Chapter 25

"Ugh... Bwugh" Takae heaved as she held onto the side of the boat.

"Well, at least we know now that you can't handle sea travel," I said with mirth

.

"Shut u-uugh" And Takae puked again.

"Hmm..." -sigh- "Fine." I lightly touched the boat and it stopped. "I can't believe you're okay with flying on the vimana but can't handle a boat." I laughed as my fingers shined blue. "There, there." I patted her back and her face went from green to her normal pale pink in a few seconds. "Better?"

"Yeah... Can't we just use the flying carriage or something?" She's pouting.

Smiling I kissed her briefly. "Fine." With a mischievous grin, I suddenly jumped as my vimana appeared and the boat disappeared, of course, she fell onto the water. "My, oh my, Takae, you're so slow today~"

"It's so damn cold!" She shouted. "NAT! Help me up, you bitch!"

"Hahahaha!" A little bit of telekinesis and she's up. "Lighten up." and suddenly I lost my smile, oops. Maybe I should have done that in another place. That water was filled with her vomit. Ugh.

"Ah..."

"... I am gonna kill you if you don't fix this." She glared daggers at me.

-sigh- I waved my hand and a little handkerchief appeared. "Just put it on your head and think about what you want to remove." I rolled my eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, miss! You're the one who did this to me!" Damn, she's angry. I mean, she's probably right, but... Oh well.

A few minutes later, we're sitting in silence on the vimana, Takae is cuddling me as I run my fingers through her hair. "I am sorry, are you feeling better?" I ask with trepidation.

"It's okay, you wanted to cheer me up I know. It's just... I dislike the sea... And the rocking of the waves... And corals... And ships, and boats, and fishes, and corals, and... Is that a fucking giant

snake?" She suddenly asks me as she points towards the humungous unmissable snake that she somehow missed while she was having performance issues on the boat.

"Yup. It's been there even before we got into the boat." I pat her head.

"... Is it looking at us?" Takae asks as she slowly tenses her muscles.

"Yup. It's been watching us since we got into the boat." I smirk as my hand rests on her waist.

"... Does it understand us?"

"Yup. In fact, it's been trying to communicate with us since we got into the boat." I start to laugh as I snap my fingers, and the bubble that protected us from the elements and sound broke.

Jormungandr suddenly zeroed on us, its giant head a few meters from us. It closed his eyes for but a moment, and when it opened them, the snake spoke. A rumbling noise reminiscing of the shattering of the world, like several caverns grinding on each other, it even had its own echo within its own words.

"Iooooooor hun-meeeeeee tuuuuuuuurg?" Asked the world coiler.

Hm. I see. Grabbing Takae's trembling hand, I answer the snake. "Luuuuur-nel laaaaan-vig haaaaaaaar tur naaaaaa" Takae looks at me dumfounded and, well, it seems she's about to laugh at me. I grip her hand stronger and slightly shake my head. Her mouth zips but she's looking at me with amusement.

"Duuuun laaaaaaar mir." The snake states and suddenly it leaves to sleep once again on the mountain it was.

I snap my fingers and the bubble of silence surrounds us once more.

"Not gonna lie, whatever that language is... It sounds dumb as fuck... It was scary though." She sighs as her shoulders drop.

"So, what did it want?" She asks me once she sits down on my lap.

"It asked who or what we were, I answered travelers, companions of the bald one, and then it said whatever," I smirk at Takaes frozen face.

"What?" She asks me.

"Hm? What what?" I asked with a smile.

"I... Did it say whatever? Like, literally?"

"Well, the equivalent of it, yeah." I nod.

"Huh... Alright." She mulls for a second. "The bald one, really?"

"Yup. Anyways, I don't want to look for Kratos and Atreus anymore. I lost the motivation for it." I say as rest my back on the throne of the vimana.

"Hm... So, what do you wanna do?" She asks me as her hands bring my head to her bosom.

"Well, let's look for Brok's brother. Also, Brok is there." I said pointing to the big bridge that crosses the water. "I can feel the little smurf over there," I smirk as Takae snorts.

"Don't be rude." Said the woman who snorted at that.

"Don't be self-righteous," I argue back, as I grope her ass.

"I am? Actually?" She tilts her head as her cheeks slowly gain a rosy color.

"Maybe? You're a goody-two-shoes at the very least, don't think I didn't notice the almost thirty cats you said goodbye to back in your 'home'" I grin as one of my hands fondles her chest.

"Hey, don't say home like that. I made it." She pouts even as she starts to slowly rotate her hips.

"You made it, out of cardboard." I deadpan at her.

"Hmpf. I like cats, what of it?" She started kissing my neck.

"Nothing... I love cats too, you're my little vagabond kitten after all." I whisper in her ear as our clothes disappear.

It's a few hours later that we descend on Brok's new shop.

"Aye, I thought I smelled fish. You girls should clean better after fuckin', who do you think will frequent my shop if it smells like sex, huh?" He rounds on us with a smirk.

"Ah, don't tease poor Takae too much, she's weak on her knees for a while," I smirk as I clasp his hand. "Just so you know, I haven't washed that hand."

"Ah!" He drops my hand and runs to the water of his forge. "You nasty clitwetter, motherfucker!" I snort at his insults.

"Ah... Don't trust her, she's lying," Takae says even if her face is red with embarrassment.

"Ah, I was having fun." I pout.

"Tsk. Should have known. Anyway, girl, I got your blades, but you don't have the boots yet, do you? Pfft, should have known." He took a stone from who knows where and threw it at me. "Here, look that? That pile of rocks there? With that key of Yggdrasil, you can open a magic door to the branches of the world tree." He says as I turn around and the rocks form a runic formation, a magical door appearing in it. The blue magic denotes the divinity of the tree. "A shortcut if you will, if you ever see others 'round the world, use it to get back to me. But it's only one way. Straight back here and nowhere else. And whatever you do, never, never, EVER, never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever throw yourself over the edge of the path... Lest you want death." He warns us, it doesn't matter how grumpy he is, he's a good guy.

"Hmm~ A door is never just one-way," I answer in a sing-song voice.

Just as his face suddenly grows horrified, I grab Takae and run towards the door.

As we reappear in a blue world, walls of infinite surround us, far and near at the same time, we stand on roots, bigger than a large road, the white roots disappear into the void.

"Was that really necessary?" Takae asks as I let her down.

"Well, no, but it was fun." Now, what do we have here... I smile as I look around.

"So, what are we here for?" She asks.

"Well, Yggdrasil roots burrow on the nine realms, and I don't think Brok will allow anyone else but his customers to travel through here. So, we're gonna camp here while I do a few tests on the roots while we wait for Kratos and Atreus to come here." I shrug.

"Well, if you say so. Can I help or something?" She asks neutrally, but the eagerness of her eyes betrays her tone. She expects me to say no, huh.

"Yeah, alright. Hmm, what do you say we get a little bit of the strength of the roots to ourselves." I grin at her.

"Isn't that dangerous?"

"Well, yes and no. Yggdrasil was dead back home when I knew how to do it, but I am positive it will work. Maybe." I smile bashfully.

"Hmm... Well, I trust you."

"First... Were gonna bleed." I nod thoughtfully for a second before I decided to explain. "Every single ritual in existence has two or more steps. The two steps common in all rituals are binding and desire. In this case, the binding is us and the roots, and the desire is our wish for strength. You can't do a successful ritual without a desire for it if you do a ritual just because you were ordered to, or didn't really want it... It will not work." While I explain I was taking a few boulders made of obsidian from my ring, making a semi-circle.

"The binding is the act of linking the ritual itself with you. Be it emotionally, spiritually, or physically. We're gonna bind our blood to the roots of Yggdrasil. The tree is used to drink blood, after all." I end up with a whisper thinking of Odin.

"Anyways... Remember to infuse your blood with your energy. It's hard to focus when you're bleeding, after all." I grin as I use salt to surround the boulders and link one another via a path of salt. All paths lead to the center, where I put a big bowl made of stone. Big enough to bathe. To bathe a few people. Or cook people, it was made originally for that. Not something Takae needs to know, after all.

"Put all your clothes away," I say as my clothes disappear into my ring.

A little box appears in my hands and I just... Look at it. How many years has it's been? All my efforts, six thousand years accumulated in a little box.

"Are you okay?" Takae asks me, touching lightly my arm.

"...Yeah" I eye the box one last time, before I throw it into the bowl, breaking it in the process. "No. Maybe. It's hard, let me wrap my head around it and I'll tell you later." I step inside the bowl ignoring its contents, "Come here."

Takae stands opposite me, our hands intertwined above the bowl. Two daggers appear beside me, I quickly hold them with my energy, not letting them fall, just float around.

"Alright, listen. Rituals with Yggdrasil are really simple after all. It wants blood and commitment, nothing more. If you were to impale yourself to it for a month it will work as well, see? It's a simple being. So, you trust me?" I ask looking at her in the eyes. I need her approval, or it won't work.

"With everything that is me." She nodded to me resolutely and immediately, happiness flooding me. Even if my self-hatred is greater right now. But I am convinced we need this, this conviction wins over my fears or anger at hurting her.

"Then... Just close your eyes, and infuse your blood with your energy for as long as you can. Ignore the pain, ignore the struggles, just... Try to keep living and desire strength. Above everything, strength is what you want. It doesn't matter what form you give it in your head, just wish for it. Don't stop until I tell you to, alright?" I ask tentatively, letting her know the pain she will suffer.

"Alright. Desire. Love... Hehe, you're really sappy, you know that, Nat? I love you." She closes her eyes. Waiting for the dagger to plunge into her chest.

"I love you too," I answer even as a tear rolls down my cheek, is it a tear of sadness because of the betrayal I was going to do? Of happiness for her infinite trust in me? Who knows. I don't, that's for sure. Why am I being so damn emotional lately!?

"You're thinking too much, Nat." Takae chided me with an amused smile even as her eyes are closed.

With a quirk on my lips, I smile a crooked smile. I infuse my whole being with my energy, with only two trails left to control the daggers.

Two simple daggers, made eight thousand years ago, his first work, twin daggers to symbolize our love. I am attached to them, I look at them fondly. Is it wrong that I am using them on the person I now love? A new true beginning so to speak.

I snap my fingers, and the daggers find purchase in our chest. A pained gasp leaves Takae-It stabs cold and uncompromising, there's a hidden warmth to it though, it feels like love.

I slowly bring us down, folding Takae's legs so she's sitting cross-legged in front of me. Her breath is ragged but stabilizes as she holds strong.

Our blood runs across our bodies, slowly filling the bowl, and washing over the items inside it. I close my eyes the moment the bowl alights itself, the salt around it suddenly blazing blue, a trail of blue fire surrounding us.

Most likely it also followed the path it had, going towards the obsidian boulders and surrounding them. Our hands never leave each other, strength. Strength for her, to protect her, I am not strong enough.

I wish for the force needed, I don't want to lose anything more to the gods. And that's the thing is it not? I am so scared despite my strength, despite all I have... I am scared because they are unbounded gods. After all, I have Takae with me, and I know how petty gods are.

That's why... I need strength, or at least, something to tell me how to become stronger than any god.

The bowl is already filled to our waist. Takae's breath is pained, but she's strong. Her blood feels like it's dancing, energetic, passionate, filled with purpose.

I can feel the lightning in her blood. How does that work anyway? Wasn't she just a discount Flash after all? She seems to have more abilities than him. Even if he's faster. Well, perhaps not for long, she's getting stronger and stronger each day. Frankly, in a straight-up fight, I may not necessarily win without shenanigans to stop time or things like that.

Oops, right, right, strength... Hmm, it's hard to think about strength non-stop. Am I that smitten by Takae that I can't stop thinking about her every damn second?

She is such a beautiful soul after all. Fuck I am. Alright, let's just... Strength to protect her. Yeah, that's it.

The blood has reached our chest, I can feel Takae's hold slipping. She's no longer able to hold onto my hand. It doesn't matter, I can do it. I close my hands on hers, never letting go.

Her breath is heavy, her body wavers but with how she's sitting and with me holding her, she can't really fall unless she wants to.

Oh, I am in pain too, after all, the dagger is logged into our hearts. Yes, we're not going to die because of the lipstick, but as long as these daggers are inside our hearts... We're not healing.

Just... Not dying, our body working without the need of our heart pumping our blood. Not allowing us to die, but to suffer all the same.

The blood is now up to our collar bones, the blood dancing on the edge of the bowl. Before a drop escaped its stone confinement, a hole opened under the bowl, the blood following the various paths made of salt, blue fire protecting the blood from danger, be it from oxygen or energy itself.

Black boulders made of obsidian spinning slowly as blood converges on them.

Takae grunts as blood continued to pour from her chest.

I close my eyes and I continue holding Takae, at the very least I can be here for her.

The heat of the blue fire is comforting.

It hurts to breathe.

Pain.

Fingers slowly twitch under my hand. And my limping back suddenly straightens. That's right, I can't fall here. No, I have to be Takae's strength.

I gently grasp her hand tighter, thanking her for waking me up.

It's been... A few hours, six, at the very least. We can't talk, but her fingers twitch from time to time, along with her pained exhausted breath.

Once again I breathed slowly, rhythmically, hoping Takae would imitate me, it would lessen her pain.

Hours pass by... I don't know how long we have been here. For more than two days at least, the bowl filled eight times, and every time it would spill, the bottom opens and blood runs free towards the obsidian stones.

Suddenly I hear the sound of a door opening.

"Dad! Look!" Atreus' voice is tinged with panic as he spots us. Well, that's the right reaction I guess. Bloodied, with a dagger sticking out of our chest, bathing in blood, and blue fire surrounding us. Haha, oh, I do want to see his face. But nope, don't open your eyes, not until the ritual is finished.

"Boy, get back." Kratos' voice sounds hard and firm. They both have grown stronger, and closer it seems. Suddenly the fire cracks and the heat is more intense. Hmm, they probably tried to touch us.

"Dad, what is that? We have to take them out of there!" He screams.

"Hmm... No." Kratos answers after trying to hack out the fire with his icy ax.

"What!? First, you let the witch of the woods get dragged away, we don't know if she's dead! And now you don't care about Teacher and Takae dying!?" Atreus shouts with anger. Damn boy, he's really angry with Kratos, unfounded, but touching.

"Watch your tone, boy. And open your eyes." I hear a yelp, and a single pair of steps coming closer. He's probably hoisting Atreus around.

"Look at that, they're sitting, their hands clasped, there's no sign of their clothes so they made it disappear. Whatever is going on, it's their own volition. Do not meddle in others' affairs if they do not ask for help. And it was you who lost the bell." Kratos huffs and turns around. "Move, boy."

"Ah... Yes, father." Atreus sighs as he walks away.

Takae's fingers twitch. Yep, I agree, completely. I twitch mine back.

Fingers twitch once more. Oh really? Yes, we should.

I smile slightly and resume to think about all things I'd do with more strength... Like... Uh... Punchin' a tree or something? Yeah, something like that.

Oh, now that I think about it, Atreus and Kratos saw us naked. Damn. I'd use that strength to punch the memory out of them. That's right.