cape_kore | video ❆ day 193

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video ❆ day 193

[Surprise, surprise, Meja's in the plant lab. It's either there or in the library that she can be seen, for the most part. She only retreats to her room late at night because, otherwise, she starts feeling whoozy. It's irritating, being herded by a building, but there isn't much she can do about it.

She holds up a vegetable to her phone. It looks an awful lot like a green-blue squash. Meja herself looks a bit on the tired side.]

If anyone's noticed these in the cafeteria lately, they're completely safe to eat. I put them there myself. One of our jars of seeds turned out to be useful. If you don't see any and you'd like some fresh food, there's usually one or two here in the lab, as well.

How are we all holding up? Senses back to normal?

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[Must be the puppy dog eyes. In any case, Meja only teases people she likes. Sam is safe.]

When I was... human, [or even just younger] no plants really grew where I lived, except in the summer. On Midgard — Earth. But I had a very dull stint on Alfheimr, and the elves there taught me how to care for plants. Most plants, at least. Some of these are very strange. If you come in, avoid the plant we've put a glass case over.

I'd be happy to give you pointers, if caring for plants is something you'd like to learn.

[ He could just listen to her talk forever. Is that bad? She fascinates him and brings out his not-so-inner research nerd. ]

Are you a goddess? [ And that's not a flirtation. ]

Also, what's so special about the plant under the glass case? It poisonous or something?

[She lets out a slightly startled chuckle. Okay, there's a first.]

No, I'm not an Aesir or a Vanir. I'm a Valkyrie. We're... humans brought back after we die, to serve and protect the Nine Realms. And as for the plant, well, let's just say that it likes to get in your personal space.

Oh... [ They should form a post-death club! ]

A protector of the Realms? Sounds pretty important.

[It would have plenty of members.]

Generally, we keep people from throwing any punches that might start a war. Unless Asgard wants a war.

[But Meja would probably still try to stop it.]

Keeping the Realms' occupants separate helps negate most conflict. Any time you get an Aesir or a Jotunn in the same room, a fight is inevitable.

[ Yep. Most over-subscribed club in the Science Center. ]

Still pretty important.

[She nods a little.]

It's a job that needs to be done. I was ready to go to the Realm of the Dead and be done with it. [And be with her mother.] But I couldn't refuse Yggdrasil when she called.

The Realm of the Dead? Is that like Heaven?

[Meja pauses.]

I've never been, and so I couldn't say. Hel is where the elderly and the sick go when they die. It's... dark. Literally. You can't see your hand in front of your face in some parts. It's not that bad, however. There's no torture involved. One simply has to accept that one is dead. Spirits that don't sometimes make their way back to the Realms of the living.

[ Sam listens, taking it all in. It's fascinating. Far better than reading books or looking stuff up on the internet. ]

Do they turn vengeful? Back home spirits that stay eventually turn vengeful and it's kinda my job to deal with them.

Some of them do present harm, yes. But many remain benign and helpful, even if remaining is depressing for them. Often times, it's spirits who feel they still have a duty to fulfill. Protecting a place, or person, or issuing warnings about an object.

[Especially warnings concerning dangerous pre-Ragnarok relics. Meja's encountered those too frequently to count.]

How you die in the Nine Realms is... important. It determines much of what happens to your spirit after.

It seems the spirits from our worlds aren't so different. Many back home stay because of unfinished business. But the longer they stay the more likely to become vengeful they are - even those with the best intentions.

Mostly things are pretty simple - the good go to Heaven, the bad go to Hell. Not really sure who makes the judgement on which is which. Course there are those who sell their souls and go to Hell... Actually, maybe it's not so simple.

Is Hell actually... fire and brimstone?

[Meja probably wouldn't ask if she knew how well Sam knew certain parts of Hell. But she's rather unaccustomed to the Judeo-Christian pantheon. Her mother had raised her impartially, not a part of any religion in particular, and hadn't seemed trusting of Christians.]

In the Nine Realms, those who die of sickness and old age go to Hel. Men who die "valiantly" in battle go to Valhalla, and women who do the same are reborn as Valkyrie in Andlang. Others who die in battle, who are deemed less worthy, go to the battlefield of Fólkvangr. The decision of who goes where, in the latter three, is made by a certain group of Valkyrie, and Yggdrasil herself.

[ Sam got the grand tour of Lucifer's penthouse suite. Having his soul trapped in the cage with Lucifer and Michael for a year was hardly a picnic.

And he'd bust Bobby out of Hell.

He has a lot of travel miles building up. ]

Fire, brimstone and a whole lot of torture. It's... not exactly fun.

I wouldn't expect so. [She smiles slightly.] We don't have anything like that. Not an entire Realm, certainly. Nothing that judges. At least beyond how many others you saved when you died, or how hard you went down fighting. Death is sort of the punishment, in itself, of being in Hel.

Funny how we never really think of the bigger picture back home. We're all so self-centered and focused on our own lives, our own world that we forget that there must be other worlds out there.

Easy to forget there isn't just one Heaven. One Hell. I guess this place does a good job at reminding us of that.

It's a shame one has to come here to be reminded. [Meja shakes her head slightly.] It's not something most people would think of, true. But I'm not certain how useful the information is. For us, on the other hand... It's something to keep in mind.

This place seems pretty good at putting a lot of things into perspective.

Oh? What's in put in perspective for you?

[She raises a brow, curious.]

Me and my brother. We fight a lot. And usually about really pointless, petty crap. [ Although their last fight was kind of a biggie. ]

Ah. Well. I'm glad being here has done something good, perhaps. But I wouldn't worry too much about it, Sam. All siblings squabble, to some degree.

We make sibling rivalry look like child's play.

[Sam. Meja just shakes her head at that pun.]

Even here, in the Center?

So far... we've been getting on okay. I don't want to jinx it though...

[She smiles slightly.]

I'll keep my fingers crossed that it remains that way.

video ❆ day 193

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