Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

Chapter 607: DCVII. The Manuscript

Dag bowed his head, while with one arm he stood behind his woman, trying to show Odin the respect he owed.

"Without your help, I wouldn't have made it, Odin. Thank you for saving my life. However, can I ask you a question?" Dag asked, who, not knowing how to talk to a God, but knowing that he had no bad intentions towards him, chose to speak in all sincerity.

"You're wondering why the Alfather came from Asgard to Skjold just to save you, right?" Odin said, anticipating Dag's next question, while he nodded, confirming.

"Yes, that's right." 

"The answer is already within you, young man. Just know that this is the first time I've seen one of the real Frostsinners die. As you could see, not even my Gungnir can kill them, even if their power is much less than mine" Odin exclaimed, clarifying the doubts of the young Master and knowing that a large group of warriors hung from his lips.

Although Dag already knew the answer, hearing Odin utter those words filled his heart with pride because something differed from what he had imagined.

"So... even the Gods can't kill the Xis, or rather... they can't kill the strongest Xis. I remember I already killed some of them using my dark powers and my hammer, but evidently, they were just adepts! Now I understand why they managed to drive the entire Norse Pantheon out of Earth! They can't fight them, I am their only hope!" 

As these thoughts crowded Dag's mind, nausea from the deepest parts of his stomach pervaded him, reaching up to his head and making him confused, so much so that he had to hold on to Freydis in order to stay on his feet.

"I could not allow a power as great as yours to die here and today, in such an insignificant place. Your destiny is another, young Dag" Odin continued, who as he spoke, was noticing that Dag's eyes were closing.

"Hey, Dag! Are you okay?! Dag!" Freydis exclaimed, who could no longer bear the dead weight of his body and fell with him, trying not to make him bang his head to the ground, in the presence of the Alfather.

Kranus and Reidar arrived near the father of the Gods and, although they wanted to rescue Dag, they stopped and knelt before him, out of respect.

Odin said nothing, merely moving his hand towards that direction as if he wanted to show them the way to help his comrade.

The archer knelt before his Captain and began slapping his face, noting that Dag's body did not respond to commands, as if he was irretrievably falling asleep.

"I'm afraid he exhausted all the forces of his body... so he needs some rest now. Let's lift his body and take him inside the castle. Even if it's half-destroyed, we'll find a place where we can rest the young warrior who just saved us all" Kranus said, looking at Dag as if he was one of his sons, despite actually being his killer.

"An archer and a Shieldmaiden from Okstorm and an old ice wizard from Krypstorm. What an extravagant team" Odin continued, while a slight smile appeared on his face.

Feeling called into question by their God, all three of Dag's companions turned to him and bowed their heads again, waiting for Odin to keep talking, while Dag was now completely unconscious and lying on the ground with his mouth half-open.

"You won't take this young man to the castle, I can't let you do that." 

Freydis opened her eyes wide, unable to believe she had heard correctly, but neither she nor her companions dared to interrupt Odin's speech.

"From now on, the Frostsinners will know that there is someone capable of killing them and that this individual lives on Skjold. Dag cannot stay here until he will be able to fight the Xis with his own strength. Magician, your name is Kranus, right?" the Alfather asked, looking down.

"Y... yes, wise Odin!" the Commander of the Ice Giants replied, not knowing why a God had just uttered his name.

"How did Dag know that his axe was the only weapon capable of defeating a Frostsinner?" 

"Uhm... actually... he didn't know. He knew the power of the Giantbane from the first moment the God Weland handed it to him, but he was not yet aware of all its hidden powers. I did" Kranus replied, fearing that those words might make his interlocutor nervous, but wanting to avoid telling lies.

"Talk" Odin replied, moving his hand forward and suggesting Kranus to continue his speech.

"A long time ago, I retrieved an ancient manuscript containing information about young Dag's weapon, or, to be more precise, about the gem embedded in it. It contains the power of the Sun, great Odin."

"The power of the Sun? Are you referring to the Sun that illuminated Midgard before it was shrouded in darkness?" 

"Yes, my lord. But it's not the only weapon capable of killing the Xis. The author of the book talks about 5 other gems, called the 'Crystal of the Elements', each of which is embedded inside a weapon. But these weapons are not on Skjold: each of them is located on one of the six planets created by the Xis, or at least, that's what the book says" Kranus continued, imagining that if Odin was completely unaware of the whole thing, then all the Gods and Aesir were.

"Are you saying that Dag's axe, this 'Giantbane' is Skjold's gem?"

"Correct, my lord... but that's not all yet. Each of these gems allows their owners to travel between planets by escaping the Frostsinner identification system, in a nutshell..." 

"Basically like a ghost traveler..." Odin interrupted, anticipating the sentence but continuing to listen carefully to the words of the ice wizard.

"The last pages of the book illustrate a prophecy. It was not easy to understand, but after months spent deciphering every corner of those pages, I managed to figure out that when all six gems will be gathered, it will be possible to travel to planet Earth, which is the last destination of the prophecy, in which the final clash against the alien invaders will take place" Kranus concluded, being careful not to forget any important details and feeling a great responsibility on his shoulders.

"Who is the author of the manuscript?" Odin asked, who was touching his long beard and thinking. 

"The book is anonymous, without author. But, if I may express my opinion, my lord, the story illustrated within it is too detailed to be false. No one would ever be able to conceive such accurate descriptions of the Frostsinners and the six Crystals of the Elements if he had never seen them with his own eyes. The Fire Crystal that Dag possesses proves this. It's all true." 

Reidar and Freydis remained silent, witnessing the conversation between Kranus and Odin, who at the time were talking as if they were two old friends.

Timidly, one step at a time, Bloodfang also joined them, arriving behind Odin and kneeling immediately before him, recognizing his power from the only divine aura he emanated.

Odin noticed him and the fact that he had approached only to be able to listen to the speech, so he pretended nothing.

"Six gems in six planets... the owners of the other magical weapons... do they know about this whole story?" the Alfather asked, trying to clarify the last doubts about Kranus's story, which had been incredibly accurate and attentive, never missing anything. 

"I don't know, but... I don't think the manuscript has any other copies, so... I don't think so. It could be a disadvantage, but also an advantage if we decide to recover the other Crystals to complete the prophecy" Kranus continued, responding with confidence.

"Mmmh... in addition to possessing the only dark power capable of countering that of the Frostsinners, you also inherited the Primal Thunder... who are your parents, young Dag?" Odin replied, looking at the young Master's unconscious body and thinking that despite his young age, he was already forced to carry a very heavy burden on his shoulders.

"Wise Odin!" Thyrius suddenly interrupted, after making sure Kranus had finished his story.

The Alfather turned to the Packmaster. 

"Why him? Why will he be the warrior destined to save humanity? He's only 18 years old and he's not the most skilled of warriors..." Bloodfang asked, who although he had strong esteem for Dag at the time, could not help but try to take his place.

Before Odin could respond with his usual calm and wisdom, Reidar abruptly anticipated him.

"And who should he have been, if not him? You?! Pff! Don't make me laugh, besides beating you, the Captain alone defeated one of the most powerful beings in the cosmos... and you still think he's not worthy?! There is no warrior more suitable than him, Bloodfang!" 

"Grrr... I wasn't talking to you, brat! Don't get in the way!" Thyrius growled, who had once again proved to be the usual brawler and was interrupted by a look from Kranus, who tried to make him understand in every way that that was neither the place nor the time to make controversy.