself who barely made it into the top twenty.
Thor lifted out his right hand and Mjölnir flew to his outstretched hand. "You will not enter Asgard!" He roared, swiping his hammer in a horizontal arc, sending out a shockwave of condensed lightning and air. The shockwave struck the undead and bisected them below their chest, above their belly buttons. They fell to the ground in lifeless heaps, but their deaths only seemed to invigorate their comrades. More and more undead figures appeared from the mists, slowly walking towards Thor. Some had swords of ice, some had swords and shields while others wielded magic that were both mixtures of ice and darkness. Then there were creatures that were mere eyeballs, as if coming from a nightmare. "Yes! Come to me! Give me all of your anger!" He roared as she charged head-long into the horde.
Freya made it back to the main bridge, her feet dragging as she continued to carry Issei. This time Issei was on her back. Issei was no longer wearing a heavy coat on top of him as he was just wearing a light one. Freya was the one wearing the warm coat, as she figured that if she was to die here, then Issei would too. She already felt her energy being sapped away from the brutal conditions that swept across the realm. 'I can't waste any time… I must keep moving.' She told herself as she drug her feet once more, getting ever closer to the exit. 'Please Heimdallr. Give me more time… I can make it… I can make it.' Freya said, as she used a little bit of her magic to try and sustain Issei's energy, hoping to prolong his life so they can make it back to Asgard. It worked as she felt and heard Issei start to stir. He took a deep breath and coughed up some more black tar, all over the ground.
"Freya..." He said softly.
"Issei don't speak! Save your strength!" Freya called out in a frenzy.
"I'm sorry… I'm… not going to make it." He said, before coughing four more times.
"Issei don't give up! We're almost there!" She said, getting underneath the second building of rubble that Issei had camped out at for a while. She had yet to make it to where Issei was drinking and eating at.
"I… I love you… Freya." Issei said, before his body went limp.
"ISSEI!" She exclaimed, her body getting a large surge of adrenaline. She quickly picked up her pace, her feet no longer dragging on the ice. She took big steps, her eyes wide with fear. 'You cannot die in this place Issei! It's too soon! You have to survive! Make it back to me! Us!'
Back in Asgard, Frigg clenched her husbands robe, her eyes watching with fear as Thor was being swarmed. The horde of undead creatures just kept coming, rushing at Thor without any concern for their own safety. They wanted to feed. To escape Helheim. Heimdallr saw that Thor was being overwhelmed and the guardian moved from his spot.
"I cannot wait any longer! This portal must close!" Heimdallr roared, taking his sword and bringing it down in a vertical arc.
"Gungnir!" Spoke a familiar voice. A spear collided with Heimdallr's sword, halting it without any issues. "You will not close this portal." Odin ordered, staring at the guardian without any mercy.
"You mustn't allow this foolishness to continue any further Allfather. If this portal is breached, I cannot close it!" He warned Odin.
"That is a risk I am willing to take for my sons." Odin said, before looking back at Frigg. He gave her a smile and Frigg knew what he was going to do. Frigg merely nodded, and Odin jumped into the portal, leaving Heimdallr's sword to hang above the portal.
"Foolish! I can't just allow the realms to fall!"
"Then they won't fall." Frigg said, standing up and looking at Göndul, Ölrùn and Eir. "Will it?" She asked, the three Valkyrie's.
"No." Ölrùn said, standing up. Göndul also stood up alongside Eir, each of them brandishing their weapons.
"The realms will not fall and we will get Issei back!" Göndul said after. With that, the three Valkyries all hopped into the portal to Helheim to reinforce the God's.
Heimdallr just stood there staring incredulously at the portal for a few seconds before looking at Frigg. She gave him a warm smile.
"Issei has brought us closer to unity than we have been in many years. Let's bring him home Heimdallr." She said, placing a hand on his forearm.
"You all are willing to risk the Nine Realms over a human?"
"Yes… for Issei is our family. Not a human." She said with pride.
"I see, then I will also do my part. I will keep this portal open until they all return."
"Thank you."
Thor and Odin were surprised when the three Valkyries came to their sides. Thor grinned at his father.
"I'm sorry about what I did on Norway father. I would like to meet my brother and give my apologies."
"Then perhaps you are truly becoming a better God, worthy of my throne." Odin said, smiling at Thor before glaring at the hordes coming at them. "But it won't matter if we cannot take them down! For Asgard!" He called out in a battle cry, all five warriors charging forth to bring down the undead masses, just to bring Issei back to them.
Freya made her way towards the chalice of water, that was inviting her to take a drink. As if a Siren's call was heard, she stopped in front of the chalice, staring into the inky black liquid. She licked her lips, which froze from the temperatures around her. As she started to bend over, she could feel a tug on her neck. She looked behind her and noticed that Issei was still limp as a noodle, but it felt like he was telling her not to drink. She looked down at the water and tore herself away, making her way towards the first building of rubble.
'Come on Issei. Just a little further and we're home.' She thought as she crawled underneath the large pillar of black stone that formed the roof. She continued to crawl through the building, making her way out to the other side. As soon as she came out, her eyes widened.
"Freya!" Called out Eir, rushing to her side. She had just bisected a floating eyeball with her scythe and came rushing over as soon as she spotted Freya. "You found him?!" She asked as the winds started to pick up and the snow started to come down even harder. Hail even started to fall. It was as if Helheim felt as its prey was being snatched away from its icy fingers and wanted him back.
"Yes but we need to get back! He's fading!" Freya said, starting to push forward towards where she could see lightning bolts, blue energy blasts and golden discs flying around.
"I will cover you! Get moving!" Eir said, swinging her scythe around some more, attacking the undead horde that seemed to be closing in on Freya and Issei. Freya nodded and continued to move, her legs underneath the clothes starting to turn black as her blood started to pull away from her extremities. The pain that she felt was excruciating, but she couldn't stop. Not when she was so close. She had to make it back to Asgard. Issei's life depended on it. She would be fine herself when she returned, but Issei was up to fate if he even survived. Humans were fragile compared to the Gods and Goddesses.
She made it another ten feet, only for a lightning bolt to come crashing down in front of her, knocking her down onto her back, slamming herself on top of Issei.
"AAAH!" She screamed, feeling her right leg break from the impact of the fall. Her eyes widened when she felt something underneath her, and she quickly sat up. "Issei!" She exclaimed, the Valkyrie Queen picking him up again. When she tried to stand up, she quickly was sent back down, as her leg was no longer working. "Damnit!" She cried out, tears in her eyes, but she was a stubborn warrior. She put Issei onto her back and started to crawl on her hands and knees, ducking underneath magic blasts, icicles flying, lightning bolts, hammer throws, spearing tosses, discs and other assorted attacks from the battle against the Undead. Thor spotted the crawling Valkyrie and using his hammer, he threw it hard to knock back twenty undead that was closing in on the wounded warrior and Issei. He jumped over to Freya and called his hammer back.
"I got you!" Thor exclaimed, picking Freya up under his left arm and Issei in his right, both of them hanging with his large arms around his stomach. His hammer was now resting on his belt and he quickly turned to head back towards the portal. "I GOT THEM! FALL BACK TO THE PORTAL!" Thor roared out against the wild winds of Hel.
Thor was walking rather slowly now, due to the weight of the two beings in his arms, as well as the toll that Helheim was putting him under. His massive amount of aura and power kept the cold and whipping winds at bay for a while, but not even he could survive in Helheim for an extended period of time. Odin, Göndul, Eir and Ölrùn all made their ways to Thor's side, using their assorted weapons to keep the undead back. They continued their movements and the portal was in sight. Thor moved even quicker, feeling adrenaline fill his veins as icicles started raining down from above. He quickly moved Issei and Freya in front of him to guard them from the attacks, but a single spear of ice found its way into Issei's shin. Issei made no sound of pain or any movement as the ice stuck itself in his skin and bone, starting to cover his body in the same Hel Ice that coated the land.
Thor cursed and pushed himself into the portal, climbing out of the way. Odin was next, then Eir, Ölrùn and lastly Göndul. As soon as Valkyrie made her way back to Asgard, Heimdallr swung his sword closing the portal. Only an inch away was an undead hand, ready to reach in to pull it's next victim back to the Icy wasteland.
"Issei!" Frigg called out, rushing over to the prone Thor who was holding Issei to his chest. She slapped Thor's hand away to pull her boy into her chest, her eyes roaming the boy. She used her magic to do away with all of the clothes he put on with his own magic, her eyes widening in shock. Issei's body had no muscle. There was no muscle left on his bones, no fat either, just skin and bone. Literally. He looked like a giant turkey neck. "My boy!" She called out, tears streaming down her face as she cradled him. It was then she noticed a faint breath on her neck coming from Issei. "He's alive!"
Odin was quick to move over and lift Issei into his arms. "We need to go! Now!" Odin said, teleporting just himself and Issei away. Thor got up and teleported the rest of them, minus Heimdallr, back to the palace.
As soon as Odin arrived in the hospital of the palace, he immediately summoned as many doctors as he could using his magic and placed Issei down on the bed. Out of nowhere, doctors started to teleport inside the infirmary and rush to the Allfather's side.
"Fix him!" Odin said, his eyes scanning the human's figure. The doctors didn't need to even respond as they went to work on Issei's battered body.
Thor arrived with the rest of them and Freya was also put onto a bed by the God of Thunder. Freya was in much better shape than Issei, but her body was still broken. Her femur was snapped in two and her arms and legs were suffering from a major frostbite. A single doctor moved away from Issei in order to focus on Freya and she started to swat him away.
"Focus on the human!" Freya cried out, not wanting to lose him.
"The human is in good care, but you need some yourself or you won't be able to walk again and we might have to amputate." He said calmly, pushing the Valkyrie back down onto the bed. He injected her with something that calmed her down rather quickly, putting her to sleep. The doctor then went to work repairing the Valkyrie queen.
Thor, Frigg, and the three other Valkyries all gathered around Issei's bed, looking over the doctors who were frantically trying to keep Issei alive. What neither of them knew, was that the black tar that was coating Issei's blood vessels and organs, found its catalyst.
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