The Hall of Valor (1/2)
With the Arkin caring less and less about strategy and more and more about berserk slaughtering, Haalfrin's side starts to take more losses than they should.
It becomes ever more clear that the Arkins' insanity is getting in the way of the war. Rather, Haalfrin realizes then that he can't just worry about his war with the Queen; his soldiers' mental health is the most important thing he should be worrying about!
So, Haalfrin starts organizing social events, and he has the Arkin bring food and drink from the Death Realm, and he makes sure they spend more time socializing than fighting.
Still, Haalfrin is not a therapist, but he does the best he can to make sure that they remember there is a life outside of killing.
After all, these soldiers weren't just killing machines in life; they had dreams, families, and loved ones. Those qualities should be buried inside them still, since the dead don't change. If he can remind them of these more virtuous sides of human desire, maybe they'll become a little less mad.
Doing this does seem to help, but only so far as slowing it down; he doesn't actually see anyone improving in the long term.
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As Haalfrin is brooding about what to do with the maddening Arkin, he remembers that some of the Arkin still haven't gone mad yet; people like Faylin kept their rationality, while a few of the Threshold soldiers were filled with a desire to do their duty and protect rather than blindly look for revenge.
Another example of a sane Arkin is Resburn, who was only thinking about his desire to protect the world his wife and child are in when he died. Evidence of this is that whenever he shows up once again to fight with his comrades, he keeps rational
In short, people like Resburn and Faylin didn't go mad, despite being steeped in blood for so long. Why was that..?
"It's because they have a higher purpose they're fighting for," he realizes.
Is there a way to get his soldiers to feel the same way – to have some higher purpose? If they had something other than their anger driving them, they can turn out to be decent people.
So, Haalfrin goes to Freyya and asks her for advice, except this time, he's more specific. Instead of asking for some vague plan to solve the Arkins' insanity, he instead asks how to help them attain a higher purpose.
He was expecting her to give some good advice or something… and that's exactly what she tries to do. Unfortunately, she only ends up rehashing what he's already been trying. "Make them socialize more!" she said.
Still, Das hears about Haalfrin's concerns from Freyya, and he comes to visit the man one day.
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*knock knock*
Ugh. "Come in Das."
The old man invites himself in, and he closes the door behind him. "I heard about your problem with the Arkin going mad. I can help with that."
"Oh?" Haalfrin barely looks up at the man. "Why would you offer to help me?"
"You already know that I want you to survive this war," Das says. "I also know that your soldiers will better be able to keep you alive if they don't go completely crazy."
"What makes you think you can help out?" Haalfrin asks. "Freyya was completely helpless."
"Freyya is an unsociable child, and she doesn't ever talk to anyone important in the Death Realm." Das explains. "She has no connections, and thus, she has very little advanced arcane knowledge compared to other gods."
"Arcane knowledge?" Haalfrin raises an eyebrow to this. "So your solution has a spell to it? Now I'm curious. What kind of spell could stop the dead from going mad?"
"What that spell is, is up to you," Das says, then coughs. "I mean, there's an advanced training technique that's well known on some of the more magically advanced worlds. It's where people know very much about Name powers – the kind that only god candidates have."
Das keeps explaining, "People with innate abilities on the more advanced worlds are considered the true talents, while all other mages are considered average. This is because god-candidates are much more common there."
"What would make god-candidates more common?" Haalfrin asks. "I thought having Name powers was fairly random?"
"Usually, it is. However, some of these advanced worlds have ways to cultivate Name abilities in a mage, and they know how to train these abilities up and even influence what kind of powers awaken."
"Haalfrin," Das says, "you already have spells written in your name, so you don't have to worry about most of these techniques. However, there is literature on how to guide the direction of your Names – guide what kind of abilities you'll get. You still have several Names to advance, so I'll teach you the training methods to guide your Names' growth."
Das looks around, as if thinking, as he says, "Hmm…. I've noticed what you've been trying to do for these Arkin. You're trying to save your soldiers from madness by giving them a purpose higher than killing. That sounds like an extension of your Syl Name."
"Syl Name?" Haalfrin asks. "Why?"
"Your Syl Name is where you're sense of honor and pride as a warrior is. It would be natural for you to have the ability to inspire your code into your Wills and loyal soldiers. I'll train you with that in mind."
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Haalfrin can't help but doubt.
"Of course I'm sure. I've had apprentices that were much lazier and stupider than you," Das reassures him. "Besides, you're a natural-born god-candidate with a Death affinity, so this is basically guaranteed to work. It'll just take a little longer than usual."
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And so, Haalfrin informs Kaalhyme (one of the few level-headed soldiers here) about how he is going into seclusion again to boost his power, and that he wants him to lead the war until he's out of his training.
Kaalhyme nods to this and says, "Of course!"
Haalfrin had been leaving Kaalhyme to lead the war pretty often with how much he trains, but Kaalhyme isn't resentful about being burdened with most of the work all the time; he understands that the most valuable thing Haalfrin could be doing with his time is becoming stronger.
After all, unlike other mages, when Haalfrin grows his Names, EVERYONE benefits. On top of that, unlike the ant swarm, Haalfrin actually has other people who can be doing those mundane jobs like strategizing and directing.
(Knowing this, one of the strategies Kaalhyme regularly does is make sure the Queen is so busy that she doesn't have much time to train her own Names, since he's noticed that her Names have large strategic impact, just like Haalfrin's.)
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Just like that, over 200 years pass by with Haalfrin never leaving his secluded training.
Not wanting to remember those terrible times while he trained in prison or in the blood-soaked maze, he gets atop the highest tower and sits down cross-legged there.
Through wind or snow, hail or rain, he doesn't move; with how strong his body is, the natural elements had long stopped bothering him.
Finally, under Das constant guidance, his Syl Name grows larger and locks into its final evolution… and he gets just the right outcome he always wanted.
Now, his Name reads that since he is a warrior of honor, all the souls connected to his own will be influenced by his own will. So long as HE doesn't go mad, none of his soldiers will.
In other words, all the Wills and their attached spirits will be bound to him; they'll share his laws and ideals just the same a loyal army shares their king's laws and ideals.
After Haalfrin shares his new Advanced Name with Das, the old man just smiles, nods, and turns to talk away.
"Das!" Haalfrin calls out.
The old man pauses. "…Yes?"
"…Thanks."
The god of Decay closes his eyes and smiles. "No problem. Make sure you use this Name well. It's a heavy responsibility."
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When Haalfrin shares the good news with Freyya… she drops her cake on the floor; that's just how shocked she is.
"I don't think you understand the implications of your newly evolved Name," she finally says after an awkward pause.
"How so?"
"One of the biggest problems the Death king has is dealing with upset spirits who come over and bring chaos to the land. With so many personalities becoming more extreme, the Death Realm is next to impossible to manage."
"I don't see why my Name would help all that much," Haalfrin shrugs. "I can only placate the grudges of the souls that are tied to me."
Freyya just pats him on the head and says, "You don't understand. The 7th Name has roughly the same effect for everyone. The 7th name – the Ar Name – is what determines the scale of your existence – how great you are."
"Before I became a god," she explains, "my powers let me exist within the Death Aura near me. After I got my Ar Name, I was able to exist in ALL Death Aura. I wasn't just a death reaper of war. I became THE death reaper of war. The Ar Name… amplifies ALL of your Names."
"Right now, you're just somebody who can placate the dead who are close to you. After you get your Ar Name, you'll be able to placate ALL the dead. The Ar Name is the difference between a mortal and a god."
Haalfrin pauses for a moment to think of the miles-deep pits full of struggling maniacs driven mad by their feelings of pain, fear, and hatred. Will… they all be healed?
"I see that face, Haalfrin," Freyya says with a wry smile. "You're finally beginning to understand."
She then pats him on the head again. "Keep a good hold of that divinity and make sure to become a god; losing a divinity like yours would be a travesty to all life at this point… So become a god as soon as possible, please?"
"How soon can I become one?" he asks.
"Since you're human, you'd probably be an Arkin god. Hm… death and mortality are a core experiences for humans, so I suppose the soonest you can get your Ar name is the moment you die. You can at least spend some time comprehending your 7th Name so that you can make your final evolution once you die."