From Zeus to Indra, Yahweh to Amaterasu. I could finally understand their desire for their 'thrones'. They all had different reasons for sitting at the head of their Pantheons, each respective 'King of Gods' even if titles and circumstances differed.
Right now, in this particular moment, I had the power of Asgard at my fingertips.
It was like a Lake that was on the verge of drying up, but even so, it was intoxicating how I could call upon that wellspring for myself.
It was the Foundation of the Norse Gods, the Vitality of Asgard itself, their accumulated Faith and Worship. A significant portion of it naturally flowed to every God that existed amongst their number. That was something I couldn't interfere with even if I wanted to. But the remainder was pooled into the concept of Asgard itself, and it was left to the whims of the one who sat upon the Throne as the King of Gods.
Maybe this was why the Kings across various Pantheons were usually so paranoid and protective of their spots? Why even Kronos sought to regain his spot upon Olympus even in his situation.
I could understand why too that Surtr made comments about them using it for something so benign as boosting up Thor.
This power was so much more. It supported their literal existence as Gods of Asgard.
It was the same reason that Heaven could remain unmolested by the myriad of Pantheons and Gods in the world and retain a semblance of peace.
The sheer reservoir that Heaven must have in comparison due to being the most worshiped religion in the world was incomprehensible.
I was entirely convinced that they could utterly do the equivalent of a nuke to another Pantheon and wipe them out completely if the situation called for it. Whether they themselves would be able to stand afterwards was an entirely different matter. But that is why mutually assured destruction was su
All this power even with Asgard being in the rough shape it was…
And yet, Odin willingly stepped down and passed it over to Vidar.
Vidar stepped down and passed it to Thor.
And now, Thor stepped down and passed it to me, a complete outsider.
My respect for them grew.
With my Declaration, the God's Investiture List appeared in front of me.
The ancient and weathered parchment unfurled for the court to see.
Ever so slightly, it flickered with power, but like a fire that refused to start, it didn't activate.
There were still things missing.
When the Chinese Cosmology was in Chaos, when Mortals were killed alongside Immortals and Demons, the Heavenly Dao sent down the God's Investiture List to the Jade Emperor to impose Rule and Order upon the realm.
Gods and Demons were forced into compliance. Mortals rose to the level of Gods. And the Heavenly courts were filled by those who were likewise punished and those who were rewarded.
One could even argue that it was an apocalyptic event.
Now, It was just a matter of lining up the pieces in the correct way to invoke the List once more.
"Thorum." I spoke my words reverberated through Asgard and the Nine Realms. "Wake up the World Tree."
I could see it from where I was sitting. Just as I could cast my view to nearly anywhere within the Nine Realms, I could see Thorum as he stood in front of the withered and charred heart of the World Tree.
Holding within his hand was the same Key we had played around with before.
Without hesitation, he pushed the key into the decrepit heart, and turned it.
There was a shrill cry that resounded throughout the branches of the World Tree. It was as if a million voices called out simultaneously across the winds of the Nine Realms.
The Tree itself began to sway almost uncontrollably.
Thorum was forced backwards as the Tree itself seemingly moved to keep anyone away from its own heart.
I would call it a subconscious action, but that's only reserved for living beings.
The Heavenly Dao was neutral. It treated all living beings equally regardless of Immortal or Mortal. But that wasn't to say that the Heavenly Dao was without intelligence, it was its own autonomous system not dissimilar to the concepts of Gaia and Alaya back home. It's the remnants of the Great God Pangu, the Primordial Giant God who split the Heavens and the Earth during the Genesis of the Chinese Myth.
To fill that role, we had our own Primordials.
Ymir, the original Primordial Giant of the Norse, and Audhumla, the Primordial Cow that existed along with it.
Ymir's body and Will were formed into various aspects that eventually gave birth to the World Tree. His Rage and Fury were engraved and formed Muspelheim, which was inherited by Surtr who sought to end everything at its behest. Along with his destructive and other negative tendencies that were taken by Jotunheim and the Evil Jotun.
However, the World Tree itself inherited the will of Audhumla, the being responsible for creating the original God, of which was Odin's Grandfather.
But unlike the Heavenly Dao, the World Tree didn't have a firm intelligence. What it lacked and needed unlocking was a desire to live.
From the highest most branches and leaves to the lowest most Roots, the tree Screamed. It screamed like a newborn greeting the world for the first time, but there was an underlying confusion and pain within its 'voice'.
It suddenly gained a semblance of awareness at the moment of its dying.
It was scared and confused.
It was only because of my connection to Asgard that I could feel the raw emotions that were emanating out from the ancient tree.
My words to Odin before weren't false. What I offered was…an opportunity, a chance at saving Asgard and subverting the end.
It wasn't entirely up to us.
I had to call upon Asgard's might for my words to reach out.
The Being that towered over even the Gods here, I needed a loud voice to reach it over all the new noise it had to process.
"Do you want to live!?"
My words echoed out across the Nine Realms.
I felt it even if no words could be spoken. The Attention of the Primordial Being metaphorically turned and bore down on me.
Another spark.
The list flickered with a Golden Aura but it didn't linger long.
I took out something I didn't think I would ever use.
The promise I spoke before still held, but…I don't think he would be upset if I used it here. I held up the Scythe of the Titan King and pointed it at the list.
The aura of Time began to wash over it, and the List began to flicker with a golden aura.
I was not adept at using this thing, I had no clue how to truly make use of its powers, I was doing what I could, but it seemed like the barest minimum was being drawn out.
I could see them watching around me with bated breaths, they were not too confident. Sure, they hoped, it was obvious in their eyes, but many of them looked resigned to their fates. To the inevitable end of their homes.
I slammed my hand onto the throne and called upon more power from Asgard's reserves. It hurt, I was in no shape at the moment to be channeling this kind of power when I couldn't even comfortably activate my Circuits without them nearly burning me from the inside from overuse.
It wasn't until a set of arms wrapped around me from behind that I relaxed. Jinn rested her head on my shoulder. "I'm here too, let me help you."
She held her hand up.
The Second Elder Scroll made its appearance.
It unfurled in front of us, and I used Asgard's power to shield myself and everyone else in the room from its effects.
The aura of Time intensified by magnitudes. It was as if I could hear a faint chanting, a murmur of secrets I shouldn't hear. The Elder Scrolls was not a Prophecy. It was not a written approximation of what might occur, nor a peek at the future. An Elder Scroll was a piece of literal time manifested into the material world.
I held up Harpe, Kronos's Scythe and used its Ancient might to direct all that Time-based power onto the God's Investiture List.
"Become the will of the Nine Realms." I whispered.
There was no need to speak loudly, right at this moment, I had the full attention of the newly awoken Yggdrasil.
It was at that moment that the Spell I was holding – my own Yggdrasil, began to escape my control.
The World Tree began to cannibalize it. Even if I wanted to resist, I couldn't. Even If I was at my absolute most powerful, I would be unable to resist what was happening.
It retraced the spell's origins and found the root.
The Golden Acorn that Ratatoskr should be safe keeping. His job was to plant the next World Tree after the fall of this one.
And Yggdrasil did what any conscious living being would, it sought its own survival and began to absorb what should have been the next iteration into itself.
A burst of vigor shot through the trunk of the World Tree, all the up to the Leaves that began to glow with a vibrant hue.
The Golden Acorn shrunk in response, getting smaller and smaller as it was used to renew the World Tree with its life energies.
And with all that power, all that life and energy running through it at this moment, it reached out and touched the List.
I held my hand up towards it and commanded it once more.
A combination of many different overlapping coincidences came together to bring about what could be called a miracle.
Something that should no longer 'exist' that had lost its power and its authority. Something long forgotten and gathering dust on the shelf in the far corner of Nuwa's Treasure house.
This Ancient Relic once more was invoked.
"Open!"
The hall was filled with a Golden Light and the List shot out to the sky above.
It began to grow and dye the sunless sky in its own bright light. From every corner of Asgard to the furthest reaches of Niflheim, any being within the Nine Realms could see it regardless of distance or where they sat.
Once more, the God's Investiture List greeted the world with its full power.
And I was playing the role of the Jade Emperor.
"Loki Laufeyson." The List was invoked. Amongst the residents of Asgard, the ones hiding away, there existed one person in the corner, he sat away from the others looking very distraught and angry. His eyes widened as ethereal chains shot down from the sky. No barrier could obstruct them, magics were summoned by mere gesture from his hand, but their advance was not halted. They grabbed hold of him, peeling off his illusions and pulled him back up to the sky, hanging him up for everyone to see. "It's time for your judgment."
"What is this?" The Trickster let out a shout, trying to free himself, to struggle out of his confines. But it wasn't just me who was using my power to keep him there, I had the backing of the World Tree. "Judge me!? Who do you think you are? A mere mortal who just happens to sit upon that seat? Laughable!"
I ignored him, as angry as I was, as utterly furious at his actions. As much as I wanted to personally tear him apart for what he did to Jinn, I was just as much bound to my Role right now as I was empowered by it.
"You conspired with outsiders and you brought corruption to the Roots of Yggdrasil." That last one in particular got a very distinct feeling of anger from the World Tree. I was about to open my mouth and condemn him for the chaos he wrought, but I was forced to stop. His role was to initiate Ragnarök, I couldn't punish him for that, The List wouldn't let me.
But the other sins of his were enough.
"You are stripped of your Godhood!" I declared, and the List itself, backed by the Will of Yggdrasil, heeded my command. The God of Mischief was surely to question what I meant by that, but his body jerked and he couldn't formulate words in response at the suddenness of the 'chains' piercing into his body.
They delved to the deepest parts of his essence, and ripped out his Divinity.
Loki let out a blood curdling scream.
"You are stripped of your Magic!"
Once more, parts of Loki's essence were utterly torn away.
"You have lost the right to arms." An invisible blade descended and severed both of his arms from his body.
"You have lost the right to legs!"
"You have lost the right to eyesight!
"And lastly, that silver tongue of yours that you are so proud of, is severed!"
"You are hereby condemned to eternal imprisonment to the deepest and darkest pit available where you will spend the remainder of time contemplating your many failures. And you will know that your presence will never be missed by any living being!"
I felt a stream of blood trickle down my nose and a sharp pain within my head.
A smidge of backlash from the God's Investiture List. I nearly overstepped my position for personal revenge.
It was still in line with a punishment in correlation to the weight of his sins so I didn't suffer too badly.
I severely disliked leaving him alive. The mere idea that he could potentially free himself in the future was enough for me to want to lop his head off and be done with it. In particular, I didn't make a habit of letting my enemies live when given the opportunity. But in this particular case, Loki earned a very special punishment from me.
I wanted him to exist in the worst state possible and forever know that he lost and that no one will care about him ever again.
That was his punishment.
What was left of him was sucked into the God's Investiture Lis, and his imprisonment would be carried out when next possible.
Just as I finished with him, thousands more chains shot out. The Traitorous Gods of Asgard were all caught, none of them could run away.
Most of them, I didn't even bother announcing them. While Loki was without a doubt the highest sinner among the bunch, their betrayal was the biggest gut punch to their kin.
Their punishments….they would be significantly less than Loki, but still somewhat strict. While pure executions were unlikely in all their cases, none of them were getting off free.
At least for the small fries.
Baldur appeared hanging up above the skies of Asgard as all eyes turned to him.
All except Odin.
Odin turned to look at me and I could understand what he wanted.
"Baldur Odinson." I addressed him. "Do you know your crimes?"
The God looked at me then at his father and I didn't feel an ounce of resistance coming from him. "I accept my punishment."
"Baldur, God of Asgard….you betrayed your home, your siblings and your father. You sided with the traitor Loki against all common decency. Do you dispute your sins?"
"No."
I let out a silent sigh. "Your punishment will be to guard the Nine Realms for One-Thousand Years. You will not know the merriment of celebration. You will not know a peaceful rest, food will taste like ash and Alcohol will not quench your thirst. You will not know the kinship with your siblings, you will not be greeted by the smile of your father, and the warmth of your home will be denied until you finish your punishment."
The List branded him upon his soul to invoke my punishment. A punishment I was forced to add beyond the One-Thousand year guard duty as I had to reach a certain threshold or the List would reject me.
It was the most lenient sentence I could give.
Baldur too was sucked into the God's Investiture List.
I turned my gaze to the Frost Giants that participated, and I couldn't even utter the words to condemn them.
It was not a crime to wage war as odd as that was to think about. It was in the nature of Jotuns and Gods to war with each other.
It was enough that this little display caused all fighting to cease and for what remained of their number to essentially back off.
My eyes turned to Hyperion, and I knew he could sense me as well.
He had…..stood to the side after his little collision with Surtr. At no point did he attempt to rejoin the fight, nor did it particularly seem like he wanted to fight.
Rather, he was watching over the corpse of his King a distance away from Asgard.
Yggdrasil all but demanded his punishment for what he and Kronos were doing in the Roots.
The thing was… Kronos was a Titan, he was immortal. Even death for him was only temporary.
"Kronos, King of the Titans, appear and accept your punishment!" I ordered and the God's Investiture List vibrated.
The Chains shot down right into the corpse of the Titan and pulled free his 'soul' before Hyperion could even utter a word.
The soul of the Titan King just stared blankly without the hint of 'life' in its eyes.
"As an outsider, you invaded the Nine Realms and attempted to Poison the World Tree." With the amount of traitorous Gods, there were openings and holes within the roles of Asgard, things that needed to be filled. "Your punishment, for 5,000 years, you will facilitate the changing of the seasons and watch over the harvest for the entirety of the Nine Realms. Your body will be held prisoner until you complete your sentence, and you will be regulated down to a Divine Spirit!" I swept my hand out and he was pulled into the List along with the parts of his body I had personally severed.
The Greek Gods were not going to be happy with me.
At this point Hyperion was on guard and his eyes filled with an indecipherable emotion.
Realization dawned on me.
"You only participated because your King was." My words weren't loud, but they reached every corner of the realm, and they were directed right at Hyperion. He only was involved because of his loyalty to Kronos. In a way, it was admirable, otherwise he had absolutely no investment in this conflict. No rewards to be expected, no goals to achieve but to serve Kronos at his side. "Hyperion, Titan of Light, as Punishment, you will become the new sun for the Nine Realms for the next 5000 years!"
Oddly, or maybe not, but the Titan didn't fight or argue with me.
The God's Investiture List took hold of him too, and as soon as he was taken into it, the missing Sun in the sky began to reappear, and sunlight once more filled the sky.
There was the distinct taste of the Titan's power that radiated off of it.
Last, I turned to look at Surtr.
Surtr was an odd existence.
Thor remained behind in case Surtr decided to start fighting again, but the Fire Giant just seemed content to watch.
"Surtr, King of Muspelheim, Giant King." I invoked his name and his eyes lit up in a concerning way. "You –" I felt the words die in my mouth. I tried to grasp at anything I could, but….there were no sins. The Fire Giant did nothing wrong. It was his role, his entire purpose to bring about Ragnarök and destroy Asgard.
Surtr, knowing my gaze was on him, started to laugh. "Foolish. Kill me, imprison me, it matters not. My existence is tied to Muspelheim, to the Nine Realms itself. For so long as the Nine Realms exist, so too will I be inevitable."
Still, I had to do something. Just…letting him live or to potentially revive some time in the near future, that would be horrendous.
"One thousand – " I spat out a mouthful of blood as I tried to force it to go through. My eyes started bleeding as I grit my teeth and slammed my hand on the throne. "One-Hundred—" I felt another jolt go through my body as the God's Investiture List was rejecting me and I was starting to fall out of my position as the administrator. "One Year!" I forced out and it barely acquiesced to my demand. I could feel Yggdrasil was not particularly happy with me doing this. But even so, even with forcing it to abide, the List wouldn't imprison him for a year, nor would it help here. "By Jinn." I squeezed out.
A single, almost infantile chain, shot out of the List and landed upon the Fire Giant.
I could tell that he could easily escape it. That the God's Investiture List barely put any power into this and that I was grasping at straws.
However, the Fire Giant didn't struggle one bit.
He had a complicated look on his face and seemingly resigned. "A debt is owed." Was all he said and closed his eyes.
Jinn grabbed hold of her Elder Scroll and the Giant was forcibly taken inside of it.
One year….
Well, a lot can change in a year.
"Ratatoskr." I called out a particular name that caused everyone to look confused.
"What!? Why are you calling me, I didn't do shit!?" I could hear his chattering and vaguely sense his presence as he hid around the Throne room.
I couldn't help but smile. "You provided meritorious service to Asgard and the Nine Realms."
"Eh?" The Squirrel looked confused just as everyone else did. They didn't seem to quite understand what I was doing.
Well, all but Odin.
His one eye widened in realization.
God's Investiture List was named so for a reason.
It was used to end a conflict, and to punish evil, but it was also used to fill Godly positions!
"In recognition of your service, You will become the God of Travels, of Rest, and of Courage." A golden light enveloped the Squirrel as he was forced out of his hidey-hole. "You are welcomed at every corner of the Nine Realms and none may bar your path! Mortals may pray to you when they need courage in their lives, or a rightful rest for their weariness."
There was silence across Asgard.
Even Ratatoskr himself stood there trembling, a new Divinity pulsing inside his body.
The silence only lasted a beat before the cheers erupted.
The other Gods actually went up and threw their praise and congratulation on him. And the Squirrel perhaps had the most genuine smile I've ever seen him with thus far.
However, I wasn't done.
"Hræsvelgr, you have provided a meritorious service for Asgard and the Nine Realms." The Eagle King was not in great condition, but the light of Asgard shined upon him and Divinity began to seep into his soul. His body, as a result, was mending itself back together properly. "Rise, God of the Skies." A distinct upgrade over his control of the Winds.
The new Bird God simply lowered his head slightly in acknowledgement.
I didn't have much of an impression of him, but I could recount what occurred through my connection with Yggdrasil and Asgard while performing my duties.
"Duneyrr, you have provided a meritorious service for Asgard and the Nine Realms." I cast my gaze upon the Giant Red Deer that was nursing its own wounds. The last of its siblings. It had fused itself with the World Tree to open up and provide a safe haven for its children so they wouldn't be hunted to death. "For your service, you will be given the position of God of Nature and Preservation. Your kin will henceforth be treated as Sacred across the Nine Realms. The first attack by any being against your kin, regardless of the source will be negated. The Second will be punished, and the third will bring about the condemnation of the entirety of the Nine Realms!"
Backed up by my declaration, Yggdrasil vibrated. Duneyrr had to give up that grove of theirs to come fight. But Yggdrasil still remembered when Duneyrr was a part of itself and felt kinship towards the Red Deer.
It heartily approved of my words.
The Red Deer itself, the new Divinity inside of it began to mend its wound. Its antlers that had been seared off by Surtr started to regrow and the Deer stood up and bowed its head in my direction.
"Folen." I turned to look at the Old Elf that was sitting by himself far onto the walls of Asgard. He turned to look my way and there was a scowl that quickly appeared on his face. He raised his middle finger up, knowing clearly what I was about to do, but voiced no words of discontent. "You have provided meritorious service to Asgard and the Nine Realms."
"Damn right I did!"
"As a reward, you will be bestowed with Godhood. Everyone, please welcome the First Elven God within the Nine Realms. Folen – God of Medicine, of Archery, and of Mercy."
The Old Elf had a strange look in his eyes as his Divinity set in as bestowed by the List. He merely harrumphed and continued to scowl like the grumpy old man he wanted people to view him as, despite his wrinkles and white hair disappearing.
Hel – I couldn't provide her with a reward despite her service. For some reason, it felt like there was a sort of contradiction there.
I suppose it couldn't be helped, the List itself wasn't supposed to work on another Cosmology like I was using it for. The List bestowed Godly positions, the Jade Emperor was the one who raised their ranks.
Thorum, it treated him the same due to his innate nature that connected him to Akatosh.
Achilles, Atalanta, Sasaki, it absolutely refused to even initiate anything on them. Again, it made sense, they were claimed by the Throne of Heroes, completely outside its proverbial jurisdiction, despite how I was using it in an entirely different faction right now.
And even for myself, I couldn't use it.
Ignoring my Divinity, it absolutely would not allow me to promote myself. I was acting as the King already, what higher position was there?
There was only one real person left.
"Jinn, you have provided a meritorious service to Asgard and the Nine Realms." I looked up at her.
Her eyes widened as she understood what I was doing as well. There was a clear look of hesitation, but I took her hand to soothe her.
She smiled warmly. "Are you sure it's okay?"
"You will forever be welcomed among Asgard." Odin was the first to speak up.
"Lady Jinn, we would be honored."
"We need more girls around here!"
"Aye, Lady Jinn!"
Many more shouts came out across the various Gods that filled the hall.
Odin stomped his spear onto the ground. "Let it be known, here and now, that anyone who becomes your enemy, will become the enemy of every God of Asgard."
A resounding round of agreements followed suit.
If it weren't for Jinn, Surtr would have burned everything away before they could pump up Thor. If it weren't for Jinn, Surtr's sword would still be impaled inside the World Tree.
The Golden light seeped out of The God's Investiture List and slowly wrapped around her.
"Jinn, spirit of Knowledge no more. Everyone please welcome the newest Goddess of the Nine Realms – Jinn, the Goddess of Knowledge, of Magic, and….of the Homestead." I smiled warmly as I watched her Divinity form.
My eyelids felt heavy as if I were drained of the last bit of energy I had.
I felt Jinn's arm wrap around me amidst the cheering and the gleeful shouts around the throne room.
And the last thing I saw before my exhaustion finally overtook me was a Golden Acorn about the size of my fingernail that was gently pushed into my soul by the World Tree.
[****]
And this is the ending to the overall Asgard Arc with some cleaning up the next couple chapters and a PHO chapter right around the corner.
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty for anyone who can't use the above under the same name.