~Notes~
Knowledge of Norse mythology helps with this chapter. I had a lot of fun writing this one, but do keep in mind I wasn’t too preoccupied with accuracy. ;P

Episode 31 The Gods of Life and Death

“Arai…you’re getting crumbs all over him!”

“Well, mebbe it’ll hel’ wake him up.”

As the darkness slowly shrinks away like a fog dispersing from the air, Kunai regains consciousness, to find himself lying on a soft, feather bed. Over his sore body is a warm blanket, covering him up to the base of his neck. Kunai struggles to open his eyes for several moments, feeling the weight of someone sitting at the foot of his bed.

“He’s awake!”

Suddenly Kunai feels a pair of arms thrust around him, and he cries out in pain. He opens his eyes at last, to find a black mass surrounding him. Breathing in the scent of her perfume, Kunai stutters, “I-Ivy?”

As Ivy removes herself from him, wiping a tear from her eye, Kunai suddenly spots the person sitting at his bedside. “ARAI?!”

“Don’t get so excited, Kunai,” Ivy scolds worriedly, pushing Kunai back down into a lying position. Kunai examines his own body, and notices that his entire chest is covered with bandages.

“What…what happened to me?” Kunai mumbles.

“You don’t remember?” Ivy asks, peering anxiously at Kunai.

“Not much,” Kunai mutters, “just Lord Kimura arriving at the temple and then me fighting him. What…happened? Did we save Lily? Where are we now?”

“You…were given a fatal blow by Lord Kimura,” Ivy answers hesitantly.

“Fatal?” Kunai asks, surprised by the term. “How can that be? I’m alive, aren’t I?”

“We were lucky,” Ivy mumbles, “I tried to save you, but you were slipping away…” Ivy suddenly sniffs, struggling to maintain her composure. “It’s just…when we came here—”

“Where are we?” Kunai interrupts.

“The Underworld,” a new voice suddenly announces from the doorway of the little room they are in. Kunai suddenly takes notice of his surroundings for the first time.

He is lying on a bed in a small infirmary. Arai is sitting on the foot of his bed, while Ivy is kneeling over him, abandoning the wooden chair she’d been sitting on. Several other empty beds lie surrounding the room, while at the far right a curtained window allows a distorted ray of sunshine to penetrate the room.

Standing at the door is a man with ruffled brown hair and stunning green eyes. He is dressed in a beautiful white robe of silk, while at his side he carries an Evil Wings. “How’re you feeling, Kunai?”

“Who…who are you?” Kunai asks, turning his head to get a better look at the new arrival.

“Come on in, Yttrius,” Arai says into the silence.

“Yttrius?!” Kunai gasps, turning his head wildly from Arai to Yttrius. “What’s going on?! Dead people are coming to life today!”

“That’s because you’re in the Underworld, Kunai,” Yttrius replies, “this is the world in which the dead live. You’re bound to encounter a few dead souls if wander around this world.”

“Hehe!” Arai titters, “Like me! I’m a dead soul!” He brings a cookie up to his mouth, scattering crumbs all over Kunai’s bed.

“I…see your taste for cookies still hasn’t disappeared…” Kunai mumbles exasperatedly.

Ivy smiles, turning cheerfully back to Kunai. “So are you feeling better, Kunai?”

“Better,” Kunai mutters, “though my chest is still kinda sore.” He closes his eyes for a few seconds, noting the darkness in his eyes under the cover of his eyelids. All of a sudden, a pair of glaring yellow eyes flashes across his mind, startling him.

Kunai jumps in place, opening his eyes and breathing heavily. Ivy and Arai swarm around him in surprise, attempting to calm him down. “Kunai! What’s wrong?” Ivy cries into his ear.

Kunai shakes his head, his breathing rate slowing back down. “No, it’s—it’s nothing…”

“Are you sure?” Arai inquires, “You looked pretty spooked out just now.”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Kunai answers hurriedly. He glances around the room, blinking slightly. “By the way, where are Ryuu and the others?”

“They’re outside,” Ivy answers. “They’re trying to see if they can get a meeting with the Gods.”

“The Gods?” Kunai wonders, blinking in awe.

“The Goddess of Life and the God of Death,” Yttrius replies, “who preside over the Underworld.”

“What for?” Kunai asks.

“Since they are the Gods of Creation after all, Ryuu and the others were hoping they could ask them for advice regarding everything that’s happened lately in the living world,” Arai replies.

Kunai nods in understanding, lying back down as if to rest. He turns his head to the right, and notices another sleeping figure on a bed next to him. Kunai darts back up, to the protest of Ivy.

“Sasha! What happened to her?” Kunai asks wildly.

“She was just knocked out when we were fighting the Soul Eaters,” Ivy answers. “Poor Sasha, though…after what we found out…”

“What do you mean?” Kunai asks.

“Oh that’s right,” Arai comments, “you were knocked out on that field, weren’t you, Kunai?”

“Yeah,” Kunai nods distractedly, turning to Ivy. “So what happened to Sasha?”

“Apparently Sasha’s parents weren’t killed by a Paradox…” Ivy murmurs sadly, glancing over in Sasha’s direction as well. “It seems that Ezekiel, the leader of the Soul Eaters, killed them and swallowed their souls.”

“That’s…” Kunai trails off, lost for words. A grave silence follows, in which all eyes rest on the unconscious figure of Sasha, her blue hair strewn across her pillow. Around her shoulders and forehead are bandages hastily wrapped around her to treat her wounds.

There is a sudden knock at the door. Turning, Kunai sees Ryuu, Ayame, and Lily standing at the door. Ryuu glances briefly at Kunai as he arrives at the threshold. “You all right, Kunai?”

“Yeah,” Kunai answers distantly.

Ivy and Arai rise to their feet as well, joining Ryuu and the others at the door. “So did we get a meeting with them or not?” Arai asks Ryuu.

Ryuu nods. “Yeah, we got one. They said that we could see them later on this afternoon.”

“That’s good,” Yttrius comments.

As Ryuu saunters further into the room, he shoots a piercing glance at Kunai. “Kunai,” he mutters with a weak growl, “can I talk to you for a moment?”

“S-Sure,” Kunai answers, startled by the seriousness in Ryuu’s voice. “Is anything wrong?”

“I just need to talk to you,” Ryuu replies.

“A-Are you sure Kunai should be up walking about…?” Ivy asks hesitantly, as Kunai clambers out of bed to join the beckoning Ryuu.

Ryuu shrugs as he leans casually on the doorway. “He’ll be fine. His wounds have already healed considerably thanks to the treatment you guys have been giving him.”

“Treatment?” Kunai murmurs on his way out with Ryuu.

However, Ryuu merely shakes his head, and points at a door at the end of the dark hallway. “We’ll talk about it when we get outside.”

Outside, the sun shines brightly in a bright and busy street. The sky is cloudless, lit up with the magnificent, beaming sunshine. The floor is made of cobblestone, while just outside the building where Kunai had been staying at is a fountain, filled with glittering pools of water.

All around are neatly paved streets and the general hum of daily life as people move about. Kunai stares at these sights for some time, amazed. “Ryuu! This place is just like—”

“Yeah,” Ryuu agrees, his face strangely contorted, “it reminds me too much of Arai as well. This place has got that weird vibe about it…I can almost imagine the children singing and dancing with a rainbow in the backdrop.”

Kunai stares, perplexed by Ryuu’s sudden outburst. “Er…that’s not quite what I had in mind…”

“So this is the Underworld?” Kunai asks, taking a seat at the base of the fountain. “It’s not quite what I’d imagined it to be.”

“Sort of,” Ryuu replies, joining Kunai, “this is just a certain precinct of the Underworld. From what I’m told, the Underworld is divided into several precincts.

“The place we first arrived at is the Purgatorial Chamber. That’s the lowest faction of the Underworld. It’s the place where all souls await judgment from the God of Death, Odin. He determines whether they spend eternity in Heaven, or Hell.

“Apparently past the Purgatorial Chamber lies Idavoll, where Odin banishes sinners to mortal pains. What those pains are, I don’t really wanna think about. Anyway, rising over Idavoll and the Purgatorial Chamber is Yggdrasil, a gigantic tower that separates the places where the sinners live and the Holy Souls, which is what they call the souls who arrive here with not a sin in their hearts.

“The realm we’re currently in is named Asgard, and it’s apparently been divided into different, smaller cities living in a caste system. The two Gods, Odin of Death and Frigg of Life, preside over these two realms, Asgard and Idavoll, and maintain balance in the Underworld.”

“And where is the great beast, Lilith, in all of this?” Kunai asks, “She lives here in the Underworld, right?”

“Apparently they keep her locked up in a hellish place called Ragnarok on Idavoll. So far the Soul Eaters have been unsuccessful at freeing her,” Ryuu replies.

A heavy silence falls upon the both of them, while the flurry of ordinary life in Asgard continues. Ryuu suddenly turns to Kunai, a dark gleam in his eye. “Kunai,” he murmurs.

“Huh?” Kunai glances up at Ryuu, alarmed by the dark tone in his voice. “What’s wrong, Ryuu?”

“Has anything strange been happening to you lately?” Ryuu asks.

“No,” Kunai mumbles, “I don’t think so. Why?”

Ryuu sighs heavily, shaking his head. “Nothing. Forget about it.” He rises to his feet, stomping about impatiently and staring into the unwavering calmness of daylight. ‘It may be just a trick of the light, but every now and then it seems like I can catch a yellow gleam in his eyes.’

“Ryuuuu! Kunaiii!” The air suddenly carries Ivy’s voice over to the two of them.

“Yoo-hoo!” Arai shouts brightly. A large cookie suddenly smacks Ryuu across the forehead.

Rubbing his forehead irritably, he narrows his eyes as he turns to face the others approaching them. Arai, Yttrius, Ayame, Ivy, and Lily are headed towards them, dressed and ready to go.

“Odin and Frigg just sent a messenger,” Ayame mutters upon arrival, “they’re going to hold our audience now.”

“We best not be late,” Yttrius adds, “the Gods usually don’t allow humans to visit them. It’d give them a bad impression if we showed up late.”

“Right,” Ryuu growls. His eyes stray over to Kunai, who stands without reaction to the news. ‘Even so, he recovered insanely fast from what should’ve been fatal wounds. Even considering the fact that Frigg saved Kunai herself, there’s no way he could’ve recovered so quickly. Sasha hasn’t even woken up yet, and she suffered much more insubstantial injuries than Kunai.’

“Ryuu,” Kunai’s voice suddenly jerks Ryuu back to reality. “You coming or what?”

Ryuu starts, finding himself back in Asgard, the others glancing at him perplexedly. “Uh, yeah. Sorry about that,” Ryuu replies hastily.

“I’m ready too, losers!” Otis squeaks, popping out from under Ryuu’s jacket unexpectedly.

“WHAT THE—?!” Ryuu yells, losing his balance from the shock and dancing about wildly to regain it, “Where did you come from?!”

“My, my, if it isn’t Otis,” Arai smiles, “it’s been a while!”

“Otis, where have you been all this time?” Ivy asks in a scolding tone.

“I’ve been hiding in Redheaded Gorilla’s shirt! Things were getting scary back there in that dark gorilla jungle where everyone was fighting so I decided to hide!” Otis replies cheerfully.

“Nice to know we can count on you in times of need,” Ryuu grumbles, eye twitching irritably.

“Oww!” Kunai bursts out, his forearms trembling slightly as he places both hands across his forehead. His Dark Identity comes apart and slides to the ground, revealing his bare forehead.

“Kunai!” Ivy cries in alarm. “What’s wrong?”

“N-Nothing…” Kunai mutters, “just a headache…”

“I welcome you all to my hall known as Gladsheim,” an ancient man murmurs in a deep, powerful voice that causes all within the vicinity to shiver. In his hands he carries a simple staff made of wood. Tucked under his chin is a gigantic mass of white beard, trailing down onto his lap.

“Lord Odin,” Ryuu answers out loud, bowing low. He signals for the others to do the same. Ryuu then turns slightly to his right, where a beautiful woman wearing radiant white robes sits next to Odin. “Lady Frigg.”

Together, Odin and his wife Frigg sit upon golden thrones on a raised pedestal, so that even while they sit they may look down upon their audience. On either side of the two stand guards armed with Redemption spears, though they appear rather unnecessary due to the status of the two Gods sitting on the throne.

“State your purpose for entering the hall of Odin,” Odin cries, in a booming voice.

“My lord, we’ve come from the living worlds in order to seek your counsel upon matters of the gravest matter,” Ryuu answers appropriately. “We beg of you to lend us your eternal wisdom so that we may achieve peace in the worlds of those who live.”

“Though we are the Gods that grant Life and Death upon mortals, we do not govern the living worlds,” Frigg replies in a golden voice. “What concerns the lives of those who dwell within the confines of the other living worlds is none of our concern.”

“Yes, but—” Ryuu mutters, his voice faltering, “but the three beings known as the Soul Eaters wish to release the long captive beast Lilith. If Lilith is released from her captivity, destruction will be ensured for all four worlds!”

“You say that these Soul Eaters seek to destroy the bonds that bind Lilith to her seat in Ragnarok? Impossible! As long as my strength does not fail, Lilith will never be released,” Odin snarls.

“My lord!” Ryuu cries, “But only days ago the Soul Eaters very nearly released Lilith into the Night World! Surely you were aware of their actions? We must put these actions to a stop!”

“That is unnecessary—” Odin replies, before he is interrupted.

“I beg of you, Odin,” an ancient voice suddenly breaks into the conversation. At these words, everyone in the vicinity turns in surprise, including the Gods Odin and Frigg. Four figures stand at the entrance to the grand hall, their dark figures illuminated by the sunlight. “I beg of you, please listen to the boy. He speaks naught but the truth.”

“Grandpa?!” Arai cries into the ensuing silence, stunned.

Next Time: Episode 32 The Four Return

Otis: Oi! What’s this?! A new twist? Four old gorillas?! So many old people! We’re not running an old folks’ place here! Shoo!

Episode 32 The Four Return coming soon!