Chapter 1722: Hero’s Trial - Nepherage

The heat of battle doesn’t always produce heroes.

Sometimes, it’s the trials of quiet conviction that produce results.

-The thoughts of a man who had once trained a child of war and a child of peace.

...

[Well...this is a novel situation.]

"Where the hell are we?!" Hakon shouted in alarm.

When Hakon grabbed the ancestral axe, I wasn’t expecting much except a test of martial might.

The others had stated that they felt something weird when they tried to pull the axe from the skull, but all that amounted to was increased resistance and not much else.

This also the case for the Storm Singers chieftain, who was probably more qualified than others for this particular trial.

When Hakon tried to pull the axe, though, something weird occurred.

My presence inside of Hakon’s head should’ve made him more or less immune to the effects of mental suggestion or anything aether-based that tried to fuck with his head.

However, that didn’t happen.

Instead, as soon as Hakon grabbed the axe, a wave of aether washed over the both of us and dragged us both to be...somewhere.

It was a mental space somewhat similar to the spaces that me and the other kaijin would subject our possessed hosts to. Although, this one felt a lot more...ancient.

Either way, being forcefully dragged to some secondary mind space was new to both Hakon and I, and it was an experience I kind of wished the Lord could feel too.

Regardless, it took Hakon and I a few subjective minutes to reorient ourselves in such a way that we felt as if we were on "solid ground", and finally focus on the space we were floating in.

It was cold, but full of vitality at the same time.

If I had to hazard a guess, the ancestral axe’s nature as a proto-treasure made it able to absorb not only the aether inside of the slain Ice-Blood Mammoth, but the natural aether produced by the weird tree roots that had been invading the chamber.

As to why a proto-treasure had managed to create a space like this though was...kind of against conventional wisdom.

Then again, nothing we kaijin got involved in was ever conventional.

As Hakon and I floated there for a subjective amount of time, eventually, the consciousness that brought us here finally responded.

"How strange. There should be only one of you. So why are there two?"

"What the—"

[Quiet. Be respectful,] I admonished the young warrior. [Allow them time to properly manifest.]

Shortly after my admonishment, the energy in the space began to coalesce and condense in front of us into a being that was a mix of ice and life aether in unequal measure, forming an androgynous being with no facial features save a pair of glowing eyes that were of different colors.

One dark green, one icy blue.

Hakon and I both remained silent until the being before spoke up first.

"Wait...I see now...you’re like me...but different,"the being said in a curious tone of voice. "You’re aether made manifest, a being that can attach themselves to others like a symbiotic parasite, but mixed with something extra that gives you a physical form. Interesting..."

Being called a parasite irked me in ways I didn’t know I could be irked until this moment, but I kept my mouth shut.

This was Hakon’s moment, not mine.

"Hey! Don’t call Big Sister Nepherage a parasite!" Hakon yelled at the being in youthful indignation. "Who the hell are you?!"

The being redirected their attention towards Hakon, feeling more amused than angered by the young warrior’s outburst. Once they locked eyes, though, I could feel a sudden shift in the space around us.

"You..." the being trailed off as they floated over closer to us. As they approached, the pressure upon us both began to increase to a noticeable degree.

"You feel like him...but not quite like him..."the being said with that mix of nostalgia and pain that can only come from loss...but with a hint of anger that can only come from seeing an old enemy prosper.

I was expecting Hakon to question the being’s words, but instead, he made an oddly sensible observation.

"You...you’re talking about my ancestor, Fra—"

"Don’t say his name!," the being suddenly raged before shifting back to their curious, almost sad tone. "Oh, how I miss him..."

Hakon and I remained silent as the being composed themself, which didn’t take long.

At least, it felt like it didn’t take long.

"I have been waiting centuries for his return. Or at the very least, someone like him," the being said after it had managed to recompose itself. "I know that the former was impossible, since I felt his life slip through me...but the latter was very much so. I recall the sweet little girl who wished him farewell, of the small baby boy who he would never see grow. But you’re neither of them...who are you?"

Hakon took a deep breath, an instinct despite not being needed in such a place, before answering.

"My name is Hakon. The ones you’re referring to, your former wielder and his daughter, were my ancestors."

"Ah, a distant descendant of...him."

The way the being said the word, "him", was simultaneously hateful and forlorn. Already, I could see milord’s face being annoyed by such a contradictory being.

"Do you know, what I am?"

[I do,] I answered first, just to gauge the being’s reaction. [You’re—]

Before the words could leave my non-existent lips, I felt a surge of ice and life aether wrap around my throat.

"Nuh-uh, helper," the being said. "Allow the young hero to answer. This is his trial, after all."

Such a trick wouldn’t kill me, I knew that much, but I could sense that this choking sensation was being sent as feedback to my Lord. As such, I tried to pry away the energy around my neck...failing to catch purchase.

However, Hakon managed to react fast enough with an answer to cause the being to release their grip around my throat.

"You’re the spirit of the axe!" Hakon answered. "Well, not entirely, but you’re mostly the axe."

As soon as those words left Hakon’s mouth, the tightness around my throat disappeared.

"Oh? What makes you say that?"

"This entire space feels similar to the Ice-Blood Mammoth skeleton, and those tree roots entangling it," Hakon answered with confidence. "It’s like...you’re a composite of all three."

"Well observed!" The being declared with a joyous voice. "You are absolutely right. When the original Ice Blood Mammoth died, parts of it spirit was absorbed into me. Centuries later, those roots entangled us both and bled some bits of its spirit into us. Those roots, by the way, belong to a tree known as the [Memoir Oak]. A tree that only grows from the corpses of powerful beasts and warriors."

’That explains the [Death Echo Amber],’ I thought to myself.

"But yes, those two spiritual fragments combined with the nascent spirit that was the axe and created, well, me," the being explained. "But I suppose you can tell, that I am incomplete."

The moment this was said, Hakon realized what the trial was.

"Do...do you need me to complete you? In what way?"

The being looked shock at the foresight of the young warrior, expecting him to say something nonsensical like if they needed a name or a blood sacrifice.

It quickly recovered though, and put forth the trial.

"You said it yourself, I am a combination of several different spiritual fragments all sort of vaguely in this form before you. I need you to show your power and unify my dispirited parts into a whole," the being explained. "Which, you may find to be difficult."

Punctuating this challenge, the being momentarily split into three distinct identities before reuniting.

"Wait...if you’re so...discordant...with one another, why do you want me to unite you?" Hakon asked. "Wouldn’t you want me to try and eliminate all but one?"

This was a sensible question, but it was also one that drew a strange laugh from the being.

"Oh no, no! We are well aware that we are much stronger together than we are apart and isolated. Many have tried what you suggested, and all had failed."

Scenes of previous aether warriors attempting to draw the axe appeared and played before Hakon’s eyes, manifesting in the space that we were floating in.

Some simply failed to draw the axe, while others were sealed in ice and sent flying away.

A good handful though were sent flying into the roots...and then had their lives snuffed out like candles in a heavy storm.

"So if you wish to draw the axe, reclaim the power of your dear/hateful ancestor, then you know what you need to do. Bring us together, into a unified whole."

Hakon looked nervous as he realized that this trial was going to be more difficult than he anticipated.

But at the same time...I could feel the excitement rolling off of him.

"Alright...let’s do this!"