Battle Through the Nine Realms - Chapter 41 - A New Weapon (Patreon)

All three of them stood at the edge of the clearing, shields and weapons at the ready, though no creature had appeared or even been heard.  

“Either you’re a sage trapped in a warrior's body or one of the luckiest fools next to Loki himself,” Torfi whispered.  “None of us have ever made it this far without fighting at least a few trolls.”

“That’s the secret,” Einar whispered. “Smells worse than a troll.”

Jodis snickered quietly and motioned at the flowers in the field.

“You two want to guard, or do one of you want to collect the stuff?”

Both motioned that Einar was the lucky one, so he smiled and led the way. The three of them stayed low, moving in a triangle with each person watching the tree line in their direction.

Black flowers with five sharp petals and a deep red center were one of the many items Lambi had listed on the paper.  There were a few roots and a rare orange plant that produced tiny purple seeds that occasionally grew.  All were in high demand in the city because no one ever risked coming out here to search for them.

Moving quickly, they found different groups of the black flower, cutting them off at the base with his dagger, and depositing them in the sack.

“There!” Torfi pointed with her spear.

Einar smiled when he saw the thin green stem with a bright orange flower barely exposed to the sunlight. 

They moved quickly, almost like mice, making no noise along the field of flowers.  Getting close, he saw that three long leaves hung on it, and there were two small bunches of four purple seeds between the leaves and the stems.  He plucked the seeds out, leaving the flower, and carefully wrapped them in a cloth before stuffing it down his armor.

Einar started to turn when his shoulder bumped into Jodis, and he started to talk when his eyes saw what she was focused on.

Across the clearing was a pair of trolls, rooting around near the trees and sniffing the wind.  Both trolls seemed to be searching for something, yet they hadn’t charged them or made any aggressive moves.

Both women trembled slightly, knowing that two trolls against three were not odds any warrior wanted to face, and this far from the walls, making it back wasn’t going to be possible.  This was the land that belonged to creatures who feasted on people.  Almost every creature out here was faster than them.

Einar shook his head and slowly set his spear on the ground.  Reaching out, he put his hand on Torfi’s knee and pointed to the tree line. Making motions with his hand, he expressed his desire, and she nodded.  After repeating the thought with Jordis, he picked up his spear, and the three moved slowly, one step at a time.

With the sun overhead and them in the sun, they had the advantage of sight from this distance.  Fifty yards was a long way for a troll to see clearly, and if they couldn’t smell them, their best chance was to find the tree line and vanish within it.

Every step was slow as the three made certain not to let their weapons or shields collide with each other’s.  Quads began to burn from the crouched position, but they had made it about ten yards with another twenty till they were at the tree line when a loud grunt came from the two trolls.

All three froze, sweat dripping from their faces, more running down their entire body.

Both trolls began to sniff the air and make noises.  Suddenly, they charged almost in their direction.

“Wait,” Einar whispered.  

They were pressed to the ground, and the trolls ran with everything in their legs, yet their angle was off.  Twenty yards from where they were trying to hide, the trolls ran right past them, aimed for the trees, and soon disappeared into the darkness of the forest, pursuing whatever scent they had picked up.

No one moved. Minutes ticked by as they waited, and once they were certain the trolls had enough time to be gone, they quickly rose and made their way back toward the walls.

***

It wasn’t until the gate shut completely behind them that their hearts started to settle down.

“What in the blazes has you three all worked up?” Lambi asked, glaring at the trio.

“Just testing a theory,” Einar replied, pointing at the black substance that covered their armor from head to toe.

“By Odin’s beard, you three smell horrible! What did you test?”

“Two trolls, Lambi… they… they sniffed and never smelled us.  Within half a bow shot range, even.  We stayed low and… and they charged, running right past us within twenty yards.”

The man’s eyes went wide as Torfi nodded in agreement with Jodis.

“Twenty yards? You’re certain?”

“I know what twenty yards is,” Jodis glared at the bald man who held up two hands in surrender. “They should have attacked.”

“And you three didn’t run when they charged?”

“Killer of the shadow walker made us all stay still,” Torfi replied, pointing her finger at Einar. “I wanted to run, but his instinct was right.  I’m not sure what this horrible-smelling stuff is, but it protected us when we should have been dead.”

Rubbing his head, Lambi turned to look at Einar, who was just smirking as the three of them had been talking.  A group of others had come to see what had transpired.

“Did you get anything?”

“I did. I appreciate the list.  I’ll make sure to send you and these two their share once I sell them back in town.”

Snorting, the bald man pointed at Einar and shouted out to everyone within earshot, “All right! Does anyone want to dual Einar? I’m willing to bet he beats you also!”

Laughter came, and everyone shook their head no, yet a wide berth was given around the trio because of the smell.

“If you’ll excuse us, we need to get cleaned up,” Jodis said.  “It may take a while to wash all this off our armor.”

Lambi nodded and walked away as the others started to return to their lookout and other tasks they had.

Torfi was walking next to Jodis when she turned around and looked at Einar, who was standing all alone for a moment.

“What are you doing, you fool? Come wash up!”

***

Skarf grumbled all during the evening bonfire as Einar sat with the two shieldmaidens, sharing tales of his adventures over the last few months.  Both of them were, in turn, regaling him with the fights and things they had seen over their years of service.  Each of them fought in different parts of Midgard until they ended up here.  Both had months of service before they would be free from the obligations.

Lambi came and plopped down next to Einar, ignoring the looks he got from the shieldmaidens.

“Thorodd tells me you plan on forming a warband.  Is this true?”

“It is.”

The older bald man stared at Einar, and neither spoke.  Finally, he gave in first.

“You do realize the cost of such a thing as well as the reputation one needs for that?”

“I do,” Einar replied with a smirk. “Let’s just say I have a lot of possible backers already lined up in the coming years.  Can I ask why you’re interested?”

Picking at his teeth with a finger, the bald man sighed.

“Honestly? I’d love to see the world again, but what I really want to do is see another realm once more.  Your two companions say this is something you aim to do.”

Einar glanced around the bonfire and saw that everyone was now listening to the conversation.  Grown men, men twice his age, were leaning forward, waiting to hear what he said.

“Has Thorodd or Skarf told you what my two friends and I have done for the younger Vikings that are coming up, as well as the ones in the current warbands?”

The bald head shined in the light of the fire as he moved it up and down.

“We’re Vikings,” Einar said, controlling his tone as he gazed around the others around the fire.  “Odin didn’t call us to just kill what invades our land.  He picked us to protect his realm and some of the others.  We are supposed to be invading and ensuring no other realm can threaten that peace and to make sure Ragnarök never comes!”

Grunts of agreement came from everyone, and a light began to appear in a few of the Vikings' eyes.

“Tell me, Lampi, do you not desire to see the troll threat gone? To know that there are no more packs of black wolves or shadow walkers roaming this forest?”

“Bah! You talk like you’ve lived the life we have! You’re just a dreng! Even if someone calls you a thegn when you get home, you haven’t seen what I’ve seen. What half of any of these people have seen.”

Einar nodded and smiled.  His expression set Lambi on edge, and the man’s head cocked sideways and moved back a little bit.

“I may not have fought all the creatures you have, but I did take down a troll with my Lendmann at the age of thirteen.”

“Horse and goat shit!” someone called from across the fire.

Einar’s head snapped, and his eyes locked on the man who had spoken.

“If you want to call me a liar, we can settle this through a duel, but if you’re too afraid to attempt that, you can contact Lendmann Reinn and ask him.  I cut the beasts head off with the two-handed axe of one of his warriors who died.  I chopped its neck and sent it tumbling down.”

The warrior started to speak, his eyes showing the error of his way, but Einar held up a hand and slowly shook his head.

“My friends and I hunted a pack of black wolves when they were sixteen and I was fifteen.  We killed four of the five, and one got away.  A troll came smelling the blood and flesh, but it waited, letting us take three trophies before we escaped through the barrier.  One of the wolves was an alpha.”

No one spoke. Einar’s tone conveyed power and Strength most couldn’t hope to command when telling a story. He had spent the last year working on this ability, earning a reputation among many as a prolific speaker, regardless of his age.

“I have defeated Jarl Unnulf’s son in a battle to the death, winning the Symposia and being crowned the champion.  Every warband and Jarl Bior sought me for their own, and I negotiated a higher rate for myself and my two friends.”

Rising to his feet, Einar’s voice got louder and deeper.  

“You can ask Thorodd how many housecarls have defeated me and how many have lost to me in the last six months.  I promise you that number weighs heavily in my favor.”

As he spoke, his hands were busy, removing the cloth shirt that hung loosely over his muscular body, no armor needed inside the walls.

“Every tattoo I have purchased has been of the advanced rank, and each of them is already close to the first level.  I do not run from fights, and if I do, it is because I lay a trap as I did for the pack of wolves, leading them to where I want the fight to take place.”

Einar turned slowly as he spoke, letting everyone get a view of his chiseled physique.  There was no fat, and the body he had built up had taken years of hard work and constant feeding.  He was living proof of the plan that he shared with everyone to get stronger and faster.

“So, when I say that in a few years to come, I will form a pack and then a warband, do not doubt me.”

His voice had risen to almost a shout, just enough below it that it carried across the bonfire and to those on the walls.

“We will travel to the portals, invade the realms that have plagued us, and strike fear into the giants, the elementals, and the undead! We will push back that scourge that threatens our families and our homeland, and we will make sure that Ragnarök never comes while we hold a weapon in our hand!”

His axe had seemed to magically appear in his hand as he raised it, shouting the last six words.

Every Viking around jumped to their feet, pulled their weapon out, and raised it to the night sky.

Roars and shouts came from all around.

Smiling like Odin had the first time they met in the hall, Einar shouted once more.

“For Odin!”

For Odin! For Odin! For Odin!

Their shouts echoed out of the walls and into the forest that remained silent, almost as if it feared gaining the attention of the one whose name they called out.