章 79: Soul
A/N: Pat-reon: HelloDarkness07
---
I knock on the door, wincing a bit, my chest still feeling a bit sensitive thanks to the new Tattoo now adorning my chest. The original Runic Tattoo had done a good enough job to prevent me being scryed on, but.. as I had experienced recently, it was not useful against those up above.
Gods.
Or even Maya, to be honest. She did manage to find me when I died.
Removing it was an easy matter for me, since I was the one who actually branded it there. Designing a new one however, one that would(should) work against the All Seeing Omniscient Gods.. that was a different matter altogether.
Maya helped, personally, as well as by offering some of the knowledge stored within her Vaults. She didn't exactly have a Library, since most of what Maya had learned came from either her own trial-and-error kind of training. But she did have a few books that she said came from the times of Atlantis.
Treasure.. she had called them, and hence, they were kept under lock and key, in her Vault. I doubt I would have seen them otherwise, since Maya definitely has protections enough to stop my Repository from stealing the books.
Atlantean Runes, together with multiple days of experiments, and Maya's Scrying help, allowed me to create a Runic Spell that completely negated Maya's focused Scrying Spell. And if Maya.. a 15,000 year old Mage.. cannot see me when I wore a Ring adorned with the Runic Spell, then I doubt the younger Gods will be able to do so.
Least of all, when it is powered by my blood sacrifice.
The Blood sacrifice is why I had originally tattooed the Spell on my chest instead of just wearing a Ring with the spell or something, and it is why I did it now. Besides, rings can be lost, stolen, or hidden away. My Tattoo will always remain with me.
I had branded the Tattoo on top of my Heart two days ago, and I had spent an entire day without access to my Magic- that's how Magic hungry the Runic Spell was. And now, I am finally ready.
"Come in." Maya voices from inside the Lounge.
Despite her Castle being big, I've found that she lives completely alone. She doesn't trust anyone else to live with her, and not try to kill her. Except me, but I think she mistrusts me a little too.
Walking into the Lounge, I see Maya looking over a single page, and I smile. I ask, "The Animagus Ritual got you curious, hm?"
Maya smiles, and says, "What can I say? I was always envious of my fellow External for being able to turn into a Dragon, and now I've found another of the Externals who can do it, into the form of a Kasha no less."
I shake my head, and sit down next to her. I give Maya a moment of silence, both of us comfortable enough in each other's presence that we say nothing. I had given her the Original Animagus Ritual, one that gave you the ability to connect to your Magical, as well as Mundane animal Spirit.
I didn't even bother trying to trick her with a fake, or faulty Ritual, since.. First of all, I'm trying to build a friendship with her. And tricking her would have been counterproductive. Secondly, she's literally a 15,000 year old Mage, who has had around that much time to study the subject of Soul Magic.
She would have caught my trick within a day at most.
After a while, Maya keeps the Ritual page inside a pocket in her long skirt, and asks, "So.. you're leaving?"
I nod, not at all surprised that she guessed it. I say, "When I.. died.. I left my home unguarded. I need to see that Asgard hasn't attacked it. I need to check on the animals I guard, and the Elves."
Because I don't know what I will do if Asgard has harmed my Sanctuary. Will I attack Asgard? Absolutely. Single-handedly if I have to. I will wage a war on them, and I will kill Hela and Odin, at least.
Well, I'll try. Because I don't know if I can still fight Hela and win, to be honest.
And while I did see that Sanctuary is still intact just last night, I can't be sure that it isn't an illusion that I'm seeing. I'll need to actually go there to be sure
"Do you think the Asgardians will go for your animals and Elves?" Maya asks, with a frown on her face.
Shaking my head, I say, "I hope not. While Asgard believes me dead, the Elves and the Re'em together killed three Asgardians. And those brutes are arrogant, and prideful. They will definitely want revenge for their fallen comrades."
They might not be able to wage full on War with Midgard, thanks to the Treaties of Old, but they will definitely skirt the limit.
Maya nods, and says, "I.. I hope you visit once again. The others don't have any interest in keeping contact.. but.."
I smile, and as I pat Maya on her hand, I say, "I will visit, don't worry. I'll even bring an invitation to come to my Home soon, but not right now. I need to make sure everyone is alright, and increase the security of my home."
And I also have a new subject to look through. Soul Magic.
Standing up, I debate hugging Maya, but refrain from doing so. Just holding each other's hands in comfort was the limit of our physical contact, and I don't want to make her think that I'm looking for.. something other than friendship.
With our goodbyes said and done, I create a portal to Australia, walk through, and sit down. I had no bags to pack, no belongings to gather. Even the trousers and tunic I was wearing right now was something Maya had provided for me.
The rest.. was all in Nowhere.
As for the matter of coming to Australia, it was two fold. First.. I didn't want to open a portal, or even apparate, to Sanctuary directly. As much as I like Maya, and trust her, I don't trust her enough to bring her to Sanctuary just right now. And just the opening of the Portal would have allowed her to see Sanctuary, even if I'd opened the portal to my Fidelius protected Castle.
The Fidelius charm would have assumed that I wanted Maya to see the Castle, and she would have been let in on the Secret.
The second reason.. was to check if Asgard manages to track me.
"Hmm.." I say, after a minute or so of nothing happening. No Bifrost had fallen down to declare Asgardian entrance. "Maybe.. they're not actively looking for me, since.. I am dead. But Hela definitely knows my Magic, and so does Heimdall, probably."
Without bothering to stand up from the cliff, I let my Magic flow all around me, causing a weak wind storm to form on top of the cliff. The storm thunders, as lightning, fire, and even rain flows out of it, destroying a few rocks by their Magic.
I wait a minute more.. still nothing.
I then smile, and bring my Magic back. This could mean nothing, this could just be because Heimdall isn't looking at Australia currently, but just the possibility of my Runic tattoo working makes me smile.
Shaking my head, I stand up, and with barely a shred of effort, appear on Sanctuary, near the Elf Village. When I appear outside the Village, however, the smile immediately drops from my face, and an anger filled scowl takes its place.
Fear.
Pain.
Terror.
These feelings slam into my mind, without me even trying to get a read on the Elves' minds, and I look around, trying to find what causes this. The Village was intact, just as I had seen while Scrying for the Elves, but I could see that the Elves.. weren't.
I immediately start walking forward, towards where I can feel the most Pain coming from, and immediately get hushed whispers following me. Some were glad I was here, others were wondering where I was before. But one.. one was relieved.
I turn to look at the relieved face, and immediately see Athra, the daughter of Kultur, sitting on a chair outside her house, her face showing tear tracks. I pause in my way towards the Pain, and start walking towards her.
She looks up at me, with hope slowly filling her eyes, and I hesitate a bit, before asking, "What happened, Athra?"
Athra's eyes immediately become wet, as she slams into my legs, hugging them tightly, bawling her eyes out. This causes my heart to skip a bit, wondering if something happened to Kultur. I may not have liked him much in the beginning, but all those years later.. Kultur was one of the closest friends I had.
I lean down, and pull her into a proper hug. Just by the voice of her crying I can tell that she won't be able to say anything right now, least of all explain. As I pat her back, I ask, "Can I.. can I look into your Mind for what happened? I promise it won't hurt, and I won't look anywhere else."
Still crying, Athra nods in my chest, and I take the invitation to gently get into her mind. At first, her mind remains too focused on crying in relief, as Athra is finally allowed to show some weakness, but I take barely a second to see what had happened in the weeks that I was gone, and I immediately feel the anger settle in.
Asgard.. they hadn't forgotten the Elves. Or more accurately, Hela hadn't. Whenever the Elves went out to rescue an animal, Asgard came there through their Rainbow bridges within half a minute, bringing a party of just 10 or so Soldiers each time.
They tried to capture the Elves, hunting them whenever they went outside the Wards of Sanctuary. They would taunt the Elves, telling them that their Mage Guardian won't be protecting them anymore, while using their Asgardian Steel weapons to take care of any spells or blasts of Magic that the Elves sent their way.
The fights had caused a lot of Elves to be injured, since despite their enhancements, the Elves were still pretty much weak compared to Asgardians.
Dozen Elves were injured lightly, two had their limbs cut off, and one was stabbed with a dagger that didn't come out, no matter how hard the Elves tried to pull. It was a miracle that none of the Elves have died yet, and it is mostly because the Elves are quick at fleeing. But as I saw right now, not all of them came back whole.
All of this.. caused within 6 weeks, because Hela holds a grudge. Now even more angry, I get out of the hug, and look Athra in her eyes. I say, "I will stop this. I will deal with Asgard, and stop their needless attack from happening again. But first.. let's heal the injured, okay?"
Athra nods, and bowing her head, she says, "I am sorry.. Sorcerer Athreos.. I don't know what came over me."
I sigh, as I lift Athra's head up gently. I look her in the eyes, and say, "You are the future leader of Elf kind. And you felt that you couldn't lead them, you couldn't protect them. You don't need to apologise for losing composure, Athra. Besides, these are actual Gods that you and yours fought."
Now knowing that my Magic won't work exactly as I hope on these Gods, I doubt even I would have managed to defeat all of them 50 years ago.
Athra suddenly widens her eyes, and asks, "I.. I thought you had died! My father felt you die!"
While wondering how Kultur felt me die, I say, "I did die, but something happened.. and I came back." Shaking my head, I say, "Come. Show me where the injured are. We will discuss our next moves then."
---
That night, I sat on a small conjured stool before the Elves, most of the adults sitting on chairs in front of me. Some were still asleep, resting to heal their bodies, but most of the adult elves were here right now, in front of me.
I look at them all, feeling some guilt settle in at their hopeful faces, and say, "I.. I apologise for not coming sooner. I should have returned here immediately, and that.. is on me."
"It is not your fault, Sorcerer Athreos." Kultur whispers, but I hear it just the same. "The Goddess killed you, I felt it happen. But.. how..?"
I sigh, and say, "The Goddess was far, far stronger than me, Kultur. She killed me, yes. I tried to fight her off, I tried to convince her to let this matter go, but alas.. I failed. As for how I returned.. let's just consider it a miracle and leave it at that. It won't work again, if I die against the Goddess once again. But I am just thankful that I got a second chance."
Shaking my head, I look at the Elves once again, and say, "I know I don't have any right to say this, but I still will. The Outside world is dangerous right now, for you. I have a method to keep the Gods blind to your actions even outside Sanctuary, and I will give it to you. But.. I still suggest staying here for a few years. At least until Asgard stops their madness, or until I find a way to resolve the issue."
I had realised something after looking through Athra's memories. Sanctuary was as secure as I had hoped it would be. Or at least, undetectable. Asgard, Heimdall, Odin, they can't see the Island, and hence, this place is a safe one for the Elves.
The Elves slowly nod, and one of them asks, "Will you.. will you fight them again?"
I turn towards the Elf with a sigh, and say, "Not.. so soon. I will fight them if the need comes, but before that, I need to become stronger first. Go through a Ritual or two to make sure I don't feel useless against the Gods anymore."
I stay there and talk with them for a while more. After which, I hand Athra a paper with the Runic Shielding Spell drawn on it, and say, "I have this spell branded on my chest, with a mixture of Ink and my own blood. I have also tried the Spell on an artefact, so if you don't want to brand your fellow elves, start crafting Rings, or medallions or something with these Spells on them. Of course, you'll still need to power them with that person's blood, but I think a drop of blood will suffice."
Turning towards Kultur, I say, "The next time.. you feel the Calling from Mother Magic.. you come to me. I'll go wherever we need to go, and bring them here. Okay?"
Kultur nods with a sigh, and says, "Very well, Sorcerer Athreos. How long will we have to stay here?"
I shrug, and say, "It could be a month, it could be a decade. I have an entirely new subject to Master, Kultur, before I even take a step out of Sanctuary."
And I know that despite the Time Slower in my hands, I won't be able to master it as fast as I'm hoping.
---
A few days later, I found myself in the Repository, the only person there. It wasn't odd that I am the only one here, since Master Ayesha rarely allowed anyone to come here. Above my head, I could feel texts getting conjured every once in a while, as new books kept getting written in the outside world.
While reading through the Basics of Soul Magic, however, I hear footsteps start walking towards me. Considering that I was under the effects of my Time Slower, I sigh, realising exactly who's coming, and turn the Time Slower off.
"I had heard you were back." Master Ayesha says, as she plops down on the chair in front of me.
I close the book, look up at her, and ask, "Just back or back from the dead?"
Master Ayesha raises her eyebrow, and says, "The later. Kultur told me you had died, and I believed him. I mourned you, even. But then he just sent a messenger 2 days ago, with the news that you had returned from the dead. I almost didn't believe him, but then the Repository Wards told me that you were here.. alive, and well. And so.. here I am. To ask you what happened?"
Annoyed, I ask, "Did the Eye not show you?"
Master Ayesha leans back with a sigh, and says, "The Eye of Agamotto has decided that I am not worthy of its power for some reason or the other." I feel a bit guilty at the taunt, but she shrugs and says, "It happens, no need to feel bad about it. The Eye is a powerful Relic, and one that has seen a variety of Masters, and it sometimes decides that the Sorcerer Supreme doesn't deserve to look into the future at that time. But that's not why I'm here."
I sigh, and start telling her about my fight, and my death. From Kultur's visit to my Castle, to me dying at Hela's hand, and my Magic failing me against her.
"You should have expected it. Hela's Magic comes from within her, and so does your Magecraft. Your Magic is no doubt very Potent, even amongst the strongest on Earth. But compared to Hela's? It is not even comparable. It is as if you're a candle in front of the Sun." Master Ayesha says, commenting on it.
Nodding, I ignore the comparison, and say, "I kinda got that."
I then tell her about waking up in Maya's house, meeting her, and the talks we had. I tell her about Externals, about my Ascension, and the help she gave me.
Master Ayesha hums, and says, "I have heard about the Externals, but I can't say I've heard of one named Maya."
I already expected that it was an alias she gave me. Hey, I'm 75 and I've literally had 4 names to myself. Mason Aves, Harrison Evans, Athreos Aetos, and Atharva Joshi. She's 15,000 years old, which means she could have gone through thousands of names, each just as 'hers' as the next one.
Master Ayesha then asks, "And what do you plan to do now?"
I lean back, and say, "I've found that my Soul being a human's is what's holding me back. So.. I'm going to find a way to make my Soul.. stronger."
"And then what? You will fight her once again?" Master Ayesha asks. When I nod, she asks, "For what? Revenge?"
And then I realise why she's here. She's here to ask me not to go looking for Hela. Like hell I'll do that.
Scoffing, I say, "I want revenge, yes, but this is not why I'm looking for a way to make myself stronger than a Goddess. It's not even half of the reason." Master Ayesha looks dubious, so I say, "Look, Hela completely outclassed me. Even now, after my Ascension to an External, I know that I am no match to her. And if Hela outclasses me, that means that Odin outclasses me even more. That means other Sky Fathers, other Gods, a lot of other beings outclass me completely. And as long as they keep outclassing me, it means that Sanctuary is in danger from them, thanks to my inability to fight them. It means that the Earth itself is in danger."
Ayesha sighs, and says, "Earth is always in danger, Athreos. Dormammu, Mephisto, Cyttorak, Watoomb, they all want to rule this Plane in addition to their own."
"Yes but not from those that give promises of protection, Master!" I snap back. Taking a deep breath, I say, "How many times have the Gods attacked the Elves? How many Magical Creatures did they eat before I got here? How many people did they kill for just insulting their pride? What the Asgardians are doing now.. that's completely on Hela and her bruised ego. What I'm doing.. it's to safeguard me, my animals, my Elves, and my future. I can't wait for the Gods to get tired and stop killing us Mortals, Master Ayesha, I can't. This.. What I'm doing now, will show the Gods, show everyone that mortals aren't completely defenseless. Mortals won't just roll over and die every time the Gods come to bully us. My fight with Hela will just set the stage for Negotiations.."
Master Ayesha stares at me for a few seconds, and then nodding, she stands up. She says, "You've made up your mind it seems. I will just warn you.. Soul Magic.. it changes you, and not always well. Just promise me that you will be careful."
I nod, but I say nothing, and watch her walk back the way she came. I already know Soul Magic is dangerous, I already have experience with the Dark side of it. Horcruxes.
But I also know that I won't do anything that goes against my Morals.
---
Time Skip: 3 BC:
Two years go by, with a lot of progress in my studies. Slowly, bit by bit, my understanding of the Soul was improving, and I have to say.. I am an idiot for not learning all this before.
Soul.. soul was what makes me.. me! It's not my mind, it's not my memories, it's not my body. Sure, my life experience does hold a part in shaping what kind of person I become, but my Soul is what stores those changes. My Soul is what defines me every moment of the day.
Soul Magic, however.. Now that's a different matter altogether. Magic powered by the Soul, and Magic that affects the Soul, are both counted in the bigger banner of Soul Magic. Souls are sources of Magic, glowing batteries of pure Magic that can only be accessed by the owner of that Soul.
Which.. is why Demons are so desperate to claim Souls, and why Dementors are so bloody hard to kill. Even Basilisk Venom just slows them down, and beheading them is impossible since most weapons just pass through them, even of the magical kind. Flames send them back, just like how Patronuses do, but actually killing them hasn't been achieved yet.
I assume, however, that Light Magic, or even Divine weapons will work for killing them.
Back on topic, to access the Soul, one needs to first be a Master of oneself, which.. I have been for decades now. I have complete control over my emotions, my thoughts, and I can also control my body through Metamorphmagic, even if that's not necessary.
I first had to go through a few minor Rituals, non-invasive ones, to get used to the sensation of my Soul being accessed and manipulated. Repeatedly. Only after which, I was allowed to move on to studying Soul Magic.
Powering spells by the Soul doesn't tax you too much, since as I said, Souls are batteries full of Magic, but doing so too often does cause one to go into a coma. Any spell that uses Magic can be powered by your Soul, which causes it to receive a minor boost to its strength, but even that is not enough for me to take on someone like Hela.
Other uses of Soul Magic include Absorbing someone else's soul into yourself, possessing others, healing someone else's soul by connecting it with yours, summoning souls of the dead, and a lot more. But while I went through these subjects too, in these two years, my main focus was something else.
Ascension.
And so.. Changing the Soul is what I focused my studies on. There are many ways to change the soul, most of them inherently Dark.. Evil. They almost always need a live sacrifice, which.. I'm not looking forward to deciding on. Some Rituals change your body depending on what you do to the Soul, but that also depends on what your Sacrifice was, and if it was willing.
Willing sacrifice has little to no changes on your body, and your personality, or so I've read. That was all for theory, other than those smaller Soul Rituals I've been through, to prepare it for my Ascension.
Practically, however.. Studying the Druidic Practice came first, Skin Changing they called it. Seeing through the eyes of other animals.
It was fun, looking through the eyes of birds and animals without possessing them, or even controlling their minds. I did try it with my dragons too, and they enjoyed me accompanying them. And yes, the dragons did sense me in their minds.
It was an effect of the Spell itself, to allow for an easier stay in the foreign mind.
Next step came learning everything about the Animagus Ritual, which I had to write down myself. Since it doesn't exist yet.
A few months of experimentation, and Arithmancy calculations, and I realised exactly how the Ritual uses the Soul.
Every Soul, every person, has a Spiritual connection to an animal. Since we're Mages, our connection is to Magical animals as well as mundane ones. The Animagus Ritual uses your own Soul to seek out that connection, and then using the Soul's Energy, forces your body through the first Transformation, and immerses your Soul into that transformed body.
When both the body and Soul get used to the transformation, the Ritual effects are made permanent, giving us the ability to transform at will.
To do what I'm hoping to do, make my Soul.. more than human, I needed to be a complete Master. Which is still too far away. At least half a decade still.
During this time I'll have to study hundreds of journals, carry experiments on myself, and immerse myself in my own Soul's Magic. This legit reminds me of all those cultivation novels that made me shudder. Thankfully, I had a lot of books as guidelines and warnings over what not to do, and what to do.
Shaking my head, I focus on the Runes I was carving on the ground in front of my Castle, which has sort of become an unofficial Ritual space for me. 12 Elves stood to the side, watching me work, waiting for me to finish.
Finally, when the Runic Circle is complete, I stand up, and look around, checking for mistakes. There are none, of course. Humbly speaking, I am an expert in Rituals and Runes.
I then stand in the center of the Runic Circle, in an actual Circle that had a smaller Runic spell around it, and summon my Staff to my hand. Looking at the gathered Elves, I say, "Come on then. Let's get this over with."
As one, the Elves walk towards the Runic circle, Athra amongst them, and stand in 12 other empty circles all around me, evenly spaced out. Making all of us.. 13.
I look them each in the eyes, smiling at their resolution, and say, "Brace yourselves. This won't hurt, but it will feel a bit uncomfortable."
Saying that, I slam my Staff on the ground, sending a wave of Magic into the Runic Spell. Immediately, I feel a tug on my Soul, as the Runic spell glows in a yellow light. The yellow light covers me, and pushes me up into the air, floating me up.
I close my eyes, embracing the feeling, but I understand that the other Elves were also floating up. I feel some of their Magic flow through the lines connecting our circles, and enter my own body. But all of it goes directly towards my Staff, and I feel my Magic expand.
I open my eyes, now glowing with a yellow light, and point the Eye of my Staff towards the air. I whisper, "Fidelius.. Abscondere!"
Immediately, a white beam of Magic exits out of the Staff and goes towards the skies. It slams into the Wards already long established on the Island, and starts covering the surface of the Outer ward in a layer of white Magic. All the while, I feel Magic get sucked out of me, out of the planet, and out of the 12 Elves who had joined me, to power the spell.
It wasn't much, for them. Where 40% of the Magic was provided by me, 30% was provided by the Elves, and the remaining 30% by the Earth.
Slowly, over a period of two hours, the entire 4700 km² area of the island is covered under the new White coloured ward stacked on top of all the other Wards already there. And then.. I drop down on the ground, completely exhausted.
I see the Elves struggling to stay upright, and just smile at them, breathing hard. Giving them a thumbs up, I drop on my back, feeling my Spell has succeeded. Something settles down in my Soul, and my smile widens.
My Island.. Sanctuary.. was under the Fidelius Charm.. with me as the Secret Keeper.
This way, at least, I give my animals a second level of protection, since any attacker will first have to find this place.. which is absolutely impossible now, unless I allow it.
"Is it.. is it done, Sorcerer Athreos?" Athra's voice brings me back, making me open my eyes.
My healing factor had kicked in a bit, although I won't be using my Magic anytime soon, and so, I say, "Yeah.. the Fidelius has been cast. The only ones who know about this place are already inside the Wards of the Sanctuary."
The Elves.. all of them.. already know about this place, since this is their home. You can't hide a person's home from themselves. The Fidelius will only work on places that either they call home, or if the ones who do call it home grant them permission to do so. Or if the place has no one other than you, which means you still claim it as a home.
As for the Repository.. I'll deal with it later. But first, I need to rest.
---
A/N: Mason didn't feel the Secret settle into his Soul any other times because he wasn't familiar with Soul Magic then.
Soul Magic won't be expanded upon more, because it is a dangerous subject which I know nothing about lol. The Elves were needed to help Mason power the spell, because he couldn't hide the entire island alone, since it was so big. He would have died trying, and it would have failed.
His Magic was enough to hide a smaller Island, around 1000 km² or something, but not an island this big.
This was sort of another filler, to set the stage for the battle to come. Goals established in this chapter: Begin learning Soul Magic, cast the Fidelius on the Island, stopped the Elves from leaving the Island for a few years, and also gave them a way to stay hidden from Asgard's eyes if they do.
Did the chapter bore anyone? If so, sorry! It was filler, a bit of an infodump too, so it wasn't as exciting as some others. But don't worry, excitement is soon coming.
Thank you for your support! Tata!
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