Jarl ate his food as silently as he could, intensely aware that every single eye in the room deliberately avoided him and Knud. Everyone sat cross-legged on thick, round cushions, but neither Knud or Jarl had been offered one. Their food had been shoved towards them and then they were promptly ignored. To make matters… Read More…

“Damn grœnn naðr!” Halvard swore under his breath as he sat up and felt his spine re-align itself. He uttered another series of curses until he stopped mid-sentence. Holmvé might have heard him. For a two hundred and sixty-year-old dwarf, she had truly incredible hearing when it came to words she didn’t like. Slowly he… Read More…

Jarl was exhausted. He paused for a moment to lean against a tree. Strands of his long hair stuck to the side of his face and beads of sweat stood out on his forehead. The Aldwood was not like the barren pass. Wild plants, trees and bushes were everywhere, together with long grass that caught… Read More…

“How did you sleep last night, Rakki?” Ulf asked as he sat down next to Melrakki on the bed. She smiled up at him from the nest of bundled blankets and shook her head with a yawn. “I didn’t sleep at all. I don’t think anyone did.” Melrakki laughed and reached for his hand to… Read More…

“Knud. Knud wake up. We have to start walking.” Jarl shook him gently. His eyes snapped open and darted about in panic for a moment. As soon as he saw the sun had barely risen and they were in no danger, he closed them again and slumped back onto the ground. “Can I sleep just… Read More…

Systa kept her eyes closed and held Skógi’s hand as tightly as she could. Under the bodies, the pervasive stink of sweat and blood made it almost impossible to breath. The cart they had been piled onto along with the rest of the bodies was so rickety that every cobblestone rattled them down to their… Read More…

Jarl was fast asleep, with his arm draped protectively across Knud’s chest. Astrid glanced at them one more time before she looked at the forest and the mountains on her right. The moonlight was still not bright enough to see under the dark canopy. The roots of the trees stretched out into the plains far… Read More…

“Please. Just ask her,” Skógi begged Systa as they both led the three dwarfs to the edge of the camp. “Just ask her, and if she tells you that it’s Bjargtre then don’t go.” “Don’t be stupid, she’s the Agrokū’s mother. She’d tell him.” “Then don’t tell her why you want to know, just that… Read More…

Systa skidded her bison to a stop before Ulf’s yurt. A cloud of dust rose behind her and she smiled broadly. One dwarf was tied to the back of her bison and three more were tied behind the riders that followed her. All of them were gagged and blindfolded. She leapt down from the saddle… Read More…