There comes a point in every adventurer's life when you just need to kick back, relax, and do something mind-numbingly fun. For me, that meant gaming—because, yes, even while living at the center of the World Tree and babysitting mythological troublemakers, I had priorities.
And today's priority? Gaming with my chaotic roommates.
"Welcome to Yggdrasil Champions!"
Let me back up a second. Turns out the World Tree, being a repository of all things past, present, and future, also included a fully functioning high-speed network. Don't ask me how that works—magic tree, magic Wi-Fi. I wasn't about to complain.
Which is how I introduced Ratatoskr, Eris, and the owl to the most sacred of all pastimes: MOBA games. Specifically, the absurdly addictive hybrid of DOTA and League of Legends that the World Tree apparently predicted. I dubbed it Yggdrasil Champions.
Team Breakdown:
Me (The MC): I was the Carry. Big damage dealer, squishy as paper, and the one yelling at everyone to "peel for me." Typical developer energy.Ratatoskr: Support. To no one's surprise, the tiny squirrel was excellent at throwing stuns, heals, and taunts—and spamming emotes like it was a second job.Eris: Assassin. Because, of course, she was. She thrived in chaos, diving enemy lines and fragging with unnerving precision while laughing like a maniac.The Owl: Tank. Cool, calculated, and unkillable. The owl took all the hits, peeled enemies off me, and never tilted—a true anchor in our storm of insanity.
And just to make things spicy? We queued into a High-Elo server. You know, the kind where everyone thinks they're a pro and losing is worse than death.
"Alright, team, focus up," I said, adjusting the ethereal headset the World Tree had conveniently provided. "We're up against sweats."
Ratatoskr smirked. "Time to ruin someone's day."
Eris cracked her knuckles. "I'll delete their carries so hard, their ancestors will feel it."
The owl simply hummed. "I will hold the line."
"Let's do this," I said, grinning.
From the start, the match was pure chaos.
Ratatoskr threw stuns with surgical precision, darting around like an obnoxious squirrel-themed healer bot. "Boom! You're stunned! Boom! Here's a shield!" I could practically hear the enemy team's screams of frustration.
"Where's their carry?" I shouted, positioning my mage in mid-lane for a gank.
Eris cackled. "Dead. Again." Sure enough, the enemy team's top DPS had been deleted from existence—Eris's rogue character dancing over the body.
"Tank needs backup, top lane," the owl said calmly, unbothered despite taking three ultimates to the face. His tank stood steadfast, soaking damage like it was nothing.
"On my way!" I yelled, spamming the "ON THE WAY" ping like a true tryhard.
As the game escalated, our enemies devolved into all-caps rage in the chat.
Enemy Carry: "REPORT ASSASSIN. WTF IS THIS BALANCE?!"
Enemy Support: "WHO LET THIS SQUIRREL PLAY SUPPORT?!?!?!"
"We're in their heads now," Ratatoskr said smugly.
"Where they belong," Eris added, her rogue vanishing again before deleting yet another target.
I hit my power spike and wiped the enemy team in one massive ultimate. "LET'S GO!" I shouted, punching the air as the announcer declared a team kill.
"Victory is inevitable," the owl said, holding the frontline as we marched toward their base.
The game ended with us obliterating their nexus. Our team chat lit up.
Me: "GG EZ."
Ratatoskr: "10/10 squirrel gameplay."
Eris: "All hail chaos."
The Owl: "Well played."
We queued again, raising even more hell across the server. By the end of the evening, we had collectively become the high-elo nightmares that every MOBA player fears—the uncoordinated, trolling team that somehow wins every game.
After a half-dozen victories, I called it. "Alright, team, game's over. Let's take a break."
"Breaks are for the weak," Eris complained, though even she flopped onto one of the roots in exhaustion.
Ratatoskr stretched dramatically. "My paws need a rest. Carrying all of you is hard work."
"Excuse me?!" I said, glaring at him. "I literally carried that last game."
The owl blinked slowly. "The squirrel exaggerates."
Eris laughed. "Admit it—we're the best team this stupid server has ever seen."
I sighed contentedly. "Yeah, yeah. Let's watch a movie or something. I need to turn my brain off."
Movie night was a surprisingly cozy affair.
I'd conjured up a screen using World Tree magic (another perk of living in a mystical nexus of creation) and pulled up a random action flick. Ratatoskr had claimed the top of the couch, Eris sprawled out with a bowl of spectral popcorn she somehow acquired, and the owl perched on a root nearby, unbothered as usual.
It was nice. Normal, even.
Which is why, of course, it didn't last.
The movie was halfway through when the air shifted. I felt it first—a faint hum, like the roots were vibrating beneath us.
"What's that?" I muttered, sitting up.
The owl's feathers ruffled. "Anomaly."
"Anomaly?!" I repeated, my relaxation immediately vaporized.
Ratatoskr groaned, rolling off the couch. "We just finished debugging the last one! Can't the timeline give us a break?"
Eris grinned, tossing popcorn into her mouth. "Oh, this is going to be fun."
The roots of the World Tree pulsed again, brighter this time. A tear—like the one that led me to ancient Greece—ripped open in the middle of our base. It swirled with ominous energy, casting eerie shadows across the walls.
"Guess movie night's canceled," I said, grabbing my coat and glaring at the portal. "Let's get to work."
Ratatoskr hopped onto my shoulder. "Back to the grind, partner!"
The owl settled on my other side, calm as ever. "The Tree's balance demands our vigilance."
Eris stretched her arms, grinning ear-to-ear. "Time to stir up some more chaos."
I sighed, stepping toward the swirling tear.
Note to self: Never trust a calm evening. The timeline always has other plans.
To be continued…