9 Chapter 9: Meeting Odin

[PoV: Richard]

I awake in a huge stinking pile of rotten corpses in the midst of the hottest and dampest climate. Pined together with Liths strangely cold corps by the steel pipe, I claw myself out from under the warm mountain of corpses. Free from the dead but with Lith in my crippled arm I shutter when the freesing air blows across my face. Snow is falling all around me and I can see all kinds of different tree typs holding up a clear sky between which undergrowth like ivy and scrub spread into the horizon. -I feel lost again in this word. Without Lith and my powers I have nothing. No castle in the sky, no army, no reason to fight.- Thinking that and bathing in my own misery I try go get rid of the pipe that staps my ribcage and Liths lower abdomen. Under much pain and more bleeding I'm able to free at least Liths corps from it. By closely inspecting my own wound I figure out the wonders of my body and the reason for my continued living. -Two hearts?- With my left heart made into meat paste I'm lifing on borrowed time, before that too would stop beating.

-Have to bury her even if it is the last thing I do.- So a crawl vor a good 25 meters with Lith on my shoulder only to finde a half nice burial ground. I use a peace of tree bark I found on the way as a shovel and start digging.

After hours of digging, when I'm close to collapsing into unconsciousness I hear a scruffy mocking voice. ''Realy? You give up so easy?''

''As if I have another choice?'' I say back and look in the direction of the sound. There I see a very lanky men in a white tailored business suit, black dress shirt and shoes wearing a black/silver skeleton mask.

He says in a mocking ton. ''Don't we all have constantly choices? I fore one don't choose too give up, no matter what.''

''Not giving up changes nothing!''I shout back at him.

''I stay corrected! Doesn't the mindset influence the situation? Like you choose not to die and not accept your girls death, you might find a guy like me make a deal with him and search for a way to bring her back to life.''He still says to me in a mocking tone.

-I that hope?- ''What kind of deal do you have in mind?''

''Let's start with an easy one. You will be healthy again and as payment for me you can never act against me or my people in neither intent nore action. Deal?''

I node to the man, because I'm unable to talk because of my severe bloodloss.

''You have to say it to have any meaning.'' Say the man in a chilling tone and I speak out one labored word.

''Yes!'' In the next second I feel my vitalety rushing back into me. My arm and priced torso begin to heal.

''I better take that out.'' Says the masked men to me pulling out the steel pipe. It doesn't even take a minute untill all my wounds are healt up and I can stand again.

''Thank you but how the hell are you?'' I ask astounded.

''My name is Gaukler, Gaukler Odin. I'm an exiled User and Variant like you.''

''I'm Hill, Richard Hill to my friends silencer. Thanks for your help. I appreciate that. But how can I bring my girl back to life?''

''Bringing NPC back to life is easy for every youser with a time or life ability. To dum for both of us that this kind of Users are almost never exiled. Come with me it gets cold out here.''

For close to two hours I'm lead by this guy in white until we reach a hill with an enormous villa/ castle like structure on top.

''Home sweet home. Please leave your shoes in the front parler.''Says Odin to me before vanishing into the house. I leave my shoes as instructed in the front parler and put Lith on a leather sofa. Following the sounds and smells of cooking I go into the kitchen. With suit jacket over a stool, dresshirt arms folded up I find Odin grilling a peace of meat. '

'Hope you like meat. Mate!'' I'm greeted by him but I'm fixated onto his arms. Odins right arms seams normal with regular white meet above his bones, but his left arme and fingers are devoid of any meat, be it muscles or tenor loins. He must have felt my eyes on his right left arm so he answers my silent question.

''My body is the result of my unique body physics and a deal I made. This flesh...'' He shows me his right arm.

''...I can move freely on my bod now...'' His words are not a lie, beause in the next moment he shows me his left now fleshy arm and right boney arm.

''... But now less about me and more about you!'' He says while getting a plate out of a nearby cupboard.

Jokingly I answer. ''Only if you talk about your self after I finish.''

''Deal. Now start talking.'' Odin answers lighting fast and I start my story from the beginning with that dam ally way behind the brothel...

Sone time later when I end my story the evening sun vanishes all of a sudden.

''That is only the districts ending our day. But I think I now owe you my story in return. But let me tell it to you by the fire and a good scotch in our hands.'' With that said we go to a very homey living room with family pictures on the wall and to comfortable sand white leather chairs infront of a warm fireplace. Wanting to dife into one this dream like chairs, I put most of my gear I'm still wearing next to the left chair and sit down into it. That done I look to Odin that sits now opposite me mit two glases of scotch in his hands. I take one and lean back into mychair.

''So start talking skeleton.'' I jokingly mock him.

''Impertinent... God a deal is a deal...'' He says comically hurt and begins his story.

-Gaukler Odin had been part of an User-Alliance and had been fighting for most of this memory. In the end the they had controlled most of the than know districta. Under the command of their Councillor Yielena Sisi they created an Era of peace in which Odin hat finaly found his NPC. Dispite him finding her a bit to late and she already was pregnant with another guys child, he bit his time and was finally rewarded with his patience. His NPCs daughter hat fallen ill with a flesh eating virus and was about to die, that brought his NPC to him. She made the deal with him that if he could heal her daughter she would be his. Naturally he made that deal and healed he 3 year old girl, what in return costed him the most part of his bodies meat, hence his appearance. Nearly a year in peace went by before the catastrophic event happend. Councillor Sisi was killed in a Alliance meeting by an until then unknown User Justbin Timber. The guy announced the transition of the User-Alliance from a democratic union into an empire and himself the emperor of announced empire. Every opposition was butchered on site and a war broke lose. Odin fought withe the opposition and was forced into exile. This place I'm now sitting in is his sanctuary he exiled himself to. Here he lift for another 8 years he and his NPC even fell in love thith each other and he became a stepdad. All was perfect until one daye Justbin found them, slaughtered and raped his NPC only to let him life a miserable life. Odin lift his following years as a stepdad for his NPCs traumatsed daughter. In the end she too left him alone in this forsaken place, hellbend on avenging her mother.-

I summaris Odins lifes story, that is strictly similar to mine.

''And now I think I have to show you something, so go and get your girl.'' Following his instruction I get Liths not so cold any more body from the front parler. Odin leads me deep into the basement. Two floors down from the ground floor I find myself in a thick steel layered vault that feels like a tome. Odin uses a panel at the wall and illuminates the room. In a glass coffin I see a fairy like blonde woman in an ethereal like white dress.

''You see we both are in the same situation. This is my NPC, Hell...'' Odin says to me mith a very emotional tone in his voice before he wipes away imaginary tears and points to a less refined looking glass coffin.

''...You should put her in hear, you don't want to have the image of your beloved rotting corps in your memory...''