Chapter 24: Eyes of the All-Father
Two ravens perched in the shadows, their sharp, beady eyes glinting in the dim light as they observed the figures below. Huginn and Muninn, watchers of the All-Father, had been tasked with an unusual mission, one they had little fondness for but took on with resigned acceptance.
"Look at them—the two mutts have teamed up," Huginn sneered, ruffling his feathers with disdain as his gaze followed the movements of Hadrian and Sieg.
"Shut up, Huginn," Muninn hissed, casting his companion a sharp glare. "Just do your job. We're on the All-Father's orders, remember?"
"I know, I know," Huginn grumbled, glancing toward Muninn. "But watching over this Cambion is one thing. Finding Siegfried's descendant alongside him? Now that's a boon. They may be more useful than expected."
Muninn let out a low caw, his gaze shifting back to the two warriors below. "Indeed. Just keep your beak shut and observe. Odin doesn't want us meddling—only watching."
With a flick of his wings, Huginn settled into silence, casting one last, disdainful look before returning his attention to the scene below, where the so-called "cambion" and Siegfried's heir were cutting a path through Helheim's minions with ease.
Below, Hadrian and Sieg moved in sync through the dark, winding catacombs, their path littered with the remnants of shattered bones and smoldering ashes from the endless stream of draugr and skeletal undead. Sieg took the lead, Balmung flashing with each precise, powerful swing that sent undead limbs and skulls scattering. His movements were disciplined yet relentless, each strike a testament to his dragon-enhanced strength and skill.
Meanwhile, Hadrian hung back, covering Sieg's rear, his wand flicking with sharp, decisive movements. With every gesture, he cast spells that radiated with deadly precision, dispatching any undead that managed to slip past Sieg's guard.
From her perch, Hedwig observed the battlefield with a mix of amusement and disdain. "Really, these undead are even more brainless than usual," she commented, her voice echoing in Hadrian's mind. "They barely even put up a fight."
"Honestly, it's almost disappointing," Oryou chimed in with a mock sigh, slithering around Hadrian's arm in her smaller form. "I was hoping for at least a challenge, but these bags of bones hardly qualify."
"Think we're on clean-up duty," Hadrian muttered, sidestepping a slow-moving skeleton that reached for him, only to be obliterated with a sharp "Incendio."
Sieg, unamused, swung Balmung down with enough force to cleave a line of draugr in two, his blood-red eyes scanning the shadowed walls. "At this rate, we'll be here all night."
Hedwig fluttered to Hadrian's shoulder, sending sparks from her feathers as she preened one wing. "If someone weren't so meticulous, perhaps it would go faster."
Hadrian chuckled, tossing a bolt of arcane energy at another group of skeletons. "Maybe it's time to try something a bit more… creative." He raised his wand high and muttered, "Atria Petrificus."
A chilling, rippling wave spread from Hadrian's wand, reaching out in a wide arc that enveloped a group of advancing draugr and skeletons. As the magic washed over them, their movements slowed, their limbs seizing up, and, one by one, they turned to stone. A dozen petrified undead stood frozen mid-lunge, their expressions locked in a haunting stillness.
Sieg glanced back, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Not bad," he remarked. "A fitting end for a group so lifeless."
"Glad you approve." Hadrian returned the grin, giving his wand a playful twirl. "You go for the stragglers—I'll take care of the left flank."
With an unspoken understanding, they moved in tandem. Sieg's strikes became a blur, cleaving through the remaining undead with precision, while Hadrian unleashed spells in quick succession.
"Fulmen Ignis," he incanted, sending a bolt of lightning-infused fire through a crowd of draugr. The flames seared their decrepit armor, lightning crackling along their bones as they crumbled to ash.
A trio of draugr lumbered toward Sieg, their skeletal frames illuminated by the eerie blue glow in their hollow eye sockets. Sieg didn't hesitate, stepping forward to meet them with a powerful sweep of his blade, the silver-gray metal flashing in the dim light. The blade connected, shattering the undead in a single, fluid motion.
From his shoulder, Hedwig watched with quiet pride, while Oryou added, "We could finish them faster if someone didn't take so long admiring the scenery."
Ignoring the teasing, Hadrian raised his wand one last time, his voice a low, commanding whisper. "Umbra Vinculum."
Dark chains erupted from the shadows, wrapping around the remaining undead, binding them in place with a vice-like grip. Struggling against the spectral bonds, the draugr could do little more than claw at the air before Sieg swept in to deliver the final blow, reducing them to dust.
Finally, they reached the end of the passage, which opened into a vast, shadow-filled chamber. The ceiling stretched high above them, dark and cavernous, with barely a hint of light filtering through the cracks. Their footsteps echoed as they advanced cautiously, senses on high alert. Sieg gripped his sword tightly, while Hadrian scanned the room, his wand ready for anything.
A low, chilling voice echoed through the chamber, breaking the silence with a sinister calm.
Chapter 25: Draugrheim, the Wraithlord of Helheim
Hadrian and Sieg entered the darkened hall, their footsteps echoing as they took in the vast, shadow-drenched chamber before them. The room pulsed with dark, malevolent energy, and they could both sense it—an unsettling presence that watched them and reveled in their arrival.
At the far end of the room, shrouded in decaying robes and twisted armor, stood Draugrheim, the Wraithlord of Helheim. His skeletal face was half-hidden beneath a cracked iron helm adorned with antlers inscribed with runes, and his hollow, blue eyes blazed with twisted joy as he regarded them.
The necromancer spread his arms in mock welcome. "Ah, two half-breeds playing at heroics," he sneered, his voice a mocking echo that seemed to emanate from the shadows themselves. "A devil's spawn… and a dragon's bastard child." His tone dripped with dark amusement, the twisted grin on his face reveling in the secrets he knew.
Hadrian and Sieg exchanged a quick look. They both knew neither was fully human from the moment they met. Sieg, with his enhanced perception, had sensed the demonic energy radiating from Hadrian, and Hadrian, through instinct and subtle cues, had known that Sieg carried something ancient and powerful in his blood. They'd chosen to ignore it, until now.
Hadrian tilted his head, smirking as he raised his wand. "Nice trick with the bones. It'll make it that much more satisfying when we shut you up."
Draugrheim chuckled, his eyes narrowing. "Amusing. But I am Draugrheim, the Wraithlord of Helheim," he announced, his voice booming with an eerie resonance. "I command the power of the dead, the might of Hel's legions. You two are nothing but dust before me."
With a twisted gesture, Draugrheim summoned a surge of necromantic energy. The floor around him began to tremble, bones scattered across the chamber knitting together and forming the hulking mass of a skeletal dragon. Its ribcage arched like the ribs of a fallen fortress, and its eyes flared to life with cold, blue flames as it turned its gaze toward Sieg.
"Let's see how you fare against my creation, half-blood," Draugrheim sneered. "Face Helheim's Bone Dragon, dragon's mutt."
Sieg's eyes darkened, his grip tightening on Balmung. He shot Hadrian a quick glance. "Take him down. I'll handle this."
"Don't have too much fun," Hadrian quipped, already stepping forward to face Draugrheim. Sieg gave a sharp nod before lunging toward the Bone Dragon, his movements fierce and deliberate.
The Bone Dragon's roar filled the chamber as it lunged, clawed feet scraping against the stone floor as it swept its massive tail toward Sieg. Sieg ducked low, sidestepping with a burst of speed, and with a powerful swing, he brought Balmung down onto the dragon's foreleg, shattering part of its bone structure. Yet the dragon reformed, its bones knitting together almost instantly, dark energy pulsing through its frame.
"So, you can keep up?" Sieg muttered, his eyes narrowing. He darted around the dragon, Balmung slicing through air and bone alike, yet Draugrheim's magic sustained the creature, each strike barely slowing it down.
The Bone Dragon retaliated with a blast of icy breath, forcing Sieg to retreat. It was relentless, a walking fortress of bone and necromantic power, and Sieg could feel its malevolent intent as it pressed its advantage.
"Let's see if you can keep this up," Sieg growled, his grip tightening as he launched himself back into the fray, his strikes precise, each one aimed at the creature's weak points, determined to wear it down.
As Sieg clashed with the Bone Dragon, Hadrian moved in on Draugrheim, his wand raised and ready. Draugrheim's twisted smile widened, his skeletal fingers flexing as he summoned tendrils of shadow to coil around his hands.
"So, the spawn of Sparda thinks he can stand against Helheim's champion?" Draugrheim mocked, his tone dripping with scorn. "You're nothing more than a half-breed curiosity."
Hadrian smirked. "Funny. I was thinking you looked like a half-baked experiment yourself." Without waiting for a reply, he cast "Atria Petrificus," sending a wide-area petrification spell that surged toward Draugrheim. But the necromancer merely waved a hand, dissipating the spell with a sneer.
"Oh, you'll need much more than that," Draugrheim laughed. In a blur, he summoned shadowy blades, sending them hurtling toward Hadrian with lethal precision.
Hadrian countered with "Protego Diabolica," summoning a wall of cursed flames that deflected the blades. He used the moment to close in, his eyes locked on Draugrheim, intent and unyielding.
Just as he was about to strike, he summoned his twin swords, Kanshou and Bakuya, their black-white edges gleaming with deadly purpose.
Draugrheim's mocking grin faltered, his hollow eyes widening as he stepped back. "No! Stay back, you—"
But just as Hadrian moved in for the killing blow, a sudden force stopped his blades. Shocked, he looked up to find another figure standing between him and Draugrheim—a warrior clad in obsidian-black armor adorned with intricate golden inlays, glowing runes pulsing along the surface.
Draugrheim's shocked silence broke into laughter, his relief palpable. "Jin! You arrived just in time! I was nearly bested by this child."
Jin, the armored figure, didn't turn. His eyes, piercing silver beneath his helm, fixed on Hadrian with a calm intensity. But his voice, low and venomous, addressed Draugrheim. "Shut up, you pathetic wretch. You couldn't keep two boys from meddling with our plans?"
Draugrheim's laughter faltered, his expression turning to one of embarrassment and anger. "I—I was only testing them," he muttered, but Jin's dismissive glare silenced him.
Jin's gaze flicked back to Hadrian, his eyes narrowing. "The spawn of Sparda…" he murmured, his tone cold. But as he studied Hadrian's features, his expression shifted, and his body went rigid. A flicker of recognition dawned in his eyes, followed by an overwhelming, ancient rage.
"Peverell…" Jin's voice became a low growl, building into a rumbling, furious roar. The very air grew dense, charged with energy so potent that both Draugrheim and Hadrian froze, momentarily stunned by the sheer intensity of it.
With a flash of motion, Jin disappeared from where he stood, only to reappear directly before Hadrian. Hadrian barely had time to react before Jin's armored fist connected with his chest, the force of the blow sending him hurtling backward through the chamber wall with a deafening crash. Stone and dust exploded from the impact, and Hadrian's body disappeared through the rubble into the next room.
Draugrheim's eyes widened, both shocked and delighted. But his glee was cut short as Jin stepped toward the gaping hole in the wall, his focus solely on the fallen Hadrian.
"Jin! Excellent work! Now, together, we can—"
Jin's voice cut through, cold and dripping with disgust. "Be silent, Draugrheim. You are nothing but a tool." Without another glance at the necromancer, Jin stepped through the hole in the wall, following Hadrian with deadly intent.
The chamber was left silent, save for the distant sounds of Jin and Hadrian's clash echoing through the stone halls. Draugrheim turned, a look of bitter fury twisting his decayed features as he cast a hateful gaze toward Sieg, who remained, sword raised, as the Bone Dragon loomed over him.
Draugrheim sneered. "Looks like your friend found himself a playmate. Pity he couldn't handle the company."
Sieg didn't respond, his head bowed, his hair casting shadows over his eyes. But as he stood there, an almost tangible pressure began to emanate from him, filling the chamber with a potent, deadly intent. The air grew thick, and heavy with the promise of violence.
The Bone Dragon stilled, sensing the change. Draugrheim's smirk faltered, confusion turning to fear as he took an instinctive step back.
Sieg lifted his head, the shadows falling away to reveal his eyes—once a striking blood-red, now transformed into a piercing greenish-grey with dragon-like slits. Dark scales began to form along his jaw and neck, catching the light, while sharp fangs glinted between his lips. The transformation was subtle yet undeniable—a glimpse of the ancient, powerful force that surged within him.
"Your games end here," Sieg said, his voice a low, controlled growl that vibrated through the chamber.
The Wraithlord of Helheim, for the first time, felt a spark of genuine fear as Sieg's killing intent washed over him, chilling him to his very bones.
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