StormKnight_737

You’ve just arrived in a swampy, dim town. As you look around, your gaze is met with shacks and cabins. It smells of rotted wood and wet moss. You duck and step into a tattered tent, illuminated by a series of candles suspended in the air. At the back of the tent, an old hag raises her head, “What brings you to this dingy town? she begins, then pauses to study your face—”Ah, it’s you. I’ve been expecting you. Sit,” she gestures at a cushion, “Tell me your story.” ((How do you respond?)) He sits slowly. His body is fatigued from his journey and it shows. He slowly runs his shaking hands through his hair, brushing it back from his eyes. He sighs as he finally rests, taking comfort even in the rough wood of the chair. The cushion is not thick enough to distract him from the splinters he could already feel. After he finished collecting himself, he cleared his throat and spoke with his eyes to the floor. "Kind woman, may I have a glass of water? I have come a long way and was not..." He paused and one could see the fire building behind his eyes, he finished speaking with a low growl and a snarl, "prepared." As the woman handed him the wooden cup, he threw his head back and downed the murky water. He barely noticed the slime and gruel as the life giving water finally restored his voice. He carefully handed the hag the water back, though his instincts were to slam it down to the meager tabletop in front of him. As she took it he began to take notice of his surroundings. The shack was not decorated, but it was not empty. Each corner held a different statue. They were each creatures, but were so eroded it was impossible to tell what they were depicting beyond that simple fact. They seemed humanoid enough, but not directly one thing or another. The air held dozens of candles, each suspended in the act of burning. The ceiling of the shack was almost nonexistent, instead giving way to a plethora of stars. Constellations seemed to form themselves, with the air drawing perfect lines connecting the dots for you. The whole area smelled like pine sap and freshly settled snow, it gave the house a feeling of comfort unlike anything Varin had experienced since leaving home just 2 decades ago. As he stared around in wonder it occurred to him that if the woman knew he was coming, then she must be working for his dog of a Konungr. He almost spit at the thought. His calm and relaxed mind becoming almost feral and bitter. Suddenly the smell of snow and pine turned to that of ash and steel. It was the exact smell of the battle where he had lost her. Where his Konungr had betrayed him. Suddenly he felt a small and bony hand on his arm, and he looked up to see the old woman smiling sadly. He breathed in deeply and focused on staying calm. As he did, he again felt the air change. Again back to the smell of home. He stared at her in wonder but said nothing. After a long moment he sighed deeply and started his story. "I was taken from home at a tender age, no more then 6 years old. I lived in the mountains of the north with my village. I was a beautiful village. My father was the chief, my brother the heir. My mother and I worked as the hunters of the clan, she brought home food and I always tried to help her prepare it. Our home was peaceful, though it was not perfect. Nearby clans would wage war on each other, ours was no exception. However even though there was killing, there was respect and honor. Then there was him. Gunbrage was ruthless. He would attack at night, in the dead of peace. He would take a clan by surprise and leave no survivors. Mine was no exception. My father's honor was betrayed, my mother was used as a bargaining chip, both of them murdered, my brother and I are the only ones who escaped. My father told us to run. But I saw it all happen. My brother saved me. Basi is the only reason I lived through that night. We were on the run for multiple years, but one day he just disappeared. I was taken by slavers the very next day. My only brother must have sold me to them to protect his own hide. That or he gave me up willingly. The slavers kept me until they found a wealthy noble family to sell me to. This family took me in and trained me as a warrior. They had never seen a norse before, so I was an anomaly to them. I could fight better then their knights at a tender age, and at no more then 14 I could best even the princes' bodyguards in combat. After they realized this they made me a member of their personal guard. I grew up with those two devils. We were inseparable. When their father died in combat, my dear friend Mattháios was made the king, and I was made the Jarl. Over the course of the next decade, I met my love Angela. I was beloved by the people. My sense of honor and duty, my strength in battle, it won the respect of every member of the nation. Soldiers followed me at a word, civilians would cheer my name. I was held in such high esteem that I was only below the king by choice. After many years, we were attacked by the same slavers who had taken me so many years ago. They had turned a trade into an empire, and that empire wanted to destroy us. We beat back the assault, and the slavers took many losses, but they also took many of our people. Among them was my Angela. After a long war we finally made our way to the capital city of the Slavers. During the ensuing battle we beat them soundly. But right at the end, I was attacked by the King of the slavers. We fought back and forth for many a time. At the heat of our altercation, I heard her call out my name, but I could not see her. As soon as I turned to look, the enemy overpowered me. My King and brothers did nothing but watch as he came so close to killing me that I could taste death. Though I overpowered the enemy, I did not win. She disappeared again. In my following bout of grief, the King imprisoned me and shipped me off to this country. When we landed, the captain of the ship brought me a letter he had been told not to open. It told me that the King had taken my Angela and imprisoned her while he waited for me to find my way back to the kingdom. He viewed it as a test of my loyalty. I was enraged by this, and told the captain that when we returned, I would find some way to pay the king back. The captain, though distraught at this, told me that he could not return me to the mainland. That he was under direct orders from the king. He agreed to wait in port with me until we found another way back. Just days later another ship arrived from my home carrying another message and a package. The message was from a name I did not know. The letter informed me that the slavers had returned to the battle in the middle of the night, with me missing, they overpowered all of the kingdoms defenses. The king and his brother were forced into hiding. The new king told me he knew Angela was captured, and that she meant a lot to me. So he sent me a pretty present. In the box was two things. A human heart and my own shattered axe. Written in blood on the axe were 3 words. 'Don't come back'. So I never did. Now I am simply looking for a lord to hire me or a friend to work with." As Varin finished his story, he wiped his eyes, cleared his throat, and stood. "I must go, I am a long way from what I seek. Good day ma'am." As he left, he noticed that one of the statues was glowing and could finally be made out. It was a human warrior. The inscription at its base read: "Chosen for strength, accepted for valor" NORSE WORDS: Konungr: King Jarl: General *or* Chief