Forests of Siberia Russia
Hanna, Shiva and Ravana all follow behind Loki through trees and snow. The girls wear clothing more suitable to the colder climate. Hanna in a blue snowsuit and Shiva in red. The two girls also, more closely hold to their own bodies. Hanna’s face all lit up like a child visiting a strange magical land while Shiva looks far less pleased. The two ascended don’t even wear coats. More or less what they’d wear anywhere else. “Ughhhh! First, you have me cramped up on that foul flying machine for hours and now I’m hiking in the snow going in no distinct direction with no goal in mind. Are you sure this is the way to Baba Yaga’s place”? Shiva complained as she rubbed her gloved hands together.
“How come you two aren’t cold”? Hanna asked as she looked to Loki and Ravana.
“Ascended don’t get cold or hot like mortals”. Ravana stated calmly as he followed closer to Loki than the girls even can, due to the conditions.
Loki giggled as he turned towards the group. “Yeah. Ascended don’t need to eat, drink, sleep or even breathe. We don’t get cold, and the only reason we sweat is if we are nervous because most don’t even feel fatigue. At the very least it takes a lot to fatigue an ascended”. Loki chimed in happily.
“I think I understand why the title ‘God’ seems to fit”. Hanna said as she put in more effort into catching up with Loki.
As she passed Shiva, Shiva quickened her pace to keep up with Hanna.
“How much longer to Baba Yaga’s cabin? I could not help but notice you did not answer lady Shiva’s question”. Ravana stated with just a hint of irritation in his voice.
“Baba’s Cabin is in a pocket reality. We can’t get there by walking. I’m hoping Baba will see me looking for her and open the portal for me”. Loki said in a shockingly calm voice.
“WHAT!? I was under the impression you’ve snuck in before”! Ravana shouted boldly as his hand gripped Loki’s shoulder.
Loki shrugged off the larger man’s hand and kept walking. “That was on Asgard. Portals are easier to manipulate there. That is why we have the bifrost. There is no such human equivalent. So… Baba is gonna have to open the door. This is the same forest she dumped me in the last few times I spoke to her so, there has to be a connection”. The trickster said as he continued walking.
“That’s wonderful news Loki…” Ravana grumbled as he looked back to the two human girls still competing with one another. “What of them? What if Baba takes too long”? Ravana asked with growing concern.
“She won’t. Baba must see value here”. Loki responded keeping up his upbeat attitude.
Loki kept walking until he found a stump. He examined it a moment as he pushed the snow off of it with his bare arm. He examined the rings as if counting its years first. Then, his attention found a split in the center. It looked as if something had been lodged there. He did this even as the others watched him in a confused manner.
“Serpent! Is that stump going to entice Baba Yaga”? Ravana barked as his irritation only grew.
“Relax Demon…” Loki hissed back as he had a seat on the stump. “I think this’ll be a great time to squeeze in some training. The trickster said as he crossed his legs. “Hanna… we’ve been working on your use of the magical arsenal. And for the most part…. You can do it…” He hesitated as he smiled and shrugged. “But, my father had other abilities, one of which you accidentally used in your first encounter with Shiva. The ward. Or my father’s anti magic shield. He also had the ability to enhance gravity to push objects away, pull objects to him and….” He said until Hanna chimed over him in an excited manner.
“I can use the force? Like in Star Wars?!” Hanna got out in an overly enthusiastic tone as she even hopped in place slightly.
The others looked to her in silence and confused looks on their faces. Loki of course broke the silence by laughing. When he finished chuckling he inhaled deeply, catching his breath. “Didn’t think of it like that myself but, not exactly”. He said as he shook his head at her briefly. “I’ve never seen him have control over the things he pushed or pulled. Even in the tether portion of his abilities it more ore less kept the target within a proximity of….” Loki looked to the group to even see Ravana was lost in his explanation. “Push, pull and tether. Those are the big three things ability wise I’ve seen my father do. My father hated magic so, he developed the ward to deflect it but, the other three I’ve seen him use sparingly. He never used the first two in one on one combat and he never used the tether against groups. Very prideful my father”. Loki finished with a shrug.
“Can you try to explain the last one again”? Hanna asked raising her hand as if in a classroom.
“Imagine if you will, a circle is drawn around you and in Odin’s case a selected opponent. Now imagine if the opponent tried to escape the circle it pulled them right back to the center”. Ravana chimed in looking to Loki with half rolled eyes.
“Why couldn’t you’ve said that”? Hanna asked looking to Loki curiously.
“I… well… I guess I could have. That sounds far too simple but, if that helps you then, fine. The ward is what we will be working on though. It’s an anti magic shield so, Shiva…. Can you make little explosions? You know…. Ones that don’t kill people”? Loki teased with a raised brow and half a grin on his lips.
“Bugger off”… Shiva responded coldly as she sat down in the snow and assumed a meditative pose.
“Is that a yes”? Loki asked looking to Ravana for assurance.
“Of course Shiva can! Shiva is perfection! Lord Shiva can-“ Ravana went on until Shiva called over him.
“Enough”! She called as she opened her eyes again as the tattoo of an eye appeared on her forehead. “It’s been a while since I produced weak ignitions but, I think it is more than possible”. Shiva stated calmly as those mocha colored eyes go to Hanna.
“How do I know she won’t just go full strength and kill me”? Hanna asked loudly as she backed up a few steps.
Shiva scoffed quite audibly as she let off an ignition that was no bigger than a snap bang one might throw on the ground during Fourth of July festivities. The explosion happened in front of Loki, just inches from his chest. “Will that be adequate”? She got out with a snarky demeanor.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“Perfect”. Loki admitted as he looked over to Hanna. “You’ll be fine. I’ll step in before it gets too rough”. He assured. “Now, Hanna. It’s very similar to the magical arsenal in that you summon it. If it has a name father never said it out loud around me. For the mean time, think about what you were doing, thinking, when you did it the first time. You know? While our wonderful miss Shiva was trying to wake you up”. Loki said as he gestured to her.
Hanna looked to Loki and nodded confidently. She then closed her eyes thinking about that moment he was talking about. She remembered Shiva’s eyes and it happen in about a third the actual time but, she saw the trail of the explosion right up until the moment it hit the shield. It’s purple and in the shape of a curved wall trying to wrap around her. In her recollection of the event the one eyed Odin was standing next to her. A figure she knew wasn’t there back then. She opened her eyes and gasped. She placed her hand over the right eye just making sure it was still there. She then sighed out of relief.
“Something wrong”? Loki asked raising a brow to her.
“It- It’s nothing… That was quite a beard I had”… she said now stroking her soft skin of her chin.
Loki nodded to Shiva as one of those small explosions hit the blue snowsuit with a loud popping noise.
Hanna shrieked clearly unprepared and jumped a little bit. “Rude! I wasn’t ready”! Hanna insisted as Shiva hit her with another one. She shrieked again as she batted at the tiny explosion as if it were a fly. “You think the enemy is going to wait for you to be ready”? Shiva asked as she released two more explosions the same size at her.
“Enough”! Hanna shouted as a shimmer of the purple shield appeared blocking the next explosion Shiva delivered. It faded as quickly as it appeared.
“Another”. Loki said with intrigue in his voice as he motioned with his hand to Shiva. She did as she was told and released another volley.
Hanna didn’t deflect the next set as her body assumed a defensive stance as she guarded her face. The little explosions went off right after the other. “I see why I hated magic”! Hanna called out as she held this position still not producing the shield.
“Ooops”. Shiva said as her eyes widened knowing what she accidentally did before anybody else did.
The next explosion that went off was quite a bit bigger than the previous ones. Again Hanna screamed but, she produced the shield. “Hold it”! Loki called out as everyone noticed Hanna had her hands extended. Hanna looked surprised but, she held the position and the shield.
Hanna laughed as she held the shield so, she could see it for the first time. “I did it! I can’t even….”she squealed happily as the group looked on at her achievement.
“That is something miraculous….” Ravana said slowly as he rolled his eyes.
“Lay off Ravana. Look at how much she’s enjoying this. Don’t you take this from her”. Shiva said as she even smiled.
Ravana looked at her confused. “Forgive me…. I only meant…” he started as he lowered his head.
“You only meant: She’s still not as far along as we’d like. But I remember being able to use the ignitions for the first time. It was life changing. This will help her move forward”. Shiva stated as she softly applauded celebrating Hanna.
“Thanks to Loki she is this far behind. Imagine”… he tried to reason as Shiva shook her head.
“Well the fact is she’s starting now and enjoying it. Things can always be worse”. She shrugged as she looked to her loyal friend with a sigh.
“I am left wondering how…” Ravana said quietly as he next to her in the snow.
Streets of China
Cu Chulainn walks through the streets alone. No hint of damage from his previous encounter with the horrors. He wears the same tattered clothes complete with hood as he looked at the signs around him. The characters are foreign to him yet, he can somehow read them as if they were not. He followed these signs to a residence on a hill. The building is by no means small and is surrounded by large open areas framed in natural plant life and training dummies suitable for all manner of combat training. On the stairs leading to the front door is an old man. A long grey beard and fierce looking eyes that almost looked completely black with the shade of brown they were. The man wears bright blue robes with a golden ox imprinted on them. Cu Chulainn lowered his head to the figure. “Apologies for the intrusion but, are you by chance Guan Yu”? The Celtic warrior attempted in simplified Mandarin and it warranted a smile from the old man.
“I appreciate the effort but, your pronunciation needs work. I hope your English is better”. The old man replied in English as he stood and bowed his head to the stranger. “No one has called me by that name for quite some time but, yes. I respond to that name”. Guan Yu replied gently.
Cu Chulainn laughed. “My English isn’t that much better I’m afraid”. He joked as he rubbed the back of his head clearly embarrassed by his mishap with attempting to use Mandarin. “It’s an honor to meet China’s great Saint of War”. He followed up with as he lowered his head yet again. “I’m Cu Chulainn. The Morrigan has sent me to check on the progress of Fa Mulan and Nezha”. The warrior stated plainly as he straightened up.
“Of course…. Well… this is how you say; a good news bad news situation I’m afraid”. He said as he stroked his beard slowly. “Mulan has ascended completely. Upon regaining all of her memories she decided she wants nothing to do with battles. She wants this to be her last life… and Nezha died too soon after ascending. He has made no progress towards awakening”. The older ascended continued now locking eyes with Cu Chulainn.
“That all”? Cu Chulainn responded with a half chuckle. “Can you tell me where I can find her”? He asked calmly.
“She is staying with me while she prepares to return to her human life. It will be quite the shock either way. Up the stairs third door on the left”. Guan Yu said as he gestured where to go with his head.
Cu Chulainn bowed to him before inviting himself into the older ascended’s home. He followed the instructions to the room he was told he’d find Mulan in. He knocked but, received no reply. He tried again yet, nothing still. He sighed before opening the door.
It was dark and cluttered. He stepped over discarded clothing as he entered. The only light came from the television that had a small pink haired girl sitting in front of it. In her hands rested a controller that at the moment her brightly colored fingers were jabbing away at the buttons. She wore a black sports bra and a pair of orange tripp pants. Over her ears are an orange pair of headphones. Likely the reason she didn’t hear him enter the room. When he stepped within a certain radius of her those almond colored eyes widened. She sat on the floor so, when she entered this heightened awareness she paused the game and spun her body around sweeping Cu Chulainn’s legs out from under him. He fell and before he could collect himself the girl had a pair of nunchucks out. They have a striking resemblance to the spear that broke on the moon. Cu Chulainn barely dodged as she swung the weapon at him. He never fully got off the ground as she managed to get to her feet. She planted a bare foot on his chest and started screaming at him in Mandarin.
Cu Chulainn put his hands up defensively as he tried to explain himself in a poor mixture of Mandarin and English.
The pink haired girl sighed as she stopped swinging her weapon and held it under her left armpit. “I speak English! What the hell are you doing in my room”?! She spoke loudly but very in control.
Cu Chulainn laughed. “Sorry lass. Didn’t mean ta give ya a fright. I’m Cu-“ he is stopped by her pressing down on his torso with her foot.
“You’re here on behalf of the council… you can tell those fuckers ta piss off”. She said mocking his accent as she resumed sitting in front of her television and picked up her controller to play her game.
“That was actually pretty good lass”. He teased as he sat up from where she had pinned him previously. “Can I at least ask why you’re turning your back on saving the entirety of the universe”? He asked as he crossed one leg under the other.
“As far as I am concerned I did my part. I died for them. And really for what? I’m a joke. A Princess? I’m a princess? I’ve never been a princess. Aside from the point though, I’m just tired of fighting. I want a normal life. I have a job and a loving family. I don’t want to leave that behind this time”. She stated plainly as she only half paid attention and played her game.
He sighed as he got a little closer to her. “Will you at least help Nezha? I hear he’s having troubles getting started on the path to ascension”. He offered slowly. “I swear no one will come to check on you after that”. He continued sounding defeated.
Mulan moved the headphone from her ear closest to Cu Chulainn off her ear. “I’ll tell you what I told Guan Yu: he died too close to his ascension. His spirit won’t recognize anybody. I already attempted to make contact but, he paid me no mind. Now, I believe we are done here. Please leave”. She said bluntly as she gestured towards the door with her nose as she continued playing.
“The Fa Mulan I knew was a symbol of perseverance. You are disgracing her. How could you roll over like this”!? Cu Chulainn raised his voice at her as he started to get up onto his feet.
“You watch too many movies”… she came back with as she rolled her eyes at him.
“Oi fuck off you little cu-“ Cu Chulainn started as the sound of a clearing throat overtook him.
“I think it’s time you were going”… Guan Yu interrupted calmly from Mulan’s door.
The Celtic warrior grumbled as he pulled himself onto his feet. He adjusted his jaw as his canine teeth slowly shrank to human size as he breathed deeply trying to get a hold of his anger. “I think you’re right. My apologies for my inconveniencing either of you”. He stated as he bowed to Guan Yu before pushing passed him.
Siberia Russian Forest
Loki, Hanna, Shiva and Ravana sit around a fire while Loki continues to sit on his stump. Hanna breathes heavily with a big goofy grin on her face. “I’d say that’s a good training session. She can put up the shield and hold it now. After one training session. Huh? Ravana? Tell her she did good”. Loki belted out with plenty of snark to spare as he grinned at the bigger ascended.
“Alright alright. I apologize maybe you won’t make a terrible teacher Loki and Hanna congratulations, your passed life would be very pleased”. Ravana stated as he gave in to Loki’s guilt trip.
Hanna was about to thank him when a strange fog rolled in out of no where. Everything, even the fire seemed to go silent as the fog rolled in. “What’s going on”? Hanna asked curiously.
“Baba Yaga”… Loki stated calmly as a chicken leg that seemed to reach up forever stomped into the space behind Loki. The rest of the group jumped but, Loki stayed in place. “Here we go….” He sighed as he turned to look at Baba Yaga’s fabled hut come into view as a second outrageously large chicken leg stomped into view slightly behind the first one.