https://youtu.be/TVMfUWb93nE

Follow Oz. Keep an eye on Oz. Yuri had been given a single task, and on paper, it was quite simple. But she'd seen how quick he was in battle. Perhaps expecting him to be any more stationary outside of it was foolish. She'd seen him sprinting towards the Val Gate and diving down the Bifrost. But where on Midgard could he be headed? Right now, she stood before the opened Gate herself, taking a deep breath. Unsure if this would work, she kept Oz in mind as her destination and spread her wings - a spectral set of dragonfly wings, and as the rainbow bridge appeared before her, she took flight.

She knew the road would be long, for she had done this before. She remembered the excitement she had felt as she'd embarked on her first mission, travelling down this road for the first time. They hadn't had anything like it in Niflheim, though it did remind her of an old myth they had, where following a rainbow would lead you to an almighty wizard who would grant a wish. She knew it to be mere superstition - once, she'd followed the rainbow to the end and beseeched the wizard, he'd only crankily ordered her out of his sight.

Bifrost, though? That was real. Even today, she had to remind herself that she wasn't here for fun. She had an important mission, and as long as blood flowed through her veins, she would get it done. Just keep her eyes on the road and her head in the game, and she could do this-

"Yoo-hoo~!"

And right in the middle of her flight, she was taken out of her headspace, looking around as she tried to make sense of her situation. That voice she'd heard, she recognised it as Freya's. But what was she doing there? Maybe it wouldn't hurt to humour this...

"F-Freya?" Yuri couldn't help but stutter. "I-I, um...why?"

"Oh, don't look so surprised. Do I need a reason to talk to a friend?" Freya asked, causing Yuri to blush in response, frantically looking around in the absence of anyone to avert her eyes from.

"...friend?"

"Of course! Any friend of Oz's is a friend of mine." Freya said lightly. At that, Yuri took in a deep breath, feeling a pit in her stomach as she remembered her mission.

"...speaking of Oz..." she began, swallowing deeply. "Where...is he? Why aren't you with him?"

"Well, he's having a bit of trouble right now. You see, things have really hit the fan in Eadred, and he just couldn't take care of things all by himself." Freya explained, telling the truth by technicality only. "So I figured he might appreciate some backup, and you were the first one to come to mind!"

"Is he...dealing with the Hel's Angels, then?"

"Mhm!"

"I see. Then I will go to Eadred, and take care of the problem there." Yuri nodded, resolute, already picturing the destination in her mind and following the route as it changed accordingly.

"Hmm?" Freya chuckled quietly. "Are you sure you weren't headed somewhere important right now?"

"I-I'm sure. Svafrlami...he sent me to deal with the Angels, anyway, so our goals are aligned!" Yuri nodded, taking a deep breath and hoping the lie wasn't questioned. With this, she could kill two birds with one stone.

Freya remained silent for a short while, evaluating her words and actions before sighing, tutting loudly. "...oh, Yuri. You think you can sneak those little excuses past me? Of all people?"

For a moment, Yuri could have sworn she felt her heart stop. Was she onto her? "W-What excuses?"

https://youtu.be/RuGJjNyOmb0

Freya smirked mischievously from her side of the crystal ball. "You really think the goddess of love wouldn't know a secret admirer when she sees one?"

"...h-huh?"

At this insinuation, Yuri's face slowly took on a redder hue, and she took a deep breath, shaking her head quickly and opening her mouth to speak, only for no sounds to come out. Freya, enjoying this reaction, continued. "Come on, I'm right, aren't I?" she asked proddingly. "You just want to get there as soon as possible and watch him in his native environment, weaving between his enemies like a snake in the grass and saving lives like the valiant hero you've always seen him as. Don't you?"

"N-No! Where is this coming from? I'm just worried about him as a friend, at most!" Yuri stammered, utterly mortified as she shut her eyes tightly, her wingflaps becoming more erratic. Freya let out a small laugh, deciding that was enough.

"I jest. I believe you." she told her, watching as Yuri let out a sigh of relief, opening her eyes and attempting to calm her heart by steadying her breathing. "But it's a shame, you know? Still stuck doing Svafrlami's bidding..."

"...I am a proud Knight of Odin." Yuri said simply, her voice getting quieter before she shook her head. "You...don't seem to like Svafrlami very much."

"Well, what can I say?" Freya said in response. "It's hard to like the guy when he's just...well, the worst."

Yuri tensed at that, shaking her head. "He is no more flawed than you or I, surely..." she murmured, the lack of certainty in her voice making Freya wonder who she was trying to convince. "...I take it there's a reason why you dislike him so much? He does have plenty of enemies..."

"Ooh, does he now?" Freya hummed. If she could get Yuri to see her viewpoint with the truth, she thought, there was no need to be dishonest. "Have you ever wondered why someone as mighty and dignified as Svafrlami isn't anyone's Guest?"

Yuri remained silent at that. She had, in fact, wondered why at some point, but when the question was raised, she remembered how he glared daggers at her until she backed down. Now that the goddess had brought it up, she was once again curious. "...do you know why?"

"Know why? I am why." Freya declared. "I am the first - and last - god that he ever approached, and I turned him down. Perhaps he simply couldn't bear the blow to his pride, or perhaps he caught feelings for little old me. Want to know what happened next?"

"...what happened?" Yuri asked, morbid curiosity getting the best of her.

"Well...among other things, I am the goddess of witchcraft. All witches are linked to me, and most of them are my direct followers." Freya began, and right as she continued, it began to hit Yuri. "That reminds me...didn't the Knights have a witch-hunting division?"

"...but he always said that you...disrupted the natural order..."

"The natural order of his mental landscape, maybe. For the simple crime of wielding seidr, he would hunt them down, hoping to reduce my number of worshippers enough that it would weaken me. And then, he could go and kill me." Freya continued, and as the dread settled in deeper within Yuri's mind, the goddess let out a mirthless chuckle. "You seem surprised, Yuri. Did Oz never tell you why he got fired?"

"He said he and Svafrlami had a falling out..."

"Exactly. Over me." Freya explained. "The latest expedition was a mission to try and target me directly, but Oz, bless his heart, stuck up for me. He smelt a rat in Svafrlami's story, and wasn't going to kill an innocent on his behalf. So the two turned on each other, and the rest...is history."

Yuri scowled as she listened to all of this, trying to figure out who to believe here. "I'm...sure he has good intentions..." she mumbled. "Everything he's done...has been in the name of Asgard...right?"

"I'll let you decide that in your own time." Freya said simply, and at that, Yuri fell silent, keeping her eyes on the road that was beginning to slope downwards. Maybe, just maybe, she ought to focus on the people she knew for a fact were evil.

.........

https://youtu.be/Mns5Nu2s1xI

The large settlement of Eadred, in contrast to Cynrio, seemed to emphasise style over substance. Its streets, wild and haphazard in their twists and turns, were black, white and red all over - though the latter was more of a recent development, existing mainly as random splatters. Houses in this town were tall and randomly placed on the sides of the roads, but far too much damage had been done to them - some were cut cleanly, others had been lit ablaze. It was a dark day for this city, indeed.

Surrounded in a shimmering spiral of water, Yuri landed on the ground, finding herself in the middle of a massacre. The streets were packed with bodies having bled out on the ground, with elves everywhere, clad in yellow, wielding their blades and lightly treading in and out of the houses to empty them of their inhabitants. The perfect distraction, thought Yuri. These were, without a doubt, the ones she had to oppose.

"My goodness..." Freya murmured, observing the scene through Yuri's eyes. Thank goodness Oz wasn't actually here, she thought, or he might just faint. "It's even worse up close."

"Once again, these fencers cause trouble." Yuri muttered coldly, summoning to hand her sword and shield. "They truly are...the enemy."

Her eyes showed no emotion, but between the tight grip on her sword and the confidence present in her stance, it was plain to see that she was angry. "Freya. How is Oz?"

"...I'm not sure." Freya said. "I'm hoping he's fine, but I can't seem to reach him from here."

Yuri scowled at that, but didn't falter, stepping forth into the fray as the elves, some of which seeming to recognise her, turned their attention to her. "I see."

Without further ado, she lunged forth, moving her shield expertly to parry the rapid thrusts aimed at her, and right then, her sword hand was swift as she delivered a brutal counterstrike, piercing an elf's chest before dragging her blade downwards as the target dropped dead in an instant.

She didn't let up, narrowing her eyes as she moved onto the next target, her shield detaching from her arm and transforming into a mass of water before flying off separately, forming a dome to defend her from the blades that swirled with wind as they tried to attack her. But she had all bases covered, and there was nothing stopping her from disarming her foe before plunging her sword into his heart.

Then, she turned around and pierced her own shield, causing cracks to form in it before it burst out in a magical shockwave, like a dam that had just given in to the rushing tides. Every elf who had been attacking from behind ceased the rapid jabbing of their rapiers and staggered back from the blast of water, and at once, Yuri's shield reformed in its natural state as she moved forward, gracefully disarming each foe one by one before cutting off their heads in a fluid motion.

Freya watched, mildly troubled by the ease with which Yuri took the lives of her enemies. It was like she had completely turned the massacre onto the original perpetrators, which was a nice idea, but seeing it in action made her feel uneasy. She remained calm, however - watching this elegant storm of brutality in action was fascinating, in a way.

From behind the house nearby, a garishly dressed elven man watched as his men were slaughtered without mercy or reprieve. His mouth agape, he made sure his body was hidden the entire time, and reached into his billowing cape as he pulled out a runestone, holding it to his ear as the inscribed rune glowed with a bright white light. "M-My lady..." he stammered, trauma flashing through his widened eyes as he recalled his last encounter with the nixie menace. "General, oh General...she's here."

.........

Once she was sure the street and those surrounding it were cleared out, Yuri, at Freya's urging, took a breather to clear her head, leaning against a house with a small frown as she surveyed the situation. Thanks to her, the smell of blood staining the streets and splattering the houses wasn't going to leave this town anytime soon. But at least, for now, it wasn't getting worse.

"How are you holding up?" Freya asked her, genuinely concerned as she watched Yuri observe the town and wondering - did it have any kind of sewage system? She was a knight, not a janitor. Snapping out of her thoughts, she looked up, putting a hand to her ear in response.

"I'm fine."

"Hmm...you do look fine, I guess." Freya murmured. "How do you kill with such ease, Yuri?"

"I am very well-trained."

"Right. See, what I meant was, how do you do it without being affected at all?" Freya clarified. "I mean, as a lesser war goddess, I get it. This is war, sort of. But you don't even flinch! It's almost admirable."

"They are the enemy." Yuri said simply. "Why should I relent when fighting the enemy?"

"How very pragmatic of you." Freya hummed, her gaze scanning the surrounding blocks. "Oh, Yuri! Look sharp!"

https://youtu.be/vA_wYf3-AEE

Yuri looked up, immediately entering battle mode, and in due time, she heard the gentle, almost silent beating of wings coming up from behind the building she was against. Pushing herself away, she stepped onto the bloodied streets, drawing her weapons and looking up to the sky. There, on a towering building, she saw a woman land, her golden pair of butterfly wings disappearing as she perched onto the conical roof of the towering building before her. It was an elf, more slender in build than Yuri herself, with long blonde hair tied into a long ponytail that seemed to blow in the wind. Clad in a flowing yellow tunic with blue slacks, she gazed down on Yuri, and as her bright blue eyes met Yuri's purple ones, a confident smirk slowly made its way onto her face.

"So that's the-"

Before Yuri could finish her observation, the elf leapt up high, somersaulting on her descent as she summoned to hand a rapier that glowed with a vivid green light. As she landed, she swung her blade, and Yuri raised her shield to block the hit. Now on the ground, the elven woman moved quickly, delivering a pair of rapid thrusts in quick succession while Yuri struggled to defend herself, before drawing back and pointing her blade at the nixie with a chuckle.

"Let me take a stab in the dark here..." the elf mused, staring at Yuri and analysing her cautious state with interest. "You wouldn't happen to be 'Oz', would ya?"

"...no, that is not me." Yuri shook her head, gripping her blade tightly. Upon hearing that, the elf scowled in disappointment.

"Aww, really? I guess you do sound feminine..." she murmured, a hand on her hip. "Well...have you seen him?"

"I have not."

"Man, this day just keeps getting worse." the elf chuckled. "I'd tell my men to just pack up and go home, but..."

She looked around the place, an awkward smile on her face. Currently, she was the only elf left still standing; presumably, the Supreme Fencer had fled with his tail between his legs. "...well, you're kind of a monster, ain'tcha?"

"Everyone I killed was a combatant." Yuri said emotionlessly. "If there's a monster here, it is not me."

"Hey, no need to get defensive! It was a compliment!" the elf exclaimed, waving her free hand. "You did a good job today. It takes a lot to get the Supreme Fencer scared!"

"Wait a sec, you just killed her men!" Freya exclaimed in horror. "Does she not even care?"

"Hmm..." Yuri murmured, flashing back to her duel with the braggadocious elf not long ago. "...you must be...General Aleron, correct?"

"Yeah, that's me." Aleron smiled. "Commander in the Hel's Angels, and the one leading these fencers you've killed. Lucky you, getting to face the big bad in person!"

"Seriously! No respect!" Freya spat in disgust. "I thought Frey's subjects would be better than this!"

"I wouldn't be so excited if I were you." Yuri glared subtly. "You understand that you're next, surely."

At that, Aleron's smile became wider and fiercer, as though Yuri's threat had had the opposite of its intended effect. Letting out a hearty laugh, she pointed her rapier at the nixie again. "Oh, but don't you see? That's the best part!" she said, her breathing becoming heavier and her expression growing more and more elated as she placed a hand on her chest. "Ever since I saw your carnage, I've craved a clash of blades! Come at me, knight!"

"...you sicken me." Yuri uttered coldly, staring Aleron down as she readied her sword to attack. "Prepare to die, Hel's Angel."

"That's what I like to hear!" Aleron breathed, the green aura swirling around her sword like wind. "Come on, come on! Let's dance!"

In the blink of an eye, Aleron launched herself towards Yuri, cutting her way into a new battle, and a new chapter in their crossing fates.