"Muninn is a good name."

While the raven was cawing approvingly, Rhiannon frowned. That wasn't a name she would usually come up with, nor was how she would say it. 'Shall'. Had reliving a myth influenced her somehow? The woman stood up slowly, feeling annoying awkwardness in her legs.

"Itotia's death killed me," a late realization and resentment found their way into her gloomy voice. Every and all rewards from the skeleton hunt were gone. Rhia shook her head, driving those thoughts out.

Hm? Walking seems easier than usual. Slightly. The usual in her case was 'when I wake up after death'. Rhiannon made a trial lap of stumbles around the crypt tombs.

"I see! I see!" Delightedly she nodded several times to herself. She had spent a lot of time walking and this was a new body. Those manikins legs of her weren't wasted by paralysis, the problem was in her brain, and the woman was dealing with it constantly. Slowly it bore fruit.

My own skills trained without outside help remain! Which means...

"You say I have indefinite time besides the fire?" Rhiannon turned to Muninn.

"It should be so."

"You are not aware of all possible changes, right?"

"...you figured things out, right?" the raven flapped its wings and avoided the question.

"Yes. Not. Telling."

Besides, I am only halfway there. If I am right...

Rhiannon paced around the closest tomb. It was a square stone, maybe even granite, crude construction. Having found no writings on its sides, the woman gently put her hand on its lid. A man was engraved on it, a knight. With a stoic face and thick beard, he was gazing at her upside-down. His name was... his name was...

Nonexistent sweat trickled Rhiannon's manikin temple. She felt a stare peering in her very soul, the stare from beyond the last boundary.

His name had been Sir Wiscard. Lacking noble birth, but not faith, he joined the armed pilgrimage of First Crusade as a lowly footman. Over the years on the road to Jerusalem, he raised in ranks, spilling the blood of many heretics. His mastery of a spear caught an eye of a lord, and he joined his escort. When the walls of Jerusalem fell, Wiscard was initiated into knighthood with the very birth of the Kingdom of Jerusalem...

When his life came to an end before her inner eyes, the carving on the tomb crumbled, as if erased by the winds of time. Rhiannon stumbled back weakly.

"You too are my ancestor," she murmured in shock despite having had suspicions and her eyes jumped back and forth between other tombs.

After a brief hesitation, she walked over. Soon, Rhi accepted their memories as well. In life, two were petty nobles, one faithful bondman; all valiant warriors. She saw banners raised high, blood, and mud, and iron. Hundreds of years had passed, and yet their reminiscences were on the tips of her fingers.

"And those are their prized weapons, tools of war, partners in death," Rhiannon looked over the four sets, including the Lion shield and the mace without a scratch on them, just like the last time. "You said they are not mine? You were right."

Then she confidently grabbed a sword. For a second, she felt intimacy. The sword sparked and in flames it burned, her hand unhurt. It left the ashes gathering into a vortex that hid inside her palm, leaving no traces behind.

"That's how it works," she contemplated quietly and clenched-unclenched her fist several times. "I feel it. Here..."

Wondrously ashes flew out and blended into a sword shape. Several seconds later, the weapon fit back in her hand, ready for battle. Rhiannon waved it around with some familiarity but no real skills to show off. It looked like she only inherited the weapons themselves and not her predecessors' mastery. With the confidence of a rightful owner, Rhia then acquired all four weapon sets.

"I can do it because thee seem quite ephemeral. This whole place is quite ephemeral," she pointed out and then continued slowly. "It's a cemetery of my ancestors' memories... no, not exactly. The reason for your silence is that you don't want to affect my karma."

Silence reigned. The raven stared at her unblinkingly.

"One shall try to pursue the excellence, young lady. You are quite right," the raven nodded solemnly. "This place is karma. Avoiding influence is wise. Your own answers are always better."

"I was raised in the Buddhist tradition, that's no how karma works," refuted Rhiannon.

"However, you witnessed it yourself and reached beyond mere tradition. Humans peered at a few glimpses of truth and built up their own interpretations. Nothing strange, nothing uncommon. 

Truth is, there is no reincarnation. Death is certain, death is the end. Yet karma exists. It grows, it aspires and falls, and then it passes on. Your good deeds bring luck to your children or grandchildren, and so on; evil deeds would bring scorn, hate, and misfortune. All affect our later generations, not necessarily the first. Here, you can inherit this unseen karma directly while your own existence is branded beyond death. This place is very strange, no laws should be applied blindly."

Muninn was speaking strongly, at a steady pace. Every word seemed to be echoing by the world, echoing inside Rhia. Karma's influence he was talking about was real, she knew at once. If he were to explain sooner, before she made the most important first step, she wouldn't be able to inherit after her ancestors fully. Such tricky this place was.

"What are those skeletons then? That golem? Are they the evil karma that haunts me?" Closing eyes for a moment to sense the changes, Rhia shook her head. "No, the karma of my ancestors blends with my existence. I feel it's different from what I get from those guys."

"Certainly. Those entities bring you neutral, unsteady karma. You can use it but it's ultimately not yours. A cycle of karma exists here, a different one, not like Earth's. As for the source of your foes, I'm not aware as of now. What their goal, what they want is a mystery."

"Hm..."

Suddenly, Rhiannon felt nostalgic. She used to ask cryptic questions a long time ago. Those times had been the closest she felt to her grandfather.

Instead of parents, Rhia was raised by them: her Buddhist grandfather and grandmother. They both were Chinese, their numerous children were Chinese, her youngest aunt was even younger than Rhiannon herself. Rhi's mother was young when she'd given birth to her, and her parents were young when they moved into the States and gave birth to her.

Many mistakes in-between and Rhiannon had to be raised by her grandparents with living biological mom and dad. It was a sorrowful mess.

"I have indefinite time, you said. By the way, how do you know so many things?"

"There is nothing of Earth that I don't know," the raven gave her a serious eye. "From the beginning of time till your death day."

"..."

"Muninn is a good name for a reason, young lady."

"...karma, eh. if you know everything, what about my questions?"

"Excessive knowledge is useless and even dangerous. It scatters focus."

"Right. Then read me Arthur Clarke, 2001 Odyssey."

"Very well."

"It works!? Can you sing?"

"No."

"Aw... such a bore."

Karma of Wiscard and others materialized as their weapons... then what about Itotia? What did the divine bride give me so I had to die to accept it?

This last question would bother Rhiannon for quite a while.