Vincent Amorason (quitethecharmer) wrote in marvel_nextgen,
@ 2011-11-11 00:55:00

Entry tags:

Flashback - Save The World, Then Save Yourself
Vincent still felt alien in his own, now much more fragile, skin. He had the chance to be a demi-god again right in front of him, and he had sacrificed it to go back to his friends and family to aid them. The greater surprise was that he did not regret it. Granted, the risks of colds, scraped knees, getting tired within a 24 hour period, and other such inconveniences didn't exactly please him, they were nothing in the greater scheme of things.

Now it was time to hold the All-Father to his word.

He spoke with Kristoff, making it clear he would be returning, and expanding on the nature of the compact he had made with Odin before returning to help them before. Then, he went to the roof, a sheaf of papers in hand. It was a story he had written, but never gotten around to typing or sharing with anyone yet. It was a good story, one he had worked hard on, and had no certainty about his ability to recreate.

He spoke a few words, and set the manuscript aflame, letting the ashes scatter to the heavens.

"A crafted tale, unborn and never to be read, is my sacrifice, given freely, for new passage to the realm of my birth."

He had been promised passage back anyway, but there was no sense risking a breach of manners with one of the more potent gods about the universe.

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	nextgen_asgard 2011-11-11 04:28 am UTC (link)
	Odin nods, taking the tale, and, true to its nature, not reading it. "And thine own tale ist yet untold, given the free will of mortals in exchange for divinity. Thou hast paid the promised sacrifice, and thou wilt be returned to Midgard as a mortal... but with the gift of sorcery and backing of Asgard." (Reply to this)(Thread)

	quitethecharmer 2011-11-11 04:44 am UTC (link)
	Vincent nods and moves forward as the Bifrost opens before him, feeling the intense weight of the realm almost painfully intense in his chest. "I am ready to learn, my Lord." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	nextgen_asgard 2011-11-11 04:53 am UTC (link)
	Odin nods, gesturing... and a portal opens. "Beyond lies the World Ash and its higher branches, where the secrets of the future, and all magics wert made clear to me. Secure thyself by the ankles to a branch, and there thou wilt hang for three days, whilst what secrets thou hast traded for shalt be made clear to thine mind in turn." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

quitethecharmer
2011-11-11 05:02 am UTC (link)

...

"Huh."

In hindsight, it should have been obvious. Should Vincent really have expected the All-Father to... what? Spend days poring over runes and dusty tomes with the him? Researching and experimenting? He couldn't help but smile. He supposed he was more his brother's kin than his mother's son.

He cleared his throat nearly stepped forward, before something awkward occurred to him. He'd hardly prepared himself for a journey. "I... I'm afraid I must trouble you for a length of rope, All-Father." He averts his gaze, this being somewhat embarrassing to ask for something so mundane.

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	nextgen_asgard 2011-11-11 05:04 am UTC (link)
	Odin nods, and gestures. Palace servants bring Vincent a length of rope and a blindfold. "Once thou'rt securely bound, tie the blindfold, and leave it until thou'rt summoned back." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

quitethecharmer
2011-11-11 05:54 am UTC (link)

Vincent takes the supplies and goes forward, bowing his head to the tree before beginning his climb. It doesn't take long for him to already feel the soreness in his palms. He wasn't unfit, but he'd long enjoyed the benefits of being a demi-god on Midgard. He nearly stopped the first time he thought he'd reached a high enough branch, but he forced himself to continue on, until he felt the air grow cold and thin around him.

"Come on. You were ready to fade into non-being to save the world. You gave up your spark for the chance to save your friends and family. What are you ready to sacrifice for something new?"

Once the stars began to grow sharper, he stopped climbing. He was prepared for the ordeal of the three days, but he wasn't keen on the risk of being eaten by an eagle (particularly when he still wasn't sure of the parameters of the longevity Odin had granted him). He crouches onto a branch and ties the rope in place on the limb and his ankles, partially affixing the blindfold before he lets himself swing over, the rope snapping taut as he begins to sway in the air.

"Well... here I am." He shuts the blindfold in place, and resigns himself.

It's almost relaxing, for the first hour. He feels his back stretch, his breathing acclimates to the thinner air, and he lets his mind wander.

It doesn't take long for the dizziness to set in, as the blood pools in his head. Various images of the realm's most notable champions begin drifting through his mind by the time he first starts having to cough up some of the blood that gets into his nose. The rate at which he goes numb to the cold is a painful mercy.

The insights beginning to come to him give him something to focus on by the time blood from his eyes begins to soak into the blindfold, helping him keep from panicking and tearing it away. By the time it had dried, the first day had ended, and three faces were etched into his soul.

It was nearly noon, or at least twelve hours had passed, time was difficult to reckon, on the second day, when he finally blacked out for the first time. He awoke when his lungs briefly failed, and he choked his way back to breathing, being sick before he could settle himself again. He waited until he was sure he could resist tearing away the blindfold before he reached up to clean his mouth.

"Is that all?" He croaked out, forcing himself to smile, as he could feel it growing colder, as --was it the sun?-- as whatever provided light receded again. "Perhaps I should stay longer than suggested.." He laughed, sickly, until blackness took him again, and another three faces came to him.

It was his flesh being pecked at that woke him on the third day. He screamed and thrashed. "I am not dead yet! I will not die!" He rasped, feeling leaves fall past him as the branch swayed. He coughed, spitting up blood again. "I can't die. Find your meal somewhere else, you stinking feathered vermin..."

He supposed he was either achieving enlightenment or going mad. He could feel an openness in his mind, as if something massive and complex had been constructed; but he knew, as surely as he knew anything, that if he relented a moment too soon, it would collapse like a house of cards.

He spasmed a few more times that day, when the birds tried their luck again, a few even tearing his flesh in their ambition. The last three faces to come to him made him want to cry in fear and admiration, as they came with thunder, with light, and... recognition.

"I've seen you before..." Vincent would have been sick again, had his stomach still held anything, as a sense of dread welled up in him, childhood memories being revisited in a new and terrible clarity.

Finally, the rope snapped, as the day ended.

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nextgen_asgard
2011-11-11 06:30 am UTC (link)

And as the rope snaps, the fall begins, it is arrested by a hard stone floor, thankfully before he reached any great momentum.

"Arise." Odin bids, though, given the trials, with which he is all too familiar, the order is given some aid by two of the Crimson Hawks helping bring Vincent to his feet, and assisting with removing the blindfold, the light in the chamber dimmed for this moment.

"You hath learned what wast promised, and all that couldst hath been thine name hast been erased from the records of fate. Thou'rt free."

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quitethecharmer
2011-11-11 04:41 pm UTC (link)

Vincent coughs, trying to clean himself as he is helped to his feet, nodding his thanks to the Hawks.

"You have my thanks, my Lord Odin, but my task is not done." He hardens his gaze with resolve he should not have after his ordeal.

"Three times three patrons grants me much, and for myself, that would be enough... but my life is for others, now more than ever. I will go one step further." He raised his hand, and pointed at the All-Father. "What must I sacrifice to receive your patronage as well?"

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nextgen_asgard
2011-11-12 02:45 am UTC (link)

Odin considers this a few moments, then nods.

"The gifts thou hast been given shouldst be tempered with foresight and wisdom. But just as I once traded mine eye for the gifts of magic, so too, must thou give of something dear to thee, if thou wish some part of the sight, to guide thine other magics. A hand, an eye... something which wilt be the last refuge of thy godly powers, and kept here for a time of need. Think well... but if thy sacrifice ist true, thou shalt be able to call upon gifts of divination as well."

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quitethecharmer
2011-11-12 03:10 am UTC (link)

Vincent, acquiescing to the toll of his ordeal sits down as he considers this. A long and silent few minutes pass before he lifts his head and staggers back to his feet with help once more.

"I give you my future. Vincent will father no children. His name will not be carried. No songs need be sung of my deeds by descendants. Let that they were done be proof enough of their worth." He shrugged. "And if fate dictates so, there will always be children not of blood in need of homes. The choices of the Lion of Asgard are not too good for one of its allies."

He paused, then cleared his throat and smiled again. "I would ask that you part me from the spirit of my sacrifice, rather than the flesh, my Lord."

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nextgen_asgard
2011-11-12 03:21 am UTC (link)

The All-Father nods. "Thou shouldst fixate less on songs and stories... thine actions wilt carry the weight they merit in your chosen world." he counsels, though there's a hint of a smile.

"The price wast taken from thee as soon as thou spoke, and when next thou waketh from rest, thou wilt hath the knowledge wished. Thou'rt mortal... but the gods shalt yet help guide thee."

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	quitethecharmer 2011-11-12 04:15 am UTC (link)
	"And I will return that aid, with all I am able." Vincent bows. "If it does not trouble thee, All-Father, I would rest, eat, and make myself intact before I return. My kin worry for my absence enough without me returning to them so... worn." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	nextgen_asgard 2011-11-12 04:19 am UTC (link)
	"Of course." Odin agrees, gesturing to the guards to help see Vincent out. (Reply to this)(Parent)

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