The Masters

The Masters was a virtual representation of one of Eivor Varinsdottir's genetic memories, relived by Basim Ibn Ishaq in 2020 through the Portable Animus HR-8.5, in which a vision of one of Odin's memories could be seen.
==Description==
Havi traveled to meet with Ivaldi at his old forge in Vangrinn.
==Dialogue==
Havi went and found Ivaldi's old workshop in Vangrinn.
*Havi: This is the old workshop that Ivaldi spoke of. I should check if he's already here.
Havi heard Ivaldi's voice.
*Ivaldi: Shoddy. Very shoddy. Utterly useless. Where's a decent saw when you need one?
Havi met with Ivaldi.
*Havi: Found anything worthy of your talents?
*Ivaldi: These will have to do.
Ivaldi walked towards Havi.
*Havi: Soon you can put them to good use.
Havi presented Ivaldi with the Salakar.
*Ivaldi: By Ymir. Is that a... a Salakar? I never knew they actually existed.
*Havi: I know all the s of your people, yet I've never heard of—
*Ivaldi: I never said my people...
*Havi: You mean the Light Elves?
*Ivaldi: There aren't many who remember the children of light, or their stories. I do.
*Havi: When Surtr invaded their lands... they begged me for aid. But the with the Vanir had only just ended, and I was... weary. Long after, I learnt how Surtr devoured the elves' immortal light. Hugr by hugr. Maybe it's the same light that now allows him to renew himself after death?
*Ivaldi: During the conquest, he must have uncovered knowledge of the Salakars.
*Havi: But to what end?
*Ivaldi: What hugrs does it hold?
*Havi: Those of two warlords, one a Muspel, the other a Jotun.
*Ivaldi: Nothing more?
*Havi: Nothing more. At least not of value.
*Eysa: He speaks the truth.
Eysa interrupted the conversation.
*Ivaldi: You deal with a fire nymph?
*Eysa: A fire nymph? I am the finest fire nymph in all of Svartalfheim.
*Havi: Allow me to introduce Eysa, treasonous daughter of Surtr, and... my friend.
*Eysa: You grow dewy-eyed in your dotage.
Ivaldi shook his head.
*Havi: What have you unearthed?
*Eysa: Only rumors. My father is rebuilding something large and powerful, though its exact nature I cannot fathom.
*Havi: And the Salakar is intended to be part of this... this something?
*Eysa: Most likely. Either way, its value to my father is so great he may indeed trade your son for its return.
*Havi: Return to your stepmother. Arrange a trade. And one more thing...
Havi gave Eysa back her necklace.
*Havi: I would feel better knowing you're protected.
*Eysa: Sinmara travels far and wide, but I will rejoin her as you wish.
Eysa left.
*Havi: Whatever the Salakar is, I must steal it back once Baldr is safe.
*Ivaldi: Why?
*Havi: Ragnarök comes. I've made plans, but they are not ideal. Perhaps the Salakar offers another way? One that will allow me to truly save those I care about... Even you.
*Ivaldi: To unlock its secrets, I will need help. There are rumors of a shelter nearby. Its dwellers may be able to assist me.
<tabber>
|-|If Havi had already found the shelter=
*Havi: I know the place. Home to the most ill-tempered shits imaginable.
|-|If Havi had yet to find the shelter=
*Ivaldi: Try looking near the largest karst south of here.
</tabber>
*Ivaldi: Tell them I sent you. No dwarf would give up the chance to work with Ivaldi.
*Havi: Vangrinn was once home to your rivals Sindri and Brokkr. Your name may not carry much weight here.
*Ivaldi: Don't make me laugh. No one cares about those two. I'll follow you once I have finished taking what I need.
Havi left to find the Hodda Shelter. After following clues to the shelter, Havi found and entered the shelter. Soon, Havi started to ask for help within the shelter and talked with a dwarf under a stall.
*Havi: Hello there. I bring word from Ivaldi.
*Reihi: What do I care? Go talk to the ganger.
*Havi: Ganger?
*Reihi: Yeah. The chief. Name's Oglehr.
Havi left with the information.
*Havi: Let's see, which one is Oglehr...
Havi looked and talked with a dwarf near the middle of the shelter.
*Havi: A word, my friend? Ivaldi requests your aid.
*Vesall: Ain't my concern. Go talk to Oglehr.
*Havi: He's the master of this workshop?
*Vesall: Master? Nah, but he's the chief when the masters ain't here.
Havi left once more.
*Havi: Those two aren't him. I will keep looking.
Havi went and found a dwarf outside the shelter's blacksmith. Havi spoke with the dwarf.
*Oglehr: What do you want?
*Havi: Ivaldi sends me. He requires the help of a skilled artisan.
*Oglehr: A meeting of minds, huh? Well, it ain't up to me. You'd best talk to Brokkr and Sindri.
*Havi: They still breathe? Where are they?
*Oglehr: No idea. Sindri went off adventuring. He does that. Mind you, it's been a while since he left...
*Havi: How much of a while?
*Oglehr: Couple of weeks.
*Havi: And his absence doesn't worry you?
*Oglehr: Not my business where he goes.
*Havi: And Brokkr?
*Oglehr: Went to look for Sindri. Bit of a worryguts, that one. Ever since he mucked up the forging of Mjölnir. Anyway, look, leave your name and I'll pass it to Brokkr when he shows up.
*Havi: Tell him Havi of Asgard was here.
*Oglehr: Havi of...? By Ymir. Really it is you?
*Havi: I'll return tonight. In the meantime, fetch Ivaldi. He's at the old workshop ruins.
Oglehr left and went to find Ivaldi. Havi waited till nighttime and while waiting, he silently remembered a conversation he had with Baldr when he was a young man.
*Havi: Of all our enemies, Sinmara is the most vicious. I remember when she and Surtr were bitter rivals. She led the coup against him. Almost claimed his crown. And then... announced their marriage! I know not what deal was struck. But we must remain forever alert to her plots.
Night fell, and Havi went to the middle of the shelter, wher he saw Brokkr bickering with Ivaldi.
*Brokkr: Three times it stung me! Three! On the hand! Then the neck! Then on me eyeball!
*Ivaldi: A true master would ignore such trifles.
*Brokkr: Trifles!? That gadfly was the size of a squirrel! A big one.
*Ivaldi: An ogre could tear me limb to limb, and still my severed hands would finish the job. That is focus. That is passion. That is—
*Havi: ...horseshit. Master Brokkr, I'm glad you have made it home. And your brother? Did you find him?
*Ivaldi: Yeah, you never did say where he was...
*Havi: I believe Sindri went adventuring.
*Brokkr: Adventuring? No, no, that's not it. He went to find the special mead. Had a hankering, he said.
*Havi: Special mead?
*Brokkr: Yeah. The special mead.
*Havi: Suttungr's special mead?
*Brokkr: What's that frosty arse got to do with it? We ain't in Jotunheim, in case you hadn't noticed. There's this mead they make down at the brewery. So sweet it can... it can... Well, it's bloody sweet, alright? Anyway, Sindri had an itch for it. Just a horn or two he said. So, off he goes. That was half a moon ago. I told him not to do it. Too many giants out there. But he wouldn't listen. Him and his cravings.
*Havi: Where can I find this brewery?
*Brokkr: Alethorp. Southeast of here. Other side of the marsh. Can't miss it... You're going to rescue him?
*Havi: I will find him, yes. And afterwards, you and he will repay me by helping Ivaldi with a job I need done.
*Brokkr: Now hold on, we didn't—
*Havi: Good, good, we have a deal.
Brokkr and Ivaldi looked at each other as Havi started to leave.
*Havi: That gadfly? It was Loki. Thor himself could have not withstood the sting.
Havi left as Brokkr and Ivaldi continued arguing.
*Brokkr: Remind me, whe do I find myself in your company?
*Ivaldi: Be grateful, child. You might learn something.
*Brokkr: Child? Fuck off. I'm the same age as you.
*Ivaldi: And in all that time, consider what I have learned. And what you haven't.
*Brokkr: So why was the 'great' Ivaldi snooping around our old workshop?
*Ivaldi: Hoping to find something useful. More fool me... Seems this dump is no better.
Havi left the shelter.
*Havi: I must hand it to Sindri. Even after all that has happened, he still has the defiance to seek out a horn to Svartalfheim's finest.
Havi travelled and arrived at Alethorp.
*Havi: Ah, the sweet scent of mead. Fouled by the scent of Muspels. Jotnar too.
Havi looked around and found a strong aroma of mead near a storehouse within the village.
*Havi: The smell of mead grows strong. This must be where everything is stored. Sindri's nose would have guided him here.
Havi tried to enter, but the door was locked.
*Havi: I don't believe in locked doors.
Havi looked around and found Muspels drinking the town's mead.
*Muspel Warrior 1: I'm out of mead! Bring me another barrel!
During his investigation, Havi saw the key on a Muspel warrior and stole it.
*Havi: Thank you. Much obliged. The Muspels aren't making any use of this place. They let it rot.
Havi soon unlocked and entered the building. Havi immediately found a storeroom.
*Havi: I sense that Sindri has been here. Surely there is some sign of Sindri here?
Havi investigated the room and found blood near the door.
*Havi: This blood is many days old. One trail leads in, the other out.
Havi soon found a hammer near the supplies.
*Havi: This hammer bears the mark of Sindri. And here, a bag of roasted acorns.
Havi investigated and found a broken chain.
*Havi: A chain was placed here. From the scarring, something heavy was suspended from it. I've carried enough dwarves recently to know they are not as light as they look.
Havi soon found mead barrels near a cage.
*Havi: Is this Sindri's special mead? Given the puddles on the floor, he must have taken a bath in it.
Looking above, Havi found a ladder to a level above.
*Havi: What do we have here?
Havi read a messages on a table nearby.
*Havi: The Muspels have a prison not far from here. Jarnshus, they call it.
Havi collected all the clues and mentally reconstructed the scene.
*Havi: Some days ago, Sindri was captured while sneaking outside. He was dragged in here for interrogation. His belongings were seized. Even his roasted acorns, one of the many dwarven delicacies I will never fathom. They tried to loosen his tongue using the same sweet mead he himself sought. Almost drowned him in it. But the shelter has not been raided... So, Sindri must have remained strong and refused to give them its location. Instead, he was dragged away. Bloodied. Drunk as a fish... but alive. Most likely to face further tortures. At a makeshift prison named Jarnshus... That is where I should go next.
Havi left Alethorp and headed towards Jarnshus. Soon, Havi arrived at the prison site.
*Havi: This place reeks of misery. More than I would even wish upon Loki, no matter his crimes. It's likely Sindri was brought here many days ago. I hope I'm not too late.
Havi ventured further within the site and tried to find Sindri.
*Havi: The giants have no mercy. When I face them, I will show them none.
Havi found an enormous hole filled both lava and cages.
*Havi: Most of the dead have been roasted upon the flames. But that body over there... I hope it's not who I think it is.
Havi passed through the guards surrounding the holes.
*Muspel Warrior 2: The shortlings smell sweet when they burn. Must be all that mead in their fat little bellies.
Havi jumped down to the middle cage and found a burnt body.
*Havi: I know this mark. Whoever he was, he had his hugr cruelly stolen... I can sense that the Salakar was satisfied on this occasion. Was this Calder's first victim!? And that amulet... the sigil... Sindri! Reckless fool! All this for some mead!? Oh well. It is done. I must return the body to Brokkr.
Havi used the Hugr-Rip and activated the Power of Muspelheim to tread through the lava. Finding an exit, Havi came across a sole guard.
*Muspel Warrior 3: This place, it is too much. Not even the dwarves deserve to suffer like this.
Finding his way out, Havi carried Sindri's body from out of the prison site.
*Havi: Chance led to Sindri's capture. But the nature of his death... that was not chance. When the enemy realized they had such a prize in their clutches.
Havi travelled back to Hodda Shelter with Sindri's corpse.
*Havi: Dwarven hugrs, even one such as Sindri's, are of lesser value. Still, it can't be coincidence that Calder sated the Salaker with the hugrs of so many races... Muspel, Jotun, dwarf. Who knows what else.
Havi arrived at the shelter's hidden entrance and started to carry Sindri's body inside.
*Oglehr: It cannot be! Is this Sindri? Noblest of dwarves?
*Vesall: Please, let this not be our missing master!
Havi arrived at the door, where Brokkr stood. Havi placed Sindri in front of Brokkr.
*Brokkr: Who is this you bring!? No! It can't be!
Brokkr kneeled to his dead brother.
*Havi: Master Brokkr, I share in your grief. Truly I do... Your brother was the worthiest of dwarves. More so than you will ever know.
*Brokkr: Oh Sindri... no, no... my dear Sindri...
Time passed as Sindri's funeral was being planned.
*Havi: The funeral arrangements are being made outside. I must use this chance to bend Brokkr to my will.
==Outcome==
Havi spoke with Ivaldi and decided on a plan which required the help of two blacksmith brothers at Hodda Shelter, Brokkr and Sindri, the latter of whom had gone missing. Havi unfortunately found Sindri dead and brought his body back to his brother.
==References==
*Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Dawn of Ragnarök
Category:Memories of Eivor Varinsdottir
Category:Memories relived using the Animus HR-8.5