"Oops," the youngest pouted under the accusatory gazes of her sisters. But then her expression melted back into a playful grin, and she shrugged, "Well, whatever. We were going to erase his memories anyway, right?"
Instantly, Rurik's alarm skyrocketed. He raised an eyebrow. "Erase my memories, huh? I might have overstayed my welcome…" But rather than making any impotent threats, he immediately jumped into action.
All of this was unfamiliar to him, and he had no idea how to get out, but he could certainly try and apply violence to see if anything changed. Roaring, he hefted his sword and was about to charge towards the bubble when he heard a strained, soft, whisper in his mind. "Calm… my love… let them… think they've won…"
He immediately halted in his tracks. That was Luna's voice! His eyes rapidly panned between the three sisters, but they were far too absorbed in themselves, ignoring him completely as they dealt with their youngest sister. If they were trying to trick him, they were doing an excellent job.
"Is that you?" he cautiously muttered, trying not to let the crones hear. Unfortunately, he got no answer, causing him to wonder if he'd even really heard her. His mind started to race again… But he also stopped just as quickly.
'If that really was Luna, then she only sent that message because she didn't want to keep me in the dark…' he quickly realized. 'But if the we need to make those crones think they've won, then I can't suddenly act any different.'
Thus, his expression hardened, the grip on his sword tightened, and he charged at the rapidly shrinking barrier, just as he'd planned before.
But, as he excepted, it was pointless. His sword bounced off the bubble like it was a rubber ball, forcing him to stumble backwards. "Gah!" he snarled, but didn't give up. He attacked again and again, determined to try until he couldn't anymore… Because that is what he would have done if Luna hadn't contacted him.
'I'm sure neither Luna nor these crones expect me to break this thing' he growled in his mind, completely unsure of what he was actually up against. 'But sitting still is not my style, not to mention suspicious.'
Due to his earlier encounters with the supernatural, he wasn't having as much problem with a magic green bubble as others might, but that didn't mean he had any idea what was going on.
Meanwhile, the sisters completely ignored his efforts and scolded the youngest sister for her loose tongue. "We won't erase his memories entirely, you idiot," the oldest cursed hatefully. "We still need to fulfil our role by warning him, and he can't forget that!"
"Exactly," the middle-aged sister groaned and palmed her face. "Doing that will leave a weakness in the erasure, so he might just remember all of this one day!"
The youngest began to pout again, now crossing her arms in front of her chest like a stubborn child. "Alright, Alright. I'm sorry already, let's just get on with it!"
Meanwhile, Rurik was becoming increasingly frustrated. Even if Luna's message had given him some reassurance, he still hated this helplessness.
Gathering all the power in his arms, the threw one final attack against the bubble before it hit him. "Break, damn you!" he cursed angrily at his lack of power.
But it was pointless. His sword was just a regular mortal weapon and could not damage the magic of these mythical beings. It pulsed one last time and finally enveloped him.
He gasped as some strange power entered his body. Unable to continue standing, he sank to one knee. Pain flared. Liquid fire was flowing through his veins. "Gah! Wha— What's happening?!" he snarled, his blurry vision focusing on the three crones who now walked up to him.
His vision swam, but he was pretty sure the middle-aged sister took a knee in front of him. Her voice confirmed it. "It truly is a gift, mortal. We couldn't directly reincarnate you into the six worlds, so you had to grow up on Earth again… which means you're a little behind on your soon-to-be-peers. We'll solve that."
Erik was gritting his teeth from pain. He could barely keep his focus and definitely couldn't get up. He heard what she said, and it confused him, but he didn't have the capacity to react to it.
"But that is only part of the reason we're here," she continued, now grabbing his face, forcing him to look into her eyes. Her hands felt cold, but surprisingly normal.
"The second reason is to give a warning," she continued gravely, intensely, possibly trying to engrave this moment deeper in his memory. "The fate we wove for you was a rebellious one. It runs counter to the greater will, which means that, to the wrong people, you'll stick out like a sore thumb, and they'll hunt you relentlessly."
She grabbed his face tighter. Rurik was still squirming in pain, but he perked up his ears. "What are you talking about, you old hag?" he spat furiously, trying to concentrate on anything but the rampaging power in his body. "Who's hunting me?!"
The woman didn't appear fazed by his insults and simply continued. "You'll soon end up in one of the six worlds: Midgard. Each world has their own group that claws desperately at the strings of fate, but where you're going, they're called the Children of Norn."
Instantly, Rurik grew confused. Weren't they the Norns? Also, did she just say something about ending up in another world?!
Before he could ask anything, she finished. "They'll know when a rebellious fate enters their world, and where, but if you leave 'immediately', they won't be able to find you easily, because your fate is rebellious and not connected to the greater will."
She put extra emphasis on the word immediately and then continued. " But you still have to be careful, and you definitely cannot stay near any of your current companions. They can easily find you through them instead."
Rurik reeled from all this information and the pain burning inside him, but they didn't give him any time to adjust. The middle-aged woman stood up and nodded at her sisters. "Alright, let's erase everything but my warning. We can't allow him any clues that might cause him to figure out his fate."
Before Rurik could protest at all, the crones all raised their hands, and caused dark-green energy to seep into him. He gasped. The pain of his physical body was nothing compared to what he felt now. His mouth opened in a silent scream… but then he fainted.