On Astral Tides: From Humble Freelancer To Astral Emperor

“Okay, time to show off.” Shiro grinned. “It’s a lot of work, but… the gamer in me is kind of thrilled right now, Aki.” Shiro’s beauty in this moment was blinding, her cheeks flushed with excitement, her black eyes bright with anticipation. “We thought that we’d be a bit short of ether, while we were stockpiling for Haru and Eleanor. But it looks like we’ll still be raking it in, so… shit, I don’t mind pushing myself beyond my limits for an easy life later. Got to get ahead of the curve, rule number one of RTS games, right?” Shiro winked playfully, and I responded by pulling her into a hug, while Magatama watched on calmly, and Asha with fondness.

“You don’t need to bribe me, Aki. I’m all in regardless.” she chuckled but didn’t relinquish the hug. “Tan is too. She’s now absolutely sure she made the right choice.”

“I can speak for myself, princess.” As Shiro’s hair shaded to crimson, a mixture of red and silver strands, her body temperature increased, though despite being hot, it was a comfortable warmth, greedy, hungry, but also passionate. “I do not disagree, however. It seems that it shall not be long before your Territory reaches the same Heightening as I enjoy. Though…” Her pride compelled her to give context. “…even so, the infrastructure within will be greatly inferior. Endless time is a barrier not easily crossed. Yet…” Her single crimson eye hardened, but showed a great deal of trust, while Shiro’s black one showed infinite affection. “…listen not to those Valkyries. Yes, this world may be a poisoned chalice, potentially unclaimable… but you are not a man to fail or be deterred by the difficulty. After all…” she purred, her breath hot on my ear, and she snatched a kiss.

Our tongues tangled, Tan’s saliva hot and fragrant, tasting of cinnamon and other exotic spices. Then the flavour changed, as did the movement of her tongue, as Shiro took over, and for several minutes the two wrestled charmingly for control, the style of kisses shifting, until we parted, both breathless, and Shiro conceded her voice to Tan. “…even in a far weaker, pathetic state, you persuaded me to become one with the princess to save her life, and made it happen. If that is not a miracle, I do not know what is. So… claim a world all say is impossible, and ascend to the Pantheons at my…”

“Our.” Shiro interrupted, and Tan conceded.

“I am a part of this ‘our’, so it is not wrong.” She paused, and then kissed me again, as if to prove a point. “Besides, we have to stake our claim. Lest the Valkyries conspire to win him over.”

I would hope we already have. Rose chortled in my thoughts. At least Lin and me.

Oh, definitely. Though don’t forget, I’m not picking any sides carelessly. But that doesn’t mean I won’t help you all out.

I wouldn’t have it any other way. Would you, Lin?

In the Wisdom World, Lin nodded. “Indeed. We Choose the Slain, and the Slain are the bravest of warriors, but also… the most principled, most honourable. Hold fast to your convictions, and we… we shall be your wings.”

Run laughed at that, doubled over and gasping for breath, and even Shaeula found it hilarious. Setting that aside, Tan released the hug and stepped back, offering some last words. “Do not be swayed by the fact there are nine of them. The princess and I, we two can take on all comers, and shall not lose… in… our devotion…”

“What was that, I didn’t quite catch it?” I couldn’t help but tease Tan, as she trailed off, her voice a shy whisper at the end, the gap between her fierce passion and strength, and her embarrassed affection, enough to make me smile.

“You heard me!” Tan didn’t bite, before allowing Shiro to take over.

“Shit, she’s so unbearably adorable. The myths have her all wrong.” Shiro smirked, her own face still pink. “She’s right though. No getting your head turned by the thought of nine sisters. Though by the sounds of it, Tan’s a little jealous that they are such diligent sisters, not like her own, who she sees as lost causes. Anyway…” She pumped her fist, turning to Magatama, while Asha, seizing her chance, patted her lap, offering me it as a pillow.

I am a little tired. It’s been a long day, no, a long month! As I rested my head in her lap, smelling the mossy, natural fragrance of nature, and the rich, earthy scent of soil and the clear tang of water from her, I looked up at her beautiful, calm, motherly face, and also her ample chest, straining at the fabric of her green dress. Is she getting bigger? Pregnancy related? But do Dryads nurse? I doubt it…

“Relax yourself. I do believe you do not need to traverse much of the Pilgrimage yourself today, do you?” Asha stroked my hair tenderly, and I agreed.

“Yeah, it’s a little disrespectful to the southern and western shrines and temples, but due to the Territory Ranking up, those of us who have maxed out the Kami-Blessed Class can give it a miss. They’ll still get dedications at the Tengokusentou ceremony though. It’ll be fine.”

“Yes. Do not overexert yourself. Even the mightiest Tree can break before the storm if it is buffeted without rest.” Asha agreed, and Magatama glanced down at my waist, asking her own question.

“Is Tsurugi well?”

“Sleeping.” I listened to her mental snores, amused. “She does it a lot. Sleep, then wake and play, or… honestly, I’ve used her pretty hard these last days. So let her enjoy her relaxation. She’ll be busy in the future too. After all… she is my sword now.”

“She will be delighted to hear it.” Magatama smiled beneficently. “We truly feel loved. You and our many mothers do not see us merely as tools, but… as living beings, that desire to be used, yet not enslaved. That… is perhaps the greatest joy of all.”

“Of course you’re alive.” Shiro shrugged. “And we’re not the sort to discriminate against magical beings. Shit, that would be totally uncool. Aki’s not the sort of guy who’s that shallow and petty. Even if you’ve got a difficult past…” Her black eyes showed a trace of sympathy, and I knew that soon, once we had a little peace and quiet, we’d have to face Magatama’s origins, and the fall of the Kamuy, that I’d learned more of in that strange, sealed space under, or perhaps within, Mount Atago.

“…a burden shared is indeed a burden halved. I never thought so. I always kept my shit to myself, you know?” Shiro’s tone was light, but I knew she wasn’t a woman who liked revealing weakness, so this was a big confession for her, showing how close she’d grown to Magatama after working together, even in such a short time. “Strange, I told Aki that night he took me home though. So I guess even then I was clinging to him.”

She grimaced, a little ashamed. “I can be a bitch. Needy, selfish, hate admitting I’m wrong, but… we’re all changing.” Taking a deep breath, she finished her argument. “So, if you ever want to talk, Aki’s your best bet, but we’re good too. After all, you’re either a sister or a daughter, depending on your mood, am I right?”

Magatama let out a light chuckle, flecks of light in her black eyes seeming to glimmer like stars. “Indeed. We are ourselves, mostly…” She glanced at the silent sword form of Tsurugi again. “…but we are also reborn, new life. Daughters under the Sun and the Moon. Now, we should make haste, should we not?”

“Yeah, quicker we do, quicker Aki can melt our hearts by being awesome again. And I admit, I’m eager to get building this Territory. The gamer in me cries out for optimisation. So… time to open the Box… and not that box, Aki. Though tonight, it’s your lucky night, an all-you-can-eat buffet.”

Oh yeah, the day’s flipped over, so barring some top-ups for the stragglers, and the Tengokusentou, Pilgrimage is almost done. Though I guess I will need to join up with everyone before we swing back to Mount Fuji. That sacred site, I have to check it myself and add it to the Territory if I can for sure…

“Amplify the Flames of my Gifts and Blessings!” Shiro surged with adherence and fiery energies, and Magatama manifested her jewel self. It drew in the flames, and she was surrounded by a beautiful halo of golden-yellow fire. I watched from my position on Asha’s lap, as she wove her own energies into it, the halo growing, and then, with a smile of benevolent affection, she placed herself around my neck. Immediately my Eyes responded.

You have been affected by Shiratori Himeko’s Blessing From The Fiery Heart Of Passion. This has been magnified by the powers of Yasakani no Magatama, and the Passion that burns within Shiratori Himeko has been enveloped by the warm affection of Yasakani no Magatama, and transformed into a soothing, warming Flame, which like the hearth of home, calms and restores.

Your Skill, Sacral Chakra Of High Moonlight Spirit Water has temporarily increased from Rank 8 to Rank 10, ascending the third pinnacle and peering out across the fourth horizon, no matter how feeble your view.

You have been affected by Shiratori Himeko’s Flames Of Many Heartfelt Emotions. This has been amplified by the powers of Yasakani no Magatama, and the Emotions which flame within Shiratori Himeko have been enfolded within Yasakani no Magatama’s trust in her, and transformed into a potent, restorative flame, which, like the hearth of home, rejuvenates and warms the heart.

Verbose as ever.

Your Skill, Sacral Chakra Of High Moonlight Spirit Water has temporarily increased from Rank 10 to Rank 11, crossing the fourth horizon, guided by the bright flames of another, and the fifth vista stands before you, an unexplored land.

I tried to process the Lost Droplet, my sacral Chakra spinning with incomparable strength to before, like a storming whirlpool of watery energy, but it still wasn’t quite enough. The impenetrable shell which had softened before this, creaked and splintered, but the true package of energy inside remained untouched. Seeing that, Shiro grinned, and the flames around her blazed brilliantly, almost too bright to look at, as she layered on her final buff.

You have been affected by Shiratori Himeko’s Berserk Blessing Of Blood. Your blood roars, yet due to the effects of Bonded Resonance Link and Soothing Waters Of Self-Sacrifice, you suffer few ill effects, and the power of the Blessing is magnified. Shiratori Himeko and many others are taking on the strain of Resonance. This has been amplified by the powers of Yasakani no Magatama, and though her ability is not suited to enhance such a potentially cruel… buff… due to her deep emotion and connection with the recipient, and warm emotion of the giver, and those who Resonate, like the hearth of home, Yasakani no Magatama has changed the fire that burns into a welcoming heat.

Don’t think I missed the pause there…

My snarky thoughts were quickly swept aside, when after the buff finally kicked in, I felt something within me creak alarmingly, my body full of pain and pressure. Oh yeah. I’m already overstuffed. Though if I put it like that, Shiro would say that I deserve it, as I’m usually the one stuffing them. Leaking a gentle chuckle, I rode the waves of pain, using all my will to hold myself together, and then another message flared in my vision.

Your Skill, Sacral Chakra Of High Moonlight Spirit Water has temporarily increased from Rank 11 to Rank 12, bypassing the fifth vista, forcibly amplified by others, and the sixth impasse blocks you, a realm that you will not truly reach for a long time, perhaps ever, as those who seek do not always find. Be swift and conclude your business.

Was Yggdrasil always such a nosy nag? My question in the Wisdom World received scandalised laughter from Run, as well as Rose, who leaked a cheerful giggle.

“Since I received this Eye from you, I have discovered a whole new side to the pillar which upholds this Pantheon. I find it rather charming. But to answer your question, haven’t you noticed a change?”

Oh, that’s it. Yes, there was always a barest hint of personality in there, I saw it occasionally and dismissed it as a quirk of the Skill, but ever since I was pulled before the Norns, it’s accelerated. Maybe…

“I believe so.” Lin seemingly read my mind, while Eri, Shaeula and Hyacinth listened with great interest. “When you lurked within the shadow of our mighty World Tree, for all realms within the Pantheon, no matter how distant, are under its branches, I think your Connection deepened.”

“Yes, and so we’re in trouble.” Run chuckled. “Proud Sigrún is going to be furious when she finds out what the two of you have done. Still… it’s kind of inspiring.” She winked her orange eye at me, the shade an entirely different one to Shaeula’s amber orbs. “We committed to this when we took the Fruit, but you two went further. All in… when tossing the bones during games of chance, it’s better to risk it all, go out in a blaze of glory, like the Slain we Choose. Or used to Choose. It’s only a matter of time before our older sisters notice, and then… we’re in deep trouble!”

Her tiny Wisdom World form grabbed my arm playfully, faking being teary eyed and trembling. Lin then clouted her, pouting, and as Run wheeled away laughing, Shaeula puffed out her modest chest proudly, the effect even more devastatingly cute as she was so tiny here. “You should not fret, when we gamble we always win, if you back Akio. I was first to recognise his value and place my whole self in his hand.”

“I think you’ll find I was…” Eri protested, but my attention on the Wisdom World faded, as the massive roaring sacral Chakra was causing pressure damage to my network, it being wildly unbalanced and me lacking the fundamental breakthroughs and knowledge. Still, the power was real, and the Lost Droplet, buffeted within me, was now stretching and contracting, cracks spreading across its impenetrable surface.

Concentrate. I can… I can do this!

Leveraging the High Moonlight Spirit Water, which was potent in its own right, I pierced deep into the Droplet within me, and then in an eruption of aether, water element, adherence and soullight, it burst, and I vomited blood, though in an act of consideration, I managed to scatter the red and silver liquid away from Asha’s legs. A trace of panic flared in Shiro’s eyes, before she blinked, steeling herself.

“Tough going, huh? No pain, no gain, yeah?” she managed, and as I nodded weakly, Asha brought out water element and soothed my brow, mopping clean the bloody spittle from my lips. She then bent over, her chest pressing against me as she kissed me, her tongue probing my mouth lasciviously.

“Yes, all clean.” Asha agreed, a thin bridge of saliva linking us for a moment, her golden-yellow eyes affectionate.

“No fair.” Shiro kissed me again next, Tan joining in, and then Asha pressed her breasts against me, leading to Shiro doing the same, while Magatama watched on, rather amused. It did help distract me, and in the Wisdom World, the Valkyries were watching on. Gerhilde had returned, after composing herself, and the brawny yet still hellishly attractive… I don’t even need to say so, all the nine sisters, despite having very different appearances, are equally gorgeous. Nine different blooms in a garden. …Grimgerde had come too, and also…

“So this is your vaunted new project, Rossweisse.” Waltraute grinned at me with a certain fervent amusement in her moss green eyes. She was wearing a white dress, low cut, and even in her smaller form, she was impressively endowed. Not the biggest, but… ample. “Skirting the Compacts via Wisdom and Connections? Quite clever. But…” She retrieved a whip, probably out of sheer mental image, and cracked it near me, amused. “…all this, just to prevent a flogging. How… surprisingly sweet of you. I thought you only cared for increasing your Wisdom and reading. To see you fall…”

Lin had a surly expression on her face, and Rose winked at her, urging her to defend us, so she did.

“Sometimes love comes unbidden. And I for one, regret nothing. I know Rose is the same.” At the nods of my girls, Lin continued. “And to that end… we are committed, and shall spare nothing, be it our bodies, our Truesouls, or our hearts. Even our very lives…”

Nope. My mental image her protested, hating that idea. Within my body, the turbulent water element, far superior to the High Moonlight Spirit Water, yet oddly, bearing some of the same principles within it, or perhaps I should have said Laws, surged, trying to burst free from me, destroy me, but I set that stress aside to make my will very clear. Your lives are the one thing I’ll never allow you to give away. After all, if all nine of you aren’t there when I… when we… I corrected, thoughts on Eri, Shaeula and Hyacinth, and those soon to join us here. …arrive, then I’m going to be furious.

“All nine of us?” mini Waltraute smirked, whip lashing idly. “Bold words. And greedy too. Can you handle the nine of us, little man?”

I didn’t mean… oh, what does it matter? You won’t need that whip, I promise you!

“That’s right!” Eri leapt to my defence. “We’ve reached Rank Four, it won’t take as long as you think to Rank Five. And then… Astral Emperor!”

“If only it was so easy.” Gerhilde, the eldest, sighed, brushing away strands of her luxurious black hair which seemed almost to suck in the light. “Yet we are warriors, Valkyries. We praise the strong, Choose the strong. So… I applaud your efforts so far.” She clapped her hands together, and the others echoed her, Rose and Lin exchanging amused and resigned expressions.

As the banter continued, illuminated under the glow of Runes in that mental space, I continued to pour the vast majority of my attention into the water within me. Fortunately for me, as morning approached, many of those within the hotel were returning from their long battles in the Boundary, claiming it for my Territory, so after exchanging some words with both Haru, who would be coming back to Tokyo to assist me, and Arisu-san, who was managing transport as always, though her long, gruelling efforts were almost at an end for now, I dismissed my Material form.

That only provided minor relief, but any was better than none, and as Shiro and Asha, Tan too, fussed over me, I continued to struggle with the water. The Lost Droplet was so dense as to defy explanation, even this small amount, after I’d given away many portions of it, exploding out of the compressed shell like a tidal wave. In a way, it’s like another state of matter and energy. Like… what was it Arisu-san said about neutron stars? I think Eri mentioned them too. She likes talking about astronomy… oh yeah, she found it funny, didn’t she… Nuclear Pasta. It is an amusing, nonsensical name, though Arisu-san assured me it wasn’t merely a joke for physicists…

It was like what would happen if the pressure of intense gravity was suddenly relieved on such matter, it would expand out, pushed apart by the repulsive forces, expanding repeatedly to a quadrillion times the volume. The Lost Droplet was hardly quite so vicious, but I was being battered by a million times more water than expected, and as I coughed blood again, Ether Healing working overtime, Asha’s cool, damp hand on my forehead, the sensation of her soft thighs beneath me, I knew just why I was feeling the strain.

Do I expel it? No, that’s far too wasteful. I can’t miss this opportunity. After all, it’s a prize the Norns had left for me before I even played their game. The Norns. The Urðarbrunnr, Urðr’s Territory and her Wellspring… the Norns govern the Past, the Present and the Future… water… water always has connections to time… and space…

Going all in, I left the barest minimum focus on Wisdom World, and those within were watching silently now, thoughts with me, realising this was a pivotal moment. Tsukuyomi uses water to help us perceive the future. In myth, water is the gateway between many realms. Even the Fae realms. If we see the past as another world, one that can no longer be visited…

Grasping for understanding, glad I’d been studying mythology in my limited free time, I realised something else, and I gasped, shocked.

“You okay, Aki? I know I shouldn’t be concerned, it’s you, but… my buffs are the best. Too good. They can be hard on you…” Shiro fretted, and I reached up and gently stroked her hair, before cheekily grabbing a handful of one breast as I let my hand fall, which snapped her out of her worry. She opened her mouth to chastise me, only to flush and cross her arms over her chest as if to ward me off, realising I was cheering her up, distracting her.

“Yeah, I’m fine. You, Tan and Asha are taking great care of me. You too, Magatama.” At my reassurances, they relaxed. “It’s a trial, I think. The Norns wouldn’t give me a gift to kill me, but I reckon I have to be worthy of it, to understand it, and… I do. It’s… kind of perfect for me. Honestly, I need to find a way to give it to Arisu-san too…”

Shiro rolled her eyes. “If you keep giving her rewards, it’s going to look like you’re courting her, Aki.”

“I wouldn’t dare.” I snorted, even as my mind delved through the waters. Every drop was Connected, just as the past, present and future were. It’s been called the endless river of time for a reason, not just poetry. And her world is under the World Tree, so… each droplet also contains Wisdom. Wisdom geared specifically… “I’m just delighted she counts me as a friend. I’d never poke at her regrets and insecurities, no more than I would Haru’s.”

“Yeah, good luck with that.” Shiro snorted, and even my mind missed her next words as I delved into the Wisdom World anew, to ask Rose a question.

“…piss them both off with an attitude like that. They’re not their pasts, and you’re not Kondou Kazuo, or that fucking prick Ryusei…”

Rose, I have a question. In the Runes, what’s the one for water, and what’s the ones representing past, present and future?

“Laguz is water.” Rose drew it for me, and I nodded. “Berkana for beginnings can symbolise and invoke the past. The now would be… Eihwaz, stability, present, and the future can by symbolised by Jera, the harvest. Why?”

Just an idea. Can you… mix Berkana with Laguz, then when I’m ready, Eihwaz and Laguz, and lastly, Jera and Laguz?

“I can.” Rose was deadly serious now the Runes were involved. “Though it will be basic, the way I used to invoke the Runes, before my numerous breakthroughs thanks to your efforts and gifts.”

It’s fine. I’m just trying to use our Connection to cheat this one.

“Cheat it?” Gerhilde asked, and oddly, it was Run who answered.

“Oh, this is going to be good! I was getting frustrated that littlest sister Lin and Rose got to see all these miracles!” her mini form clapped her hands together, and a seat appeared out of nowhere and she sat down, eagerly staring at me, orange eyes gleaming with excitement. “And hey, if it’s the Divine Norns’ legacy, and you do it right… we’ve got another die to cast when proud Sigrún tries to send us to sleep for our transgressions. I don’t want to wait for an eternity for a hero to come and wake me…” She then winked at Rose and Lin, even as Rose manipulated the first pair of Runes, and through her, through my Path, I realised that the water from the Lost Droplet was indeed three distinct types, though also still one unified whole. Just like time. Seconds, minutes, hours… they are all concepts we impose on time to give it meaning and order, but in reality, time is all one contiguous piece…

“…but if we are to be stripped of our Divinity, our Flames quenched, and made to marry a mortal man… I guess you’ve got that covered.” she tittered. “Though I doubt the Allfather would be generous enough to let you marry your Verr in peace.”

“Death before betrayal.” Lin insisted, her temper now as fiery as her hair. She tossed her head, golden eyes flashing. “I pledged. I am his Brúðr. Even at the word of the Allfather I shall not break that. We may have shattered many laws, but we did it for the World Tree, and all who dwell within it. I have no shame in me, I will not accept such censure!”

“Bravo!” Eri clapped, a bright expression on her face. “I knew, when you chose Akio to be a hero, that you were a wise woman. The sort I like. I’m glad you realise Akio is worth fighting for. Just as… he fights for us, for you. He wants to see you in truth, not merely in this mental space. So…”

As they talked, I considered my earlier meeting with the Norns, and their trials for me. The first was a test of questions, of knowledge. The past, after all, was the foundation of knowledge. Thus, this too was a trial of my understanding. And I understood the lesson that Urðr had taught me there. Both parties had already agreed, even before I was upon that strange, distant world. The past is immutable, but the past… has already been shaped by the present. It didn’t change, it was always this way, but that always was our choices made manifest.

Extracting a part of the Spirit Water within me, I struggled, as my Water Manipulation Skill wasn’t close to my buffed sacral Chakra. Shiro’s Buff had managed to Rank it up temporarily, and by using all my Split Thoughts, I managed. Barely. Each faint Connection was magnified by Rose’s Runes, and I gathered the past within the waters, and formed it into a river, flowing through my sacral Chakra.

I gestured, and Rose switched, her runes now targeting the waters of the present. We lived every moment, be it the past that had gone, or the future as it came, as the now. Verðandi’s lesson was that the now was informed by both the past and the future, and while the outcomes could not be changed, what was taken from it could be. I fed in the Spirit part of my water, and then formed a second current, letting the past pour in.

This isn’t easy, but… I think… I already succeeded. At least in the eyes of Skuld. I chuckled, despite the strain, as I signalled Rose to switch to the final set of Runes. What with the clicking and clacking of her shears, Skuld tried to appear threatening, but, while it was likely sacrilegious to say of a Goddess, she was oddly cute. I guess… Tan would be happy to be praised, so why not Skuld?

An answer that would satisfy was Skuld’s task, a reverse of the lesson of the past, as if a mirror. Water and the moon, a mirror… and the lesson was, we already had the answer, and what seemed a challenge, was instead… inevitability. Just like how the future is shaped from the past, through to the present, and then… then beyond.

The last of the waters, governing the future, surged, yet… there was still something missing, even as I fed in the Moonlight part of my own waters. My Spirit Water was now completely absorbed, a three-part river flowing through my Chakra network, yet the water wasn’t placid and calm, but a torrent, raging and boiling.

If it’s a river of time, then… what is time? It has no true answer, but… From a spiritual standpoint, I’d received my answer already. The frozen slice of it, taken from the battlefield in the upper Astral, where I could change events within it freely, yet when the bubble popped, it vanished like a dream, reality already set. From a Material standpoint, time was a dimension, or so it was theorised, and often thus lumped in with spatial dimensions, to become spacetime. I remembered the strange sparks of purple energy forming in the areas where Material and Astral space overlapped, and I was sure that was part of the pattern too. Pattern. A tapestry. Threads, and Connections…

The Lost Droplet contained water that acted as a Connection between the past, present and future, the same waters flowing within the Urðarbrunnr. It simply wouldn’t be possible to tame it, without understanding that, embracing that, and… embodying that. 

Channelling my spatial element into the water, from past to present to future, purple energies merging with the shining orange, time seemed to halt for me, and then…

“It seems we meet again. Or have already met. Or shall, in the future. Is there a distinction?” I was before Urðr, the waters within me, charged with spatial element, settling down, the eroding flow calming, and as I cycled the water within me, my Path glimmered, each droplet of water a strand of a perfect, incomprehensible whole. There were some threads I could understand, though, thick, rope-like ties, to the other parts of the Lost Droplet, within my companions and those who had tasted the water of the Spring before, and for a moment I was entranced, before Urðr chuckled, and she drew my attention back to her.

“I perhaps should be quite offended, that a mortal, or close enough, before the Goddess Urðr, has the leeway to consider other matters. Is not my beauty transcendent?” Her tone was light, and as I gazed at her, with her flawless complexion, raven-dark hair flowing like a waterfall, golden eyes that had seen and understood far too much, a figure both willowy and buxom, barely hidden by a gauzy black gown, I nodded, steeling myself to resist.

“Yes. But… Divine Urðr, you didn’t call me to this moment to lavish you with praise, nor do I expect you want it from someone like me.” I narrowed my Eyes, shaking off her Charm. The effort was hellish, but I simply considered all those I loved, and despite Urðr being perhaps the most beautiful of any woman I had ever seen, though it was somehow laughable to talk of perfection, or more beautiful, when by the time you reached women like Shiro and Tsukiko, to say nothing of Tan or the Valkyries, we were talking feeling, rather than objectivity, I was able to keep my calm. “It’s the Lost Droplet and what it contains. Is that why it was left on Earth, beneath the Spring?”

“You believe that we can see and know all?” Her smile made her far harder to resist, and despite my best efforts, my body responded, and she glanced meaningfully at my lower torso, cherry lips pursed with faint amusement. “Did you not bring up that Demon, Laplace? Within the closed system of the World Tree, I could know all, with the aid of my younger sisters, yet… no system is truly isolated, is it? Everything is connected to something. Of course, I am Divine Urðr, Empress of Urðarbrunnr, with power, wisdom and understanding which you cannot fathom. Even without impossible surety, with knowledge of the past, I can weave the present and thus control the future. Imperfect, but even the Allfather, who sacrificed to spark Wisdom, cannot know all things. But it seems one of the scattered droplets of the uncertain past has reached the present and will shape the future. Do you… comprehend this?”

“I do.” I nodded, Eyes blazing in the frozen moment which the energies lingering within the water of the Lost Droplet had trapped me in. “And if I couldn’t?” Shiro’s buffs dissolved, as if swallowed up, and I felt the pressure ease, only for a greater weight to settle on me, then for it to be washed away, and for the first time in ages, I felt great.

Your Skill, Sacral Chakra Of High Moonlight Spirit Water Rank 8 has become Sacral Chakra Of Waters Past, Present And Future Rank 8. This retains all properties of the concentrated Moonlight and Spiritual energies it possessed before. All Skills and Classes related to Time, Space, Connection, Prophecy and other similar attributes will be enhanced significantly. [Class: Legendary] [Type: Law]

Foresight has increased by Eight.

Fate has increased by Six.

Your League cannot increase, yet the soothing flow of the Waters has allowed the pressure to flow into a parallel channel, temporarily resolving the pressure. Be warned that this alternate temporal river will have to rejoin the main tributary one day, and when it does, if you are unprepared for the strain, the effect will be catastrophic. Strengthen yourself, prepare, and find a way to overcome your mortal limitations, in a manner that befits he who Twists the Strands of Connection and Fate yet is not bound by them forcefully, but instead chooses Connection willingly, Weaving then upon a Loom made from your very being, and Severing those which you disdain with a Blade of your own self. Your Path is not one that has been trodden before, and thus, the results could be either Wondrous or Worthless. Yet such unpredictability is exquisite.

Your Skill, Crown Chakra Of Space, Rank 6, has become Crown Chakra Of Flowing Space And Time Rank 7. You can manipulate the flow of temporal energies, speeding up, slowing down, or even locally freezing it, however the calculations and energies to do such require far more than mere Mortal understanding. To use such is the providence of the Divine, and improper and impossible use will have dreadful consequences. [Class: Imperious] [Type: Law]

Damn, it’s the first time I’ve seen an element with such high power. And now I have two of them. Space and Time, huh? Well, it’s not like I can time travel with it, and I reckon I’d need a mind like Arisu-san’s even to manage a basic ripple in the fabric of spacetime. Yeah, not experimenting with this alone, I’ll seek expert advice, last thing I want is to age my spirit to dust making a mistake, or worse…

“If you could not, then… you would never leave this moment. At leas not… intact.” Urðr, heart-stopping in her beauty, was cold as an Empress now, as indeed she was, ruler of a world, and for a moment, I could feel just what that meant. My Eyes and Truesoul still resonating from a deeper connection to the World Tree than ever, and indeed, this silent, frozen moment, my Path showed me the fleeting glimpse of a massive Connection, yet that Connection… that Connection… that Connection, that Connection, that Connection, that Connection, that…

I blinked, only to find Urðr’s slender, delicate finger tapping my head, and a thin line of blood dribbled down her fingernail as she withdrew it from me. I felt a sting of agony, and as she produced a black handkerchief and carefully wiped the blood from her nail, she sighed, and the sound filled my heart with melancholy and lust, but again I visualised Shaeula, Eri and the others, calming myself with our bonds and my memories of them. I shot Urðr a hard look, and the one she returned me was rather offended, and I had to muster all my Resilience, Determination and League to remain standing, as my every nerve and thought screamed for me to prostrate myself before her, beg to kiss her feet and serve her, or kill myself if I had displeased her.

“You’re not…” I grated, words difficult. “…playing around, when no-one else… can see, unlike… before.”

“Oh, how insolent.” She dismissed her handkerchief, and produced an elegant fan, black on one wide, white on the other, though which side was which flickered and changed, seemingly at random, and sometimes I somehow observed both sides at once, merging to grey. “Besides, the World Tree is always watching those of us under her shade. Very little is hidden from Wisdom. Yet some things exceed even that. But I shall not allow you to distract me.” She folded her fan and suddenly was before me again. I swallowed, as her perfect chest nearly brushed against me, and then she struck me with the fan, on the head, where she had slightly injured me before. Ether Healing was trying to close the wound, but… it was failing. It was only a slight nick, but it refused to Heal.

“You tried to grasp for something you are far from prepared for. Your Vessel, your League, cannot withstand such. Though you did see, no matter how fleetingly.” Her expression now was a slightly melancholic pout, and in desperation, I snapped my own finger, the pain jolting me out from her spell. Is this… the true Charm of a Goddess who exceeds Tan in every way?

Breaking several more fingers for good measure, I tried to focus on her words, rather than her transcendent beauty, poise and power.

“Perhaps it shall return to you, such knowledge, in the time of your need. Now… know this.” Urðr intoned, and blood gushed from my eyes, ears, nose, mouth and even oozed out of my pores, at the force of her proclamation. “To go beyond, requires you to choose the correct method. Yet… you walk a Path that none has charted before. To use past methods, would surely secure your present, yet the future… who can say whether that would be genius or folly. No, I offer a simple suggestion.” The fan struck my head again, almost playfully. “On behalf of the foolish young Valkyries who risked all to shatter the stale world they find themselves in. You would not wish to show them something they have merely seen before, would you?”

I nodded, the sound of breaking and Healing bones echoing. “Oh, do stop that.” She thwacked my head again, and suddenly the glory of her existence was bearable, back to what it was when I had met her and her sisters. “If you were truly before me, rather than this remnant copy of my time, with a weaker presence, you would not think to sully my ears with such annoyances.”

This is… a copy? Not the original? Astral Empresses sure are terrifying…

“Now, this frozen time is almost used up. Listen well. Your Vessel is overstuffed and jumbled. You have gained many kinds of strength yet have no unity. You are a tapestry made of threads of many colours, woven at random. It has a pattern and some… artistic value, yes, but… it shall never be true art. You have bought yourself a reprieve, by mastering the Waters Past, Present And Future, for you have moved a danger from the Present into the Future. Now, such intrinsic facets of yourself cannot be cheated, the bill always comes due, yet…” Her smile was still truly stunning, despite leashing her Charm. “…you have bought yourself time to gather coin to pay it. Focus on your strengths and find a method to go beyond what limits you. Either that or strengthen your Vessel so that it can contain the jumble that you are without fracturing. Everyone’s Truesoul has limits. And while it grows, can be expanded… haste leads to imperfection.” She waved her fan, between black, white and grey, before she disappeared, and the space around us began to collapse.

“Perhaps it might be wise to reexamine what your true strength is?” were her final words, and the temporal and spatial energies which had swallowed me vanished, and Asha was crying out, as to her it seemed I had suddenly exploded with blood, soaking her. Grimacing, I raised my head, feeling a million aches and pains, only for black impurities to ooze from me. Oh yes, it kept the Spirit Water properties, didn’t it? I suppose making those stronger would have a cleansing effect. Amber letters flared in my vision, and I grimaced.

“It’s fine. Just a side effect of mastering a new mutated water element… and space element too, I guess.” Don’t grow any stronger recklessly, you say? I’m sorry, Divine Urðr, I don’t even know how to limit my growth. But… there has to be another way…

My turn now to wash Asha, and also Shiro, who got splattered, I pondered the meaning of Urðr’s final words, all the while feeling an annoying itch, like a papercut, hidden by my hair. Even the bone, no, the crown Chakra within it, itched too, and I resolved to ignore it until I could close the wound. Reexamine my true strength, huh? Yeah, I’m not looking to be a Kami, or even a God. That way… I’ll never be truly free, truly my own man, which strikes me as folly for a master of a Path. But if not that, then what? Follow my Path and hope a solution presents itself, or…

Letting out a tired sigh, I patted Asha’s damp hair. “All clean. Sorry about that. Anyway…” I yawned, checking out the Territory. “I’ll just drop the Rank three Barrier Enhancement Anchor Spire into the first build queue. A million spent. How casual I’ve become with such sums. I guess… it’s time for Pilgrimage. But for me… I need to gather up Haru. I’ve a stop to make first, but… it’s time to do something about our visitors from Romania, as well as the troublesome leaks which are putting us at risk…”

At least that should be safe, Divine Urðr… and it’ll make the troubles we suffered during our visit to Michiru’s village worthwhile. As in the Wisdom World I began to explain to the incredulous Valkyries that I had met a temporal copy of the oldest Norn, I went over today’s itinerary in my head. First on the list…