If the Royal Palace in Bjargtre made Jarl feel nervous, the palace in Lǫgberg made him feel utterly insignificant. Each pillar was covered in murals and vivid blues, reds and greens in thousands of tiny mosaics adorned the walls. The floor was black polished granite with silver veins running through it and the domed ceiling… Read More…

Astrid had barely spoken for the past few days. Her face was fixed in an almost permanent frown. Jarl had tried to speak to her, but no matter what he said she would let the conversation dwindle until there was only silence. Since their conversation Astrid had struggled to sleep. Her eyes were rimmed with… Read More…

“Good. What about the bodies in the tenth?” Halvard asked and pointed at the map, several nails darted into it on the various tunnels with cordons in them. “Most of them cleared, but we still need to clear the fifth, first and the twelfth. Oh, and the first,” Tor replied. His beard and hair were… Read More…

Jarl had never seen such a wall. They both stared up at it in wonder. The wall was made entirely from living trees, and Astrid felt a pang in her chest as she wondered if her mother had ever walked through the Kaito Passage as she was about to. “Have you ever seen anything like… Read More…

“Amund, if the Har Fleinn ever comes to you and offers you the chance to be an áðr, say no. Don’t ask any questions, just say no!” Halvard groaned and leaned his head down on the table. He was so tired he felt as though his body might never feel warm again. The last few… Read More…

Jarl lifted his head slowly from the side of the bed and winced as his neck creaked in protest. The fire had completely burned out. Just a few embers were alive in the ash, and outside the sky was completely black. Other than the whistle of a few birds that darted around the rooftops of… Read More…

Garðar rode into the camp with a cloud of dust behind him. He did not even wait for his bison to stop before he jumped from the saddle and ran towards Ulf’s yurt. His elation was plain to see as he shouted the same phrase again and again. “The mountain! The mountain!” Before he had… Read More…

“I know what you’re going to say,” Astrid mumbled, her voice slurred. “You’re going to tell me I should have asked for help.” Jarl rolled his eyes. “Not exactly the words I would have used.” He had pulled her blanket from the bed down in front of the fire and put several logs in the… Read More…

Astrid breathed a loud sigh of relief as she saw the tall red walls of Waidu ahead of them and the miles upon miles of rich, vibrant green plains around it. Under her clothes she could feel the heat radiating from her infected shoulder and an unbearable itchiness under her skin. The tremors in her… Read More…