Viking - Chapter 7 Beta (Patreon)

“That’s not possible,” Valgard protested.  “There hasn’t been a troll–”

“Stop hiding behind your beliefs and get your spear or axe!” Reinn yelled at the man from the top of his horse.  “It is verified that one is inside our realm! Now grab your boy and join the pack coming up the road! We will need to search and find this beast before anyone else dies!”

Not waiting for Magnus or his father to respond, the Lendmann turned his horse and galloped back down the path that would take him to the road.

“A troll…” Thora whispered.  “In our realm… how?”

“Bah it can’t be a troll!” exclaimed Valgard as he turned toward the house.  “No doubt Reinn is just trying to find a way to cause problems and collect more money from everyone.”

When the man was halfway to the door, he turned and pointed at Magnus.  “Get the axe and show me you really do know how to use it,” Valgard taunted before starting back for the door.

When he was out of earshot, Magnus turned to Thora who was trembling slightly.  “A troll? Sorry I can’t remember anything about them.”

“Ugly, powerful things.  Creatures who sometimes work with the Jötnar.  For one to get past the barrier, they must have had a good reason.  Most of them won’t endure the pain and effort it takes.”

Magnus winced and studied Thora’s face.  “You say things can push through the barrier? How long does that take?”

Shaking her head, Thora shrugged.  “No one knows but there is pain involved.  Even dragging a creature through it will hurt them.  The magic tears their skin, makes them bleed.  For a troll to endure that kind of pain means something either had to drive it through or it felt pushing past it was worth it.”

“Sorry for all the questions but how big are they? Are they really able to regenerate unless burned?”

Thora let out a small chuckle and poked Magnus in the head.  

“You have rocks in your brain for sure.  Odin must have muddled you up if you believe that.  Most trolls with that kind of power do not reside in our realm.  Perhaps a few do but if one of those were here, we would need the Jarl and his himthiki.  Without elite warriors, powered by runes, we would be slaughtered like a goat.”

Frowning, Magnus nodded and moved to where the axe was.  He would have liked to make another spear but there were no trees nearby.  The flat farmland was devoid of most of them.  Where they harvested timber was a mystery to his mind right now.

Sounds of grumbling and groaning came from inside the house and a few seconds later Valgard emerged from the house, holding a shield and axe, wearing some leather that Magnus assumed was supposed to offer protection over his chest.

Reinn had been wearing some chain armor over his chest but the leggings had been leather pants.  He remembered seeing a shield on the side of the horse as well.

“I feel like a fool about to go walking through fields, destroying crops and wasting a day,” Valgard stated as he tightened the belt that made his leather tunic stay in place. “Carry my shield boy,”

Without hesitating, Magnus moved over and took the wooden shield, looking at the three painted colors on the outside.  It felt crude and he wasn’t sure how much it would really do in the way of protecting against an attack, but it had to be better than nothing.  

Leather straps that looked like they needed some oiling to keep them from cracking felt dry in his hand.

“I’ll be back at some point,” Valgard said, motioning toward the road were a few people had passed by.  “Have dinner ready when I return.”

“Do you believe it’s a troll?” Osvif asked.  “Are you really, ok?”

Magnus nodded and saw the look of excitement as Osvif moved quickly next to him.  The boy who was supposedly his friend was shorter by a good five inches and was thinner than all the others.  

“I’m not sure.  I’m just here like everyone else.”

Sighing, Osvif nodded and pointed at Guat who was riding a horse a little bit behind his father.  

“It’s not fair that ass gets to ride and carry a real weapon and shield.  Probably would cut himself if he tried to use it.”

Osvif’s father was walking ahead of them and turned around, the man’s red hair and beard tied up as many of the other men had theirs. 

“Quiet boy!” he snapped, the thick accent of his words almost surprising Magnus.  “If something happens and you end up almost dead, I won’t pay for the healing do you hear me?”

Nodding quickly and keeping his eyes on the ground, Osvif went silent.

Magnus felt the red-headed man's gaze and held it with his own eyes, not looking away or blinking. After a few seconds, the older man snorted and turned, his green eyes breaking contact first.

All these men here are either assholes or are some of the worst male role models I have ever known.

The group of men moved as one as they traveled in the direction toward the forest Magnus had gone yesterday. It left a pit in his stomach, but he kept his head on a swivel, watching everywhere and everything.

“He won’t come.”

Reinn cursed at the information that Arngrim wasn’t going to be joining their party. “He’s a ragr and you can tell him I said that!”

Most of the men winced at hearing Reinn use that word on someone not there to defend themself.  Even though Arngrim wasn’t considered by many a fighter, he was one of the few who owned his land out here and didn’t have to deal with the problems Reinn cased like the rest of them.

Turning in his saddle, Reinn pointed across a field on their left.  

“Over there is the Gunnleifsson property.  Their daughter Halla came and described what only someone who had seen a troll could do.  She was frantic and I have no doubt there is a troll nearby.  If we don’t find it and kill it, more families will die,” Reinn said as he paused and looked at each of them in turn. “Perhaps yours will be next.”

Men shifted under his gaze and words.  They weren’t fighters like Reinn, most having only received basic training.  Their lives had been farmers since the day they were born.

“We’ll fan out, thirty yards between each man.  If you see something yell and pass it down the line.”  Reinn’s frown looked sincere, and Magnus could tell he was concerned.  “This isn’t something you can fight alone.  When you see it, you will know why.”

Osvif was taken with his father and the two got in line while Valgard appeared to be near the back of the group.  Moving to where the man stood, Magnus offered the shield.

“Bah, you keep it,” Valgard scoffed.  “I still don’t believe we’ll find anything, and I don’t want to lug that thing around.  Besides, if a troll hits that shield, it isn’t going to do anything to help protect you.”

Adjusting it some, Magnus got a better grip, making sure his arm was through the straps.  They were loose, meant for an arm with more meat than his.  No matter how he held it, Magnus realized that if he did have the shield, he couldn’t use the axe.  It required two hands and even if he had his old body back, he doubted he could swing it effectively.

“Can I leave it here and we get it later? No point if the leather breaks and it gets lost in the field.”

Valgard stood there a moment and frowned.  “Perhaps you needed to get bashed in the head years ago.  That’s one of the smartest things I’ve heard from you in ages.  Fine, set it over there.”

Moving quickly, he put the shield where he had been instructed to and moved back to stand by Valgard.

“You two go next.  You two further out.”

The extremely large man, who had a shield on his back and a spear in his other hand stopped before Magnus and Valgard and scoffed. When he frowned the black beard and mustache separated showing the lack of two teeth on his bottom row.  Magnus felt that even without the scar across his left cheek, the man didn’t need any help to look ugly or menacing.

“I’m surprised to see either of you two twats here.  Figured you’d both be home nursing your wounds.”

“Well, I would have stayed home, but your wife said she didn’t want to father another one of my children, seeing how none of them look like you,” Valgard replied, grinning the entire time.

In an instant, the tan face became flushed, and his spear started to lower toward Valgard.

“Brennor! We don’t have time for this! You can challenge him later if you want when the time is right but for now, focus!”

The upset man turned and glared at Reinn who was on his horse, giving a matching glare back.

“When we get back, he and I will fight.”

Reinn nodded and looked at Valgard, frowning at him.

“Now all of you get in a line and spread out!” their Lendmann shouted. “We don’t want to be out here at night looking for this thing!”

Men grunted and moved, everyone giving Magnus and Valgard a wide berth.  Everyone except Brennor who moved closer to the smaller man and glared.  

“Soon you’ll be worthless, not even able to carry that fragment of a rune you still have,” he grumbled before turning and moving toward Reinn.

Magnus knew there was more that he was missing and that even if he wasn’t suffering for not knowing Einar’s memories, Valgard was more than just an asshole.

Walking through the field was tedious, and on his right Valgard said nothing, holding his axe out at the ready.  The man’s one-handed axe looked worn, and could have used some care, just like the shield but the blade was sharp. It had stood out as being the only part that didn’t look untended.

What is up with this guy and axes? He treats them like they’re a gift from the gods or something.

Lost in his thoughts, Magnus continued to gaze across the field, watching the other men and young boys who were alternated.  With thirteen of them total there were about four football fields worth of space being covered.  

Up ahead was a house, or what was left of it.  Even from a hundred yards away, Magnus could see that part of the sides and a roof was torn off, knocked down like someone might a stick fort.

“How big are trolls?” 

Valgard’s frown spoke volumes even when the man who was supposed to be his father didn’t.

“Some are fifteen feet tall,” Thorketil called out.  “Don’t worry Einar, we’ll see it first.”

Magnus waved and nodded, considering the truth of what he had just heard.  The memory of those wolves and how fast they had been was fresh in his mind.  If a troll had been the thing in the forest that chased them away, it meant it was on a different level.

Reinn and two others had searched the house and news spread along the line of men that there was blood and carnage everywhere inside.  Tracks were found that led toward the north.  They had searched southeast, getting closer to the barrier, only maybe a mile away now.  

“It’s headed toward town and other families! We will jog while following the tracks!”

A few grumbles came from the group, but everyone understood the danger of a troll.  It could change directions, a scent in the wind might beckon it to search near a farm.

Everyone shifted the line, forming up with Reinn and Brennor in the middle as they followed the tracks.  

As one they started to jog, destroying the harvest as the men followed a trail that was at least three feet wide through the grain.  

Odin… if this is your doing, I swear you’re an asshole!

Resisting the urge to curse the god anymore, Magnus fell into a steady cadence and kept searching the fields. Long runs were just another part of his life.