Elysium

Valhalla

Loki stopped at the grave, his chest heaving from running the whole way there. The grave had a special field where no one could warp in or out, placed there by Loki. Mostly because that was a part of the subspace field that helped hide Mjölnir.

“Hey Nir! Lugh needs your help please you have to save him!”

The hammer did nothing. Loki threw his hands in frustration towards the hammer.

“Please!”

Nothing still. He ran to the hammer and grabbed the handle, a strong shock of lightning coursed from the handle into Loki’s body. “ Pl…ea…se LUGH NEEDS YOU!” He yelled as the lightning continued to shock him, gradually getting stronger as if trying to tell him to let go.

///

Nuada fought off the ghosts around, throwing and punching them. Zhong kui’s ghosts had physical forms in Elysium and the underworld, only on Earth were they the typical ethereal forms in mythology. They did have the ability to go through objects, walls, and the ground.

Zhong kui slightly bent his knees and pushed himself off the roof from his toes. The burly Chinese deity of death flew straight towards Nuada, his weapon ghost-catcher flew with him in the air, as if it had a mind of its own.

He spun in the air like a cannonball and kicked at Nuada who deflected the attack and tried to fire a punch in retaliation. Landing on the ground with grace, Zhong kui blocked it with his arm and started to use barrages of kung fu; the two continued to block, parry, and strike at each other.

But no one was able to land a clean hit. Nuada was starting to think Zhong kui was holding back. After all, he was already hurt from the fight with Lugh, and Zhong kui was coming into this fight at a hundred percent.

Zhong kui grabbed Nuada's left arm by wrapping it around his right arm and then blocked Nuada's next attack with his free arm. He had locked Nuada in place and held him with strength only a warden of hell had.

Ghost-catcher appeared behind Zhong kui flying towards Nuada’s head; he turned to the right as the sword flew, slicing his cheek, blood oozing out. The sword twirled in the air and fired back like a rocket straight towards the back of Nuada’s head.

Using the remaining strength he had, Nuada bent backwards lifting Zhong kui; it looked like he was trying to suplex him. Ghost-catcher stopped midair as his target changed to his master. Hitting the ground Zhong kui let go of Nuada, who stood on his knee struggling to get up after that show of strength.

Ghost-catcher resumed its attack and flew straight towards Nuada, who lifted his silver arm, summoning a small energy shield around his fist, repelling the Chinese godsend.

Zhong Kui’s face cloth had fallen off when Nuada had thrown him and he caught a glimpse at the disfigured deity.

It made him lose his balance even more and fall back on the ground. “You call that disfigured?” he said laughing a bit.

“Are we finished, Nuada?” Zhong kui quickly grabbed the cloth and tied it back over his face. Ghost-catcher flew next to his master ready to return to the fight at any time.

Lugh still sat on the ground where the ghosts had moved him, watching the entire fight. He could have escaped but his pride wouldn’t allow him to. If Nuada still wanted to fight he would give him a fight.

“It’s never going to be finished! Not until I’ve dealt with Lugh!” Nuada yelled, his knees shaking as he finally stood up.

“Lugh has Fragarach, that sword makes anyone tell the truth if they point it at them. If I take it from him and you use it to find out the truth will that be enough?” Zhong kui asked.

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Lugh wondered how Zhong kui knew that. He made sure to barely use Fragarach, the answerer, he would only use it in secret so others wouldn't get upset at him. Nuada also wouldn’t have told anyone about it; he didn’t like the Celtic weapons, skills, and abilities to be known by others outside the Celtic kin.

“NO, that bastard knows how to bypass it! Brigid told me herself.”

Lugh felt even more upset. He had told Brigid that in confidence and not to tell anyone else… and she had told Nuada of all people! He really thought that she was on his side but this was just another revelation that she never truly trusted or respected him.

She really was like everyone else, Lugh thought. Suddenly, he lost any will left to fight anymore.

Zhong kui was losing his patience. He telepathically summoned his warrior ghosts and the ghost tiger. They appeared really to fight back Nuada. “Is this really how the King of the Celtics should act? You have the power to destroy all of the Tuatha Dé Danann!”

“I DON’T CARE!!! He’s not going to keep getting away with this any longer! Someone like Lugh is never going to change! You don’t get to mess with João or any other Machado again. I’m not allowing it.”

Nuada placed his right arm out with his fist open and summoned Cu Chulainn’s mystical axe, the Cruaidín Catutchenn. Lugh eyes widened in shock. “You are crazy! You really are going to destroy the whole island!” Lugh grabbed Failinis and covered him. Nuada raised the legendary axe over his head, using both hands.

Zhong kui sent his ghosts to stop Nuada but it was already too late.

Nuada screamed, a blood curling scream, as he swung the axe down into the ground. The swing caused an earthquake that shook the entire Celtic side of the island. Yes, only the Celtic side; Nuada was no villain, he would not have the Chinese deities and their portion of the island suffer because of him.

Everyone but Nuada felt the powerful quake and lost their balance. The quake was like a shockwave attack that inflicted damage the more you stood in the quake. Lugh was too weak to fly and was already stunned once he felt the first quake. Zhong kui on the other had was trying his best to fly, but the earthquake was something he was unfamiliar with.

A few of his ghosts went underneath him and pushed his feet off the ground to get him in the air, he thanked them and jumped up. He was going to stop Nuada. At least, that was the plan. Nuada was no longer where he’d first smashed the ground.

Now he was near the stunned Lugh. “This is how your electric attacks feel. Taste your own medicine for once, brat.” Nuada lifted the axe once again over his head ready to swing down at Lugh.

Failinis tried his best to get out of Lugh's arm but Lugh held his faithful companion tightly. He knew Failinis would die from this. Nuada let out a scream that held years of resentment and frustration as he unleashed his final attack. Swinging the axe down with the most might and power he had ever displayed in his life.

In that moment a flying object soared, it had two decisions to make. Hit Nuada in the back or block the attack. Hitting Nuada would be the correct choice, if it wasn’t a rage-filled Nuada that could power through the hit and still land the axe on Lugh.

So, instead it quickly flew past Nuada and took the full force of the Cruaidín Catutchenn. Lighting fired out as the axe hit the object. Mjölnir had arrived to save Lugh. When the two godsend weapons hit, it caused an eruption of energy that blew away Nuada, Lugh, and the ground they stood around.

The battlefield was a wasteland. The building that Lugh initially crashed into was now gone and the ground of the Celtic island was filled with rubble and damage that would make it impossible for humans to walk on.

Years of work to make the island a home to the deities was destroyed in seconds. But the Celtics of the Tuatha Dé Danann understood why Nuada acted like this. Nuada flew to the ground and stared at the sky, unable to get up. The Celtic deities had come early and watched the battle unfold. They came closer and started to help Nuada up to his feet. Dian was one of those deities.

Minerva and the archangels had arrived when Zhong kui had, and were asked to standby from Zhong kui himself. No one knew that Nuada would have used Cu’s axe to level the Tuatha Dé Danann. The other Celtic deities that were left went to apprehend Lugh, who was badly injured and locked under rumble.

Both Mjölnir and Failinis stood beside him, either swinging around lighting or barking at the deities who tried to get close to Lugh. They weren’t there to help Lugh; they were there to punish him.

Lugh started to chuckle and then laugh louder and louder. “Why are you only helping him! He’s the one that destroyed your home.”

Mjölnir slammed into the rumble to free Lugh. Failinis came and pulled him up. They all looked at Lugh with hatred and contempt in their eyes, just like Lugh always thought they felt about him.

No one needed to say anything, it was clear as day to everyone watching that the Celtic deities stood by their king and had had enough of Lugh. Zhong kui felt pity and sorrow as he saw the young Celtic trickster stand alone. Of course, he had his companion and the mystical hammer but no one else was taking his side in this manner.

“It’s over, Lugh, no more,” Dian said with a bit of sorrow. Manannán mac Lir stood by Nuada and whispered in his ear, as if he was pleading with him. Nuada continued to stare at Lugh with hatred as Lir spoke. Arawn, who had her mask up, looked worried and moved her head between the two deities that had just fought.

She knew that if she were to side with Lugh and help him up, she would lose the position of warden she was training for. She looked at Zhong kui, one of the few deities she looked up to, and saw how he walked towards Lugh to protect him from everyone that was currently standing against him.

She started to move too. Her and Lugh had always been friends, it wasn’t fair to her that they treated him like this. As she was about to leave the crowd, Lugh and her locked eyes and he shook his head no.

He knew if she did this she would be giving up all the years of training to be a warden. She mouth out, “but it’s not fair”. Lugh replied to her also mouthing out words.

“Yeah… not fair to you.”

Arawn stopped moving and slid her mask down, it didn’t cover the tears that were rolling down her face. “Warden Zhong kui, please stand aside, this is Celtic business. We have let Lugh get away with too much in the past. The Tryfing is sacred to us, our king has been chosen and Lugh tried to ruin–”

“He didn’t do it!”

Everyone looked at the blue skinned deity with pointy ears and long brown hair who landed between Lugh and the Celtics. Loki had finally appeared from Valhalla.

“It was me… I did it.”

Lugh got up and slowly walked towards his trickster brethren. His face was a mixture of confusion, fatigue, and anger. He grabbed Loki and spun him around, punching him to the ground.

“Why?! Why would you ruin the Tryfing for Nuada, for everyone!?”

He kept punching him, using the energy he had saved up from watching Zhong kui battle Nuada. No one went to stop Lugh. He repeatedly punched Loki’s face, which Loki allowed. Mjölnir finally flew towards Lugh and pulled Lugh’s shoulder back, telling him that it was enough.

“I never asked you to do this! I wanted to pull tricks on the battlefield and the Fantasia world, not something like this!”

Loki said nothing; no one on the Tuatha Dé Danann did either.