There was no way around it.  Daehyun was nervous about entering Brahms’ domain with just Youngjae and Zelo at his side.  As absurd as it sounded to him, given what he initially thought about the Einherjar, he would have rather had Yongguk here, backing him up with his steady presence and unquestionable support.  Hovering in front of the otherwise normal entrance to the unusual occurrence of a floating castle, he twisted his mouth to the side and blinked at the front door.

                “Is it locked do you suppose?” Zelo asked with a tilt of his head to the side.

                “Of course it’s locked.  Who doesn’t lock their door?” Youngjae retorted with a raised brow at the taller male.

                “You didn’t,” Daehyun reminded him without looking away, missing the open-mouthed disbelieving expression he received in return for his comment.  To be fair, the mage had locked the one door to his magic study but his actual front door had been left unattended.  “Let’s see what happens,” he urged as he placed his hand on one side of the massive double doors and gave a hesitant push, not at all sure it would do anything.

                When the door swung open as easily as any other, they all looked at it in surprise, pausing with wary hesitation.  “I guess it’s not,” Zelo chuckled peeking his head inside cautiously and stepping away when Daehyun tugged on the back of his armor to get him out of the way.

                “Be careful,” the Valkyr warned, shoving the other door open wide so they could get a better look at the interior.

                Not unlike a normal human castle, the ground floor led into a massive open room with hallways leading off to more rooms and staircases winding up and obviously connecting to another floor.  It was hard to say how many levels there were in this place but it looked deserted…

                “I don’t see anybody around,” Youngjae commented with a furrowed brow, hand up and trailing slowly through the air as he pointed at things that caught his eyes, such as the full plate mail suits of armor that lined each hallway and several paintings covering the stone walls with unfamiliar faces.

                “Yet,” Zelo grumbled, one hand going for his sword hilt preemptively, understandably nervous.  He wasn’t the only one to jump when the doors closed behind them of their own volition, easing shut in far too quiet a manner.

                “Easy,” Daehyun urged them both as he stood his ground, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath while he felt for the presence of anything else.  He was grateful his primary ability allowed him to synchronize his spirit with that of a soon to be deceased Einherjar, but just then he was also banking on the fact that it allowed him to detect the presence of evil nearby if he but searched for it.  Ironically enough, he felt the power signature of someone powerful but… nothing evil and he certainly didn’t have a direction.  “That is… odd,” he murmured, explaining his dilemma.

                “Just because he is the Lord of the Undead doesn’t make him an evil creature,” Youngjae reminded the Valkyr unhelpfully, making a face back at Daehyun who glared at him.  “What?  Not all undead are evil,” he grumbled.  “And he used to be an Einherjar.”

                “Who turned against Himchan and betrayed Odin as well,” Daehyun commented, clearly not convinced.

                “That still doesn’t make him evil,” Youngjae muttered with an annoyed grimace.

                “It doesn’t matter,” the Valkyr shook his head, reviewing their options.  He had no direction and limited time either way they looked at it.  If they were going to find Brahms, they would have to start looking soon or miss their chance and be forced to wait for another evening.  “We should hurry,” he urged instead, picking a direction he thought made sense based on the layout of the typical castle.

                Needless to say, Brahms wasn’t located in what he thought the throne room would be on the ground floor.  In point of fact, he wasn’t on the ground floor at all…

                “Haven’t we been down this hall before?” Zelo asked with a confused expression as he scratched his head in befuddlement.  “I swear I’ve seen this painting before.”

                “No.  He was facing the other direction in the first painting.  In this one, he’s facing to the right,” Youngjae explained, pointing out the differences as he stood next to Zelo who just shook his head at the answer.

                “It does feel like we’re running in circles,” Daehyun admitted, looking up and down the hallways for a sign of… something.  “Where are you, Brahms?” he asked, tapping his bottom lip in thought with a gloved finger.  All of a sudden, he gasped and lurched to the side, bracing himself against Zelo who yelped in surprise and then reached to steady him when he seemed dazed.

                “Daehyun!  Are you alright?” he asked, catching the helmeted head with one hand as he bent down to peer into the stunned eyes.

                “Something’s wrong,” Daehyun breathed, inhaling quickly when a panicked sensation overtook him.

                “Eh?” Youngjae inquired, joining the pair.  “Of course something’s wrong.  We’re lost in Brahms’ castle.  There’s something very wrong with that.”

                “No…” Daehyun murmured with a shake of his head as he tried to catch his breath, clutching to Zelo’s armor fiercely with one hand.  “Something’s wrong with one of my brothers.  Something…  Something’s happened.”  Still holding onto Zelo, he looked around the taller male and then around Youngjae, not really seeing them while he stared down the halls.  “I have to… do something,” he murmured in a rather confused manner.

                “Like what?” Zelo asked, crying out and loping after the Valkyr when the shorter male started running down the halls with abandon.  “Wait up!”

                “Hey!  Where in Nifleheim are you going?” Youngjae shouted, following after them rather belatedly.

                Filled with worry, Daehyun searched for the entrance with as much success as they’d managed to find the way to Brahms.  None.  He was as lost then as they had been when they’d started searching and it didn’t help the lingering, panicked feeling festering in his stomach.  Which one and why?  Who was hurt?  What had happened?  “Uppie?  Channie?” he gasped, yelling in frustration when he came full circle back to another open room that led into several other hallways and staircases like the one he could have sworn he was in a few moments ago.  “Dammit!” he growled, chest heaving as he clenched his fists and just glared at his surroundings.  “Where am I supposed to go?!” he demanded angrily, turning in a circle before he stopped and let his shoulders slump, head hanging against his chest.

                “Daehyun!” Zelo called, placing his hand on the shorter male’s shoulder as he finally stopped beside him, trying to catch his breath as quickly as possible in case the other started running again.

                “Can we just stop for a minute?!” Youngjae cried when he finally caught up with them, breathing hard.  “Good gods,” he muttered, smoothing his hair back and brushing himself off.

                Daehyun declined to respond to the mage’s question and he took a moment instead to swallow and try to collect himself.  He was lost.  That much was true, but the feeling he was getting wasn’t because someone had died, which was comforting in its own right.  They were scared and probably in pain, or at least had been some time ago since the sensation was fading, but they weren’t dead.

                “Listen, listen,” Youngjae urged while he brushed his hands off and tried to catch their attention.  Now that the two before him weren’t blatantly running around like chickens with their heads cut off anyway, he had a chance to speak.  “It’s an illusion,” he explained quickly, looking between Zelo and Daehyun, the former of which just raised his brow at him in confusion while the latter didn’t even acknowledge his discovery.

                “What’s an illusion?” Zelo asked when the Valkyr didn’t react.

                “Everything!” Youngjae giggled, gesturing to the castle.  “Well, not entirely everything because the castle is real enough but the passages are bespelled or rigged to make one run in circles.  I’m not sure why but that’s why we can’t find where we’re supposed to go.  I think.”

                “So…  What do we do then?” the youngest asked as he regarded Daehyun with concern.

                Youngjae chewed his bottom lip in thought and huffed.  “Unless you have some way to see through the illusion, I’m guessing we’ll just have to do this the hard way.”  At Zelo’s quizzical look, he sighed and rolled his eyes.  “Pick a wall and drag your hand along it until something changes.  It works in mazes,” he explained as he moved to demonstrate his suggestion.

                “Seriously?” Zelo asked with a nonplussed expression.

                “It’s not a bad idea,” Daehyun finally volunteered when he seemed to collect himself and actually focus on the pair.  “And it’s more than we’ve been working with so far.”

                “Exactly!” Youngjae crowed with an excited yip.  “So let’s get tracking!”

                “Sure…” Zelo trailed off with an uncertain shrug as he followed along after Youngjae while the mage led the way.  Daehyun trailed along behind him, still slightly distracted but with them for the most part and Zelo brought up the rear, his hand ever near his sword.

                It took far longer than any of them hoped but eventually Youngjae did find a path through a wall.  “Yah!” he yelped as he stumbled beyond the appearance of the barrier.

                “Youngjae!” Daehyun and Zelo called at the same time, running into the vanishing point after their mage, only to find themselves facing a set of stairs that led upwards to the second floor.

                “I told you!” Youngjae grinned in boyish delight, dancing in place with his moment of victory before he tackled the stairs ahead of them.  “Come on!” he urged, pausing at the top to gesture at both Daehyun and Zelo who were more bemused by his reaction than anything.

                Rushing after the shorter male, the pair hurried along until they reached the second level where they had to do pretty much the exact same thing.  At least there wasn’t any resistance to battle against but it wasn’t until the third level that anything changed.  Youngjae managed to find another hidden wall and when they all stumbled through, instead of seeing a flight of stairs yet again they found themselves face to face with a sturdy looking door.

                Daehyun looked at it intently and pulled both Zelo and Youngjae behind him carefully.  “We’ve found him.”

                “How can you tell?” Zelo asked with a curious look between the Valkyr and the door.

                “I just know,” Daehyun responded and took the lead, pushing the door open and leading the way into an open room that extended several meters before a series of steps led to a single throne on the raised platform.  All three jumped when the door closed behind them and the smug figure seated on the throne smiled at them.

                “So you’ve finally arrived,” the imposing figure stated with his head pillowed on one fist.

                “Not for a lack of trying, Brahms,” Daehyun stated softly, taking a hesitant step forward.  Now that he was here, he wasn’t exactly sure what he was supposed to do.  He was certainly comforted by Zelo and Youngjae’s presence, though it meant very little when he was supposed to bring the Lord of the Undead to account for his injustice against the gods.

                “Not everyone figures out the mystery of my domain,” he smiled in a satisfied manner before adding, “In another life, by the way.  Several actually,” he chuckled, making no effort to stand up.  “I find I favor Seunghyun of late though,” he grinned, blinking slowly as the Valkyr didn’t seem to know how to respond to his statement.

                “Seunghyun?” Daehyun finally asked for clarification.

                “Yes.”

                Shining silver eyes held his as Daehyun regarded the Lord of the Undead on his rather under-decorated throne.  The epitome of calm and confidence, he lounged in a relaxed pose that did not fool the Valkyr in the slightest, while they all seemed small in the hall that rose above them in enormous vaulted ceilings.  "Why are you meddling in the affairs of the mortals, Seunghyun?" he asked intently, holding his hand to the side to keep Zelo and Youngjae at bay while he spoke.

                 Another deep chuckle emerged from Seunghyun’s chest, clearly amused as the taller male sat up and uncrossed his legs elegantly.  "And who says I am interfering with anybody?  Living in solitude in my castle where even the gods do not bother me.  Why should the plight of the humans interest me when your Lord Odin has them under his protection?" he asked instead, pushing himself up in one fluid motion, spiked iron gray hair flaring out behind him slightly.

                “You are the one that sent the necromancer to harass the people of Dalinore,” the Valkyr blamed forcefully, not letting his gaze stray.

                “Am I?” Seunghyun smirked with an elegant shrug of his shoulders, hands raised to either side of him with his fingertips accentuated by short claws.

                “I found your name with the necromancer in the Dark One’s Quarry, Brahms.  You dare deny your involvement in sending draugrs to aid him and allowing the defiler access to such blood that would convert a princess and send a human kingdom into turmoil?!” he accused righteously, pointing at the standing figure with anger.

                Seunghyun’s expression didn’t change in the slightest but the very air around him shifted as his reaction was nigh on palpable.  “Did you now?  And I suppose you believe everything you see?” he asked with a piercing gaze, meeting Daehyun’s eyes in such a way that the other flinched.

                The Valkyr took a quick breath and had to remind himself that it was nigh on impossible for Seunghyun to know about the visions he’d been seeing in Yongguk’s company…  Struggling to regain lost ground, he pointed at the taller male in an accusatory manner.  “You are little more than a friend turned foe who once sought to subjugate a Valkyr to your whim!” he spat in anger, expression marred by his lip when it curled into a disgusted snarl.

                "Even back then I merely offered a safe haven to one who needed it," Seunghyun explained in a civil tone, giving Daehyun a disappointed look.

               "Do not play coy with me," the Valkyr threatened darkly, resenting the comment about Jongup and his one-time default.  He retrieved his glowing blue sword effortlessly, hearing Youngjae and Zelo ready themselves beside him.

              "I do not play, Daehyun," Seunghyun replied with a satisfied smirk.  "You would know as much if you had asked your sibling or even Odin.”  His smirk turned to a predatory grin as he huffed once under his breath and threw himself at Daehyun, catching the Valkyr off-guard but not completely open.

              “Yah!” Daehyun gasped, lurching under the force of Seunghyun’s attack as talons clashed with his blade.

              “Daehyun!” Zelo and Youngjae called at the same time, rallying behind the Valkyr to join in the fray.  Zelo swung his broadsword around from the side while Youngjae danced to his right already casting a spell.

              The Lord of the Undead glanced at both Einherjar swiftly before he gripped Daehyun’s blade, though the smell of burnt flesh aded the air at his action, and yanked it to catch Zelo’s attack, grunting when the clash drove the edge into his palm, biting deep.  The swordsman gasped at the counter and tried to retrieve his blade but Seunghyun kicked out, catching the flat of the blade with his foot and tearing the hilt from Zelo’s grasp, sending it arching into the air, freed from both parties control.

              “No!” Daehyun yelled, ripping his sword free so that he could attack again, reeling back when his target deflected it.

              Zelo tried to grapple with the weaponless Seunghyun, cursing loudly when the stronger male caught his hands and yanked him around, forcing Daehyun to duck at the younger boy’s body was hurled towards the poised Youngjae who was just waiting for a chance to attack without the greater risk of hitting one of his allies.

              “e!” he cursed as he tried to get out of the way, discharging the spell to keep it from accidentally going off before he was unceremoniously bowled over by Zelo’s larger form.  “Ugh!” the mage groaned, scepter flying free from his hands.

               “Zelo!  Youngjae!” Daehyun called to make sure they were alright as he immediately shifted to put himself between his downed Einherjar and Seunghyun who calmly brushed his hands off and picked up Zelo’s broadsword, regarding the Valkyr with a thoughtful expression.

               “Peace, Valkyr,” he urged, tossing the sword to him so that it landed at his feet as he noticed the Einherjar getting to their feet and returning to Daehyun’s side.

               “That’s an odd thing to say since you’re the one that attacked me,” Daehyun muttered, smarting from the success of Seunghyun’s attack.

               “I was merely testing,” the Lord of the Undead shrugged with a tilt of his head to the side.  “You are not ready yet.  None of you.  And I am curious as to why Himchan’s Einherjar are here and yet... he is not."

                Confused by the statement, both Youngjae and Zelo looked at each other with mystified expressions as they retrieved their weapons.  They shrugged at the claim and then focused on Seunghyun again.  “We are Daehyun’s Einherjar,” Zelo explained firmly, noticing Youngjae nod in agreement beside him with a pained grimace.

                “My brother’s whereabouts are of no concern of yours.  Either of them," Daehyun hissed, taking a hesitant step forward, surprised by the admission.  Odin had never said that Einherjar could be reborn, but that didn't mean it was impossible he was standing with Himchan's former soldiers.  Not for the first time, he wished belatedly that Yongguk was still at his side.  Curse Odin for requiring him to send him now...

                 Seunghyun investigated his talons with bored interest, bemused by the answer and the wounds marking his palms.  "No little Valkyr," he shook his head slowly, a smirk playing on his lips.  "You are not mine to fight for your brother and I have unfinished business it is not your place to address."  His gaze turned speculative and he looked up, as if he saw something they did not.  "The dawn approaches," he announced to their mystified expressions.  "Beware Daehyun.  You of all people should know that you cannot trust everything the gods tell you," he explained in a soft but completely serious tone of voice.

                “And I’m supposed to trust you?!” Daehyun demanded angrily, taking another step forward.  “The same bastard who just attacked me for no reason, betrayed Himchan and helped lead Jongup astray when he was confused?!”

                The Lord of the Undead regarded him with a level gaze that made Daehyun pause.  “You should know your facts before you make unfounded claims.”

                The Valkyr growled between clenched teeth as he motioned for his recovered Einherjar to advance.  "Prepare to be purified!"

                As one, the trio surged forward, weapons raised and ready for battle while they cried aloud in preparation of the imminent fight.  Seunghyun simply looked at them and laughed, a y sound that echoed off the walls of his throne room.  He offered a wave in parting and then disappeared as the very castle itself faded from around them, taking Seunghyun with it when the sun rose over the horizon.

                "No!" Daehyun howled in frustrated anger, floating in the space where the castle had been mere seconds before.

                "What happened?" Zelo asked in confusion, utterly baffled.

                "Thor's wrath..." Youngjae groaned, smacking himself in the face with both hands.  "How could I forget the Lord of the Undead's castle would disappear at dawn?!" he berated himself.

                “Are you both alright?” the Valkyr asked first, appraising his warriors.  For all that Seunghyun had overpowered them, he had been remarkably reserved in his attacks.

                “Ne…” Zelo grumbled, annoyed at having been disarmed and thrown around so easily.  It was not a sensation he was used to.

                “No!  I am not alright!” Youngjae scowled, pointing angrily where the castle had just been.  “He got away and we still don’t know what he was talking about!”

                Daehyun listened to him rant, his tirade devolving into more self-blame than he was probably entitled to, and held his tongue this time.  Brahms… Seunghyun now, was many things but a liar was not one of them, nor was he dishonorable for all that he’d defected to what he was currently.  Himchan had always said as much several times over.  So what had he been trying to tell him without actually saying it?

                Never mind what business he insisted that he had with Himchan…  What was the point of attacking them too?  He could have done considerably more damage to them but had allowed himself to be hurt instead.  Why?  And now that he wasn’t trapped anymore… what had happened to either of his siblings to make him feel the way he had when he was stuck in the damn castle?  “Jongup?” he asked, turning his eyes to the sky in the miniscule chance his sibling was actually watching him at this very moment.

(a/n:  Yay Seunghyun!  He's such a fun character to write.  hehe  His appearance was short but it's not the last we'll be seeing of him.  ;)  And poor Daehyun's missing Yongguk.  T_T  Thanks for reading though and please look forward to the next update!)