Part 3

A being that was, from the very beginning, damned. That was who Brynhild truly was.

The reason for her existence in the castle, and the explanation for how there were two of her, was quite simple. From the moment she was created, she was fated to be nothing more than that of a gift, a tool, or even a slave. That was the destiny of Brynhild for the first person who came upon her and managed to reach her deep inside the castle.

In Norse Mythology, her tale was one of tragedy. She was tricked, betrothed and given away to a man who she believed had conquered the very same ring of flame that lay outside the castle. While the flaming ring was meant to only allow those who were strong enough to claim her, the one who entered the castle was simply a man who was helping a friend. While fairly benign, it culminated in leaving her in the hands of someone who she thought was responsible for saving her.

Such a simple action might not have been made with evil intentions, but it undoubtedly resulted in a terrible series of events. In a fit of rage after discovering that the man who saved her wasn’t her true rescuer, she violently killed the man who saved her, before throwing herself in the funeral pyre of the very man she killed. It was a story of ironic fate, in a way. Instead of living a full life with her true love, she left the world with the man instead.

With such a dramatic story, those who created her saw fit that her story be similar, if only just as damning. Become the slave of the first person who reaches you here and fall utterly in love with them. Man, woman, or even monster, that was her fate. However, it was a fate that was well known to her. And as such…

“That’s why I brought you here. In the state you are in, one that is both a dream, and an illusion, I couldn’t ask for anything better. You see, what this place truly is, from the moment you entered, is a dream of my own.” Brynhild admitted with a sad look. “Nothing but a dream, but that is what enabled us to speak like this.”

While her main body was utterly helpless, she was left free to wander in her dreams. It was a simple, but effective method to seek out those like Drake.

“The entrance to my plane is hidden, to a terrifying degree. It was built so that no normal being could reach me, and even those who could require a degree of resistance to the flames that might even mirror my own. However, there are tools on the outside that would allow people to find the entrance, and a spare few that would even allow them to approach the ring of flames without harm. They are rare, but not wholly so. Given those tools, if a person managed to reach me, through the terrifying flames of this place, and the towering wall of fire surrounding the castle itself, my life might as well be over.”

Her beautiful form had sunk into one of deep melancholy. Imagining such an outcome must have been torture for her. From the moment that someone overcame the trials of this plane, she would be nothing but a mindless tool. A terrifying prospect for any being, especially one so powerful. All the more that she would be utterly helpless during such a process.

A vital part of her own myth involved a mystical sleep that Odin had put her under for disobeying the gods. She wouldn’t wake until a warrior that was brave enough reached her. The reason behind her own situation differed a bit, but the mystical sleep she was under was all the same. Despite the intimidating power Drake faced in her dream, it was nothing but an illusion, much like his own situation. No matter what, she wouldn’t be able to alter her fate with her own power. All the more reason to seek out others who could help her instead.

A faint, thoughtful smile passed over Drake’s lips as he looked on, taking in her story piece by piece. “So, you needed help. You needed someone you could convince to rescue you, but the real question is, how would I be any different? From what you’ve explained, from the moment I entered your plane, I’d be treated like any average person.” He said with sly indifference.

“I would enter and wake you just like all the rest. Nothing you’ve said has indicated that I’d be any different, and I have no doubt that you’re underplaying just how difficult it is to pass that ring of fire outside,” Drake told her.

Even in the illusionary dream, he felt that the barrier was dangerous, which only emphasized just how powerful a protection Brynhild truly had. There wasn’t any doubt in his mind that even in the illusion he would have been incinerated if one of the Jinn hadn’t let him through. Moreover, the implications of her fate left a somewhat sour taste in her mouth, if she was just planning to get him to release her.

Brynhild was certainly beautiful, yes. Almost overwhelmingly so, but the prospects of what it meant if he awoke her himself didn’t appeal to him. No matter what she became, she would be forced to obey him, a status that he neither wanted himself, or to impose on her. Not to mention the dangers that were no doubt involved in saving her.

As for Brynhild herself, she looked on with mixed approval, only giving a wave of her hand before saying, “You’re correct, but only just so. If you simply overcame the flames of this plane, without me having drawn you here first, then I would certainly share the same fate.” She nodded freely, a faint smile on her lips. “However, my drawing you into this place allows me to break that rule, as long as I establish something beforehand.”

“Establish what?” He asked.

“A rule and a restriction. I give two gifts, and in exchange, it frees me from the enforced slavery and enforces that you must do something for me in return. A bit of give and take, essentially.” A mysterious smile grew, before quickly disappearing.

“A rule and restriction…”

Brynhild’s interference with dream-like illusion that made up his trial had caused him to recover quite a large majority of his most recent memories, if not his own power. However, never once had he ever heard of a rule and restriction, even when it came to magic. His own power was fairly rudimentary, but it had never had any true problems with forcing it to do as he wished. The gap between his own magic, and that of others always mystified him though.

The magic of humans was restrictive but varied in ways that he could never hope to mimic. Gwyndolyn’s own magic was equally varied, but he had never put much thought into how she was able to imitate or even improve on his own magic and that of other demons. She simply just did it. The process in which she did was entirely too alien for him to even hope of copying her.

“You mentioned gifts. Just what gifts are you planning to give me?” He tilted his head with a curious expression. In an illusion like this, there was only one sort of gift that was even possible. Knowledge.

A cheerful laugh escaped her lips as she looked to Drake. “Nothing too much. Just a secret or two.”

“Have you ever wondered what the basis for magic is? I have no doubt you’ve seen the differences between yourself and others, but surely you’ve at least tried to imitate it.”

The basis for magic?

Drake shook his head with a mixed sense of curiosity, as he raised his hand. A short crackle of electricity was let loose from his hand, which only left him feeling a bit miffed at the difference between the fake magic and his own, not to mention the crystals that it formed on an almost instinctive manner. He had initially used them to imitate one of Gwyn’s own tricks and had connected them with the cores of those he couldn’t understand naturally. A simple enough trick, and one that he considered himself lucky to discover.

Giving a short sigh, he said, “I’ve only attempted simple things. It seems that it’s impossible for me to really do much more than that, really. That said, I can speak with others without a contract. That alone is already quite a gift for me. Although, I have a friend to thank for giving me the idea.”

“Oh, the false humility. Everyone wishes that they could do more, so who do you believe you’re speaking to?” She replied with a clear ringing in her voice, as she aggressively pushed forward.

“Let me be straightforward, then. Your magic is your own, correct?”

“Um, yeah.” He responded, almost speechless with the strange line of questioning. “It’s… just mine. Something that I was given and have had ever since,” Drake responded.

She chuckled, before pointing to him with a clear smile, “Let me be clear, and say that your magic is yours alone, not something you were given. Tell me, if it’s something that was merely handed to you, what is the difference between your own magic, and that of Yami.”

“Yami, well…” He glanced down at the small Ariel who only looked up to him with large eyes. She was right, the difference in how they received their powers were obviously different. Since his transformation, it had been apart of him. Comparing that to Yami’s own situation was almost silly by comparison.

“Your own magic is innate, and unbounded. Even if you lost all links to those you’ve bound yourself to, your power wouldn’t change in the least,” she laughed.

Twisting her finger in the air, as if playing with a string, she explained, “Broadly speaking, there are four different types of magic. Innate, Bounded, that of simple knowledge, and well… my own type. Although, the similarities between Innate and my own are less than you might think.”

There are different types of magic? Drake took the information on with a look of mystified wonder. He had always wished to understand more, but honestly, asking for a simple teacher would be impossible. The basis for his mana was too obtuse, and was so rare, that it was impossible to compare it to anything else.

“So… Innate and Bounded. From how you explained it, you mean it to be similar to me and Yami.”

A clear smile showed itself, as she simply nodded. “Indeed. The powers of an Innate can vary, but they are always influenced directly by some part of the owner’s psyche. Although, monsters are the ones who most commonly have this type. A fairy’s ability to fly without truly flapping their wings would be a fair example. As for bounded, that should be obvious.”

The owner’s psyche… Drake mulled it over for only a moment, before responding, “Right. Bounded is a type of magic that is based on others.”

It wasn’t hard to see that Yami and Therion’s powers were based entirely on this type. The owner was capable of choosing very specific traits to pass on, so while Yami received his power in whole, Therion only received a portion. The method to transfer those powers might differ to some extent, but the end result was always the same.

“Magic that you are born with, and magic that is given to you. Simple enough.” He smirked. The other two however…

“So, knowledge. That would be something like learning from experience, or from books?” The idea left him muddled. He had seen humans use magic, and to his knowledge, they all seemed to learn it naturally. Then again, he had never spent much time with a legitimate user of magic to learn the actual method.

“Not quite.” She answered. “It would be more accurate to say that they’re simply gifted the knowledge.”

Brynhild tilted her head towards the nearby wall, merely taking a rather academic expression as she continued, “How much do you know about the network of mana that surrounds the world?”

Network of mana? Drake paused, letting him mind wander until he suddenly hit upon something.

Does she mean what Morgan mentioned? That grid that she connects to actually surrounds the whole world? Drake grumbled internally, and he pondered over the information. From how Morgan described everything it was as if…

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“Wait… do they get new spells through a stream of mana,” Drake asked with a wide-eyed look. “Is a thing like that even possible?”

He had seen something strange. A stream of almost incandescent mana, so thin that he had a hard time seeing it at all. A stream that entered Morgan’s body when she drank from the mana well, and again when she recharged herself. He didn’t think much of it at the time, but now…

“So, you have seen it,” Brynhild smiled. “It’s less a stream however, and merely data. The process skips so many essential steps of magic, that it becomes almost impossible for them to attempt the real thing. Your friend Grant, however. The one in the illusion, that was true magic.”

Drake smirked as he looked to Brynhild. So, she knew of him as well. Well, it wasn’t all too surprising. He had already learned that the illusion was all too simple for her to interfere with. No doubt learning of what happened would be just as simple, if she took the time. His time unconscious inside her plane provided her with just such a chance.

Still, true magic? All Grant ever did was just play with simple stones, doing no more than twist them around and make use of them much like he did his own crystal shards. He was able to form small hideaways out of stone, but even that took a lot out of him. How did something like that compare to the full-fledged lightning bolt that he had seen Morgan blast out of her fingertip?

“You’ll have to explain,” Drake added reluctantly.

“Of course, of course. For simplicity’s sake, let me say that it is the most complicated, yet simple of the types, given that it can be combined with the others. Take most mages who follow such a system, for example. If you are simply gifted the knowledge, it is by far the most effective system of magic. Devastating spells become as simple as breathing, but using this system alone comes with considerable drawbacks. Say you wanted to modify a spell for example. For a being like you or me, it would come down to our own imagination,” she explained.

“How though, would one do the same if you were simply given the spell?”

Drake simply shook his head at the thought. Truthfully, he had never really used a spell, rather, he had only manipulated his mana in whatever form he wished. It was as horrifyingly simple, but that was only because it had the same base. For someone to try to make a fireball into a block of ice, or a locating spell like ‘detect magic’ into anything different would almost impossible, even within the same class of spells. You would need to be incredibly gifted to even attempt such a thing.

“It’s too much to ask,” he said reluctantly.

“Exactly. However, much like you saw with Grant, those with the potential were often able to train their magic without the use of spells. This is even before the legitimate system you see now was fully implemented. Now, how is that?”

Wait… Drake paused. She’s right.

He was able to use it the entire time, in fact, it was one of the main reasons why he and Lance had grown so close to the gnome. He was never stingy, and often used it to improve their situation out in the wild, creating anything from simple containers to an entire structure they lived in over the course of a few days. That, combined with the malleable earth magic he used in combat made him the perfect teammate, in a manner of speaking.

He had done all of that without so much a word. But didn’t that mean…

“Was he an innate, like me?” Drake asked

Brynhild clicked her tongue at the response. She looked to him, then motioned to herself, “That torrent of flame you saw from me before, even the storm mana that you hold inside that false body, is entirely different than what he was attempting.”

As she spoke, mana from the environment began to stream towards her right hand in an unending flow. It coalesced in a whirling storm of mana, as small sparks began to appear inside it before suddenly flaring up into the same blue flame he recognized. The flame cradled her hand, as the light shone with an ethereal glow.

“He takes the mana from the environment and molds it to do what he wants. The strain of doing so causes mages to undergo much more trouble, whereas we use the mana inside our body.”

She made a quick motion, only for a similarly blue flame to appear in her left hand. Everything about it, from the flickering light, to the dark-blue ember that shone in the core was entirely similar. If he hadn’t seen her form the other one out of the environment, he would have said they were simply one in the same.

“It’s quite simple, really. The only difference being, running out of the energy we form inside us can be dangerous, whereas for them, they merely suffer a bit of fatigue from overuse,” she explained with that same scholarly look as before.

“However, the amount of mana used can be can be reduced with a simple trick, even eliminating it outright given the right circumstances. Given a bit of thought, and it’s obvious.”

Eliminate the cost?

Drake murmured quietly to himself, as he thought over it. Even the most mundane of magic required some cost, but somehow it could be reduced until it was almost negligible? Summing it all down, what Grant had been using was True magic. Exactly like his own, it was wordless, but relied on the mana in the environment. Morgan was the same, but was capable of using drastically more powerful spells, while only restricted to those spells she knew. Besides being more restricted, he really couldn’t see the difference between the two.

Wait… restrictions…?

His eyes lit up with the sudden realization, and equally, his own stupidity. Brynhild had been leading him the entire time, in fact, it seemed that this entire conversation revolved exactly around the point she was trying to make. From the very beginning, she had mentioned it, and from there, the explanation was only to make it as obvious as possible to give him a solid basis for understanding.

Giving a short, almost painfully depreciative laugh, he looked to Brynhild. “It’s a restriction, right? Or to put it simply, a phrase which relates directly to the spell. If Grant had cemented certain actions with certain phrases, he would have drastically reduced the power to use them, while increasing the power associated with them.”

Brynhild revealed a pleased smile as she nodded. “Exactly. It took a bit of doing, but that’s the basis for it all.”

“Ha… that’s so…” He sighed before shaking his head. The solution was so mundane, that it completely slipped past him. One would still have to keep to your own type, so it wasn’t a huge advantage, but you would excel so much in your own type, that it almost wouldn’t matter. It would only matter in how you formulated your own spells, although that in itself was its own type of barrier. It would mean coming up with all the spells that others were just handed, although with the right imagination it wouldn’t be too hard.

To put it simply, it just required a bit of association work. It was like recalling the texture, smell, and shape of a tree when one thought of the word for ‘tree’, or just how the work ‘rock’ reminded people of the weight, texture, and inflexibility of a rock. It was a form of magic that relied almost entirely on one’s own experiences, and which explained to Drake why no one had really been able to come up with it on their own, besides simple tricks.

In the short term, people would always move towards the sources of power that would give them be best chance for survival, especially in a world where that was paramount. Only in cases where one was especially gifted would they even attempt to move further down such a path, if they had a choice that is. Even then, it would still be viewed as the weaker choice, given the sheer variety of spells given to others. You’d even need to work at it to reach the same level of power as others.

“For someone like me however, it can only help,” Drake said with a sly smile.

“She’s lying to you.”

“Yami?”

She interjected between the conversation for the first time, her voice full of conviction, “She’s lying about something,” she said as she lifted herself up. “I don’t know why, but I can tell.”

“Now, think about your actions.” Brynhild let loose a forced smile, as she looked to the small figure. The Ariel returned an equally venomous look, as she recovered more of herself and her memories. Yami had been hard at work shuffling through what memories she had, and her more combative nature had made a comeback as she had.

“If you’re actually going to help him, then don’t hold anything back. Otherwise, all these so-called secrets will only hurt him.”

“It’s not the sort of thing that I can help him with. It’s best if he discovers it on his own.”

“Tell him.”

“Yami-”

She quickly raised her hand towards Drake before flying up in-between them, her expression cautious but forceful. It was obvious to everyone that she was the weakest, especially when she was only a fragment of the original. It wouldn’t be exaggerated to say that even Drake himself had the foresight to not antagonize the beautiful Valkyrie, but Yami was never one to let things go, especially when she knew someone was lying.

The skepticism and caution she felt towards others had long been drilled into her bones, especially given her ability to feel out the feelings of others. It was weaker, but that same ability had begun to return, and every fiber of her being was telling her that Brynhild was hiding something from them.

“Tell him.” Yami whispered, her eyes locked in step with the Valkyrie.

Brynhild returned the fierce stare, not moving an inch as the two looked to each other. She hadn’t anticipated the young Ariel’s return to power, in a manner of speaking. Not to mention, Drake would trust his partner more than her, which could easily leave her advice as useless as if she hadn’t said a thing. How incredibly troublesome…

“Haa…” As if all the fight left her, a horribly cheerful sound escaped from Brynhild, more a frustrated sigh than anything else, as she shook her head.

“I can’t believe I’m letting nothing more than a fragment boss me around. What have I come to…”

The strained laughter from Brynhild lasted for only a moment, before she lowered her head, her eyes trailing to her hand. Raising it, a small, insignificant flame appeared. It looked as if it was the same type as all her other fire, as it still had that beautifully vibrant glow, but the power behind it had significantly decreased. If it was powered by air, it would be a succinct comparison to say all the oxygen had gone out, leaving a horribly poor amount of fuel powering it.

“This is my power, without any ‘effort’ behind it.”

“What?”

“I won’t say it again; you heard me perfectly well. The path of modifying your own power is difficult. Without the proper thought behind it, it will be twenty, or even ten percent of what is normally possible.”

“Wha… How is that?!” Drake was on the verge of shouting, his head shaking back forth as his mind strained at the massive difference.

“Your little… friend,” Brynhild growled, “saw through me.”

Raising her finger, she moved it back and forth, her gaze trapped firmly on the two of them.

“Condensing down all the features of a magic you desire, down to one spell, and how hard would it be? Imagine any animal, even a human, and try to imagine it fully. Now, just how many details are missing? Do they have all their fingers? If it’s a human, do they have both their face, and feet at the same time? Do you lose the details in the middle if you focus on both?”

Her gaze hardened again, “That’s the sort of concentration that is needed to properly hone your powers. What you have been doing actually mimics this somewhat, only without the control behind it. You manually control everything at once and lose it the moment you stop.”

A disdainful sigh emerged as she merely murmured to herself for a moment, her voice utterly silent, “Although, I should say it’s impressive that you got this far, given you sealed away the one providing that focus.”

Returning her gaze to Drake, she continued, “True magic is different, because it’s based purely on this concept. If you have a system of magic that codifies the system so thoroughly that you don’t need to think about it, and you firmly understand your own powers…”

The small flame suddenly flared, easily becoming three times the size it was before. The heat from the flame was washing over them in waves, let alone the immense amount of power she was radiating as the flame began to slowly circle her hand.

“That’s where you see the true difference. Although my own circumstance isn’t comparable, experience is best to truly cultivate this power. It’s not something anyone can teach. You need to build your own thoughts and ideas on what best represents your power.”

The flame dissipated just as easily as it began, leaving the Valkyrie with a mixed expression. Although Yami may have had an inkling, Brynhild’s own ideas over Drake’s true body left her with the feeling of helplessness. If only her true body was awake, with his here as well…

“Well, that’s all I can really say.” She ended rather abruptly, merely leaving Yami and Drake to stare at her with a neutral expression.

A magic that was formed from imagination alone, that’s the crux of what she was getting to. One of limitless possibilities, but equally, one utterly constrained by one’s own power and thoughts. In hindsight, it wasn’t hard to see why she wished to keep it a secret. Such a secret, if spread, could turn the entire system of magic on its head, given the right push.

At such an idea, Drake couldn’t help but smile at the brash Ariel. She helped me once again, but isn’t this a bit too much?

In terms of a mere ‘gift’, the information he received was massive, and Yami had only exacerbated it all. If knowing of the different types of magic would be helpful, and learning the inner workings of magic would be invaluable, what would it be when he had learned the inner workings of the laws of the new world? It was comparable to learning of the laws of gravity or aviation centuries before they were discovered. It was a gift that was incomparable to all others.

At such a realization, Drake could only describe his feelings as one of deep gratitude. Both to his partner, and to Brynhild for revealing such a secret to him.

“Thank you.” Drake bowed to the Valkyrie, without stating another word. This wasn’t the sort of thing he could ever pay back with words alone, but it was a start.

“Hm. At least you have manners.” Brynhild said with a rather pointed look at Yami.

Returning her gaze to Drake with a small smile, she said, “Well, before we finish, let me give you a small bit of advice, aside from the last gift.”

“Advice?”

“Learn to trust in yourself more. If you don’t, you’ll both end up falling, and leave everyone that cares for you behind.”

Drake accepted the cryptic words with an uncertain nod, before looking to Yami. He would do whatever he could to make sure that they always stayed together.

“I’ll do my best.”

“Good.” A small smile escaped from her, only for it to slowly fade away as she looked between Drake and Yami. She raised her hand again, with her expression quickly becoming very serious.

“I trust you both. Please, make it back here.”

Hearing the sudden change in tone, Drake went to open his mouth, only for an intense wave of mana to blow towards him. Holding up his hands, he could clearly see the violet skin that had surrounded his new body began to warp and tear away, only this time, a deep shade of red appeared under it, along with a feeling of newfound power.

The powerful mana that was released warped and changed Yami as well, and within mere moments, Brynhild watched as the forms of the duo faded away into ribbons of mana, their illusionary forms dissipating entirely as they began to make their back to their bodies.

Brynhild quickly turned away, the emotion in her voice quickly spiraling down into sadness, as she spoke a few last words. In her mind, they were both already gone, but despite that, Drake could have sworn he heard the Valkyrie mutter a few words as the last pieces of himself faded away.

“Please, I don’t want to stay here any longer.”