"Ah..$#|+" A weary voice comes from the inside of one of the boats. Slowly, a handsome physically fit young man wearily raises his disheveled blonde head to look around this new landscape.
"Hey"...this isn't Rio."
Given that her valkyrie-like armor is not so different than that of the stranger's, Nissa decides to chance being seen.
She says in response to the cuss word, "Is that any way to talk in front of a lady?" Her tone is playful. It's obvious the glowy-eyed halfling isn't offended.
"It is good to see someone who speaks a language that we do. Were you near the facility?"
Turning to the others, Verve says "I hope no one else from the labratory was accidentally brought here."
At first, the disheveled warrior squinted then widened his eyes to make sure what he was seeing was real, quickly cradled his head, then he smiled. "Sorry about that, Fun-Sized. One second."
The human stood up in the boat and looked around the vessel. This person was wearing a graphite carbon suit, yet stylized to look vaguely like ancient greek armor. He picked up a tactical dueling sword, again made to look like a slimmer xiphos sword, then a tactical shield with a medusa head emblazoned on it. The disheveled man burped as he checked his pockets and smiled when he found his wallet.
The burp must have brought something up from the depths, as the no-so-heroic-looking man spit over the side of the boat.
"Well then", posed the modern spartan, "am I at least still in the southern hemisphere?"
The warrior noticed someone else on the beach. "Facilty? I don't know what you're talking about. Last thing I remember was.." The young man stopped to get his mental bearings. "..was being flanked by two sweet latin ladies in a hottub on some penthouse in Rio de Janeiro." The blonde man signed. "What date is it?"
"What date do you believe it to be?" replied Verve.
"February 25th", stated Theo. "Second day of Mardi Gras. But experience has taught me that time displacement is kinda the norm in situations like this."
Nissa is genuinely amused by the comment.
She very innocently replies, "Oh! My fashionista friend has a hot tub on her back deck! Very relaxing!
"Oh..." Nissa changes topics. "You're in the north. Like, wicked far north. Supposedly New England, but like—" Jerking her thumb back to the viking stone. "—that is definitely not Plymouth Rock. I guess that means you're as lost as we are.
"Anyway, my name's Nissa van Donk."
Charles crosses all four of his arms and frowns, as best as he can manage with a fox muzzle.
"Wait... so you're also not from here? What kind of chances are there that two accidentally world-traveling groups end up so close to each other?"
He pauses to process what the other man had said. "Wait, you've done this before?"
"Oh..." Nissa changes topics. "You're in the north. Like, wicked far north. Supposedly New England, but like—" Jerking her thumb back to the viking stone. "—that is definitely not Plymouth Rock. I guess that means you're as lost as we are.
"Anyway, my name's Nissa van Donk."
The mighty warrior looked over Nissa's head at the norse stone. "Oh no..not the Æsir", the blonde man grumbled.
"Ah. My name is Theo. Theo Nephus. The Olympian.""Wait... so you're also not from here? What kind of chances are there that two accidentally world-traveling groups end up so close to each other?"
He pauses to process what the other man had said. "Wait, you've done this before?"
The Olympian's vision clears further. Theo shakes his head to clear it violent, not once but twice.
Then he drew his sword."Okay. I'll admit. I've never seen that type of Echidna-spawn before!" Theo growled readying an attack. "And I take it you lot are Titan Soldiers! Damn it, Dionysis! What fresh tartarus did you drop me into!!"
Uncanny Valerie has been staring at the stone this whole time, trying to make sense of the runes.
"This is definitely Viking in origin. Featuring an ouroborous, a common symbol of eternity. I apologize. My initial locational guess was incorrect. We have spatially displaced as well as dimensionally and chron-"
She looks up to see the armored man stumbling out of the boat, sword in hand, calling them "echidnae" and soldiers of "Titans." Her jump jets in her feet/boots (they're kind of the same thing) flare up and she flies over to interpose herself between Theo and the others.
"Sir! I beg you! Unusual though they may look, those are mortal creatures you are threatening!"
The boat this strange man stepped from is different from the rest. It's decorated with the image of ferocious boars and trimmed with gold. The others are larger, of cruder design, and built to be rowed by a greater number, although they do not appear to have been rowed much at all.
As Theo is cursing Dionysius for luring him into what mush have been some literally bacchic revelry, you hear the scrape of stone upon stone and hoof upon stone.
A man approaches on horseback; his hair is as grey as his horse's. He trots slowly forward out of the fog until he is about 20 ft. away. The greybeard shakes his spear at you and calls out "Hwæt syndon gé searohæbbendra byrnum werede þe þus brontne céol ofer lagustraéte laédan cwómon hider ofer holmas?"
"'Hwaet.' The first word of the Beowulf saga. Unfortunately, it's been so long since I processed that poem, I dumped my practical knowledge of Old English some time ago. Modern English is so different. But..."
She holds up her hands, attempting to communicate, "Friends. Friends. No threat."
Despite not knowing the horsed man's tongue and despite hearing the words as strange, the meaning of them arrives in your mind. There is no logical reason why you should understand him. Each word remains foreign to you, but the sense of them is clear, "Who are you in this strange armor to come here in this impressive boat?" It is as if you spoke the language, and yet you do not.
"Sir! I beg you! Unusual though they may look, those are mortal creatures you are threatening!"
Theo was puzzled by this seeming android. For some odd reason, hearing it from her (?) made it seem logical. The godling lowered his weapons bu still kept a ready stance.
A man approaches on horseback; his hair is as grey as his horse's. He trots slowly forward out of the fog until he is about 20 ft. away. The greybeard shakes his spear at you and calls out "Hwæt syndon gé searohæbbendra byrnum werede þe þus brontne céol ofer lagustraéte laédan cwómon hider ofer holmas?"
The Olympian rasied his weapions once more, this time at the old horseman, who seemed to ooze Odin-influence.
"Who are you in this strange armor to come here in this impressive boat?" It is as if you spoke the language, and yet you do not.
The godling stood firm. "I am Theodore Nephus. Son of Zeus."
"I'm Black Lightning, daughter of lightning." says Verve in a slightly mocking tone.
Nissa says, "I am Nissa van Donk," she says for the horseman's benefit, and to both men, "I believe there's, like, no quarrel among any of us. Yeah. Fun-sized Nissa hangs with fun people, and killing each other is no fun.
"Oh, and I believe my valkyrian armor is a blessing from The Dawnflower. She's my goddess, but not my mom."
When Nissa says the word mom, a thin stream of sunlight stretches from her glowing eye, down her flush cheek.
Nissa turns off the waterworks* like turning a faucet. Even one who noticed her fiery tear surely sees that Nissa is perfectly calm. No emotional issues under this little winged half-helm.
When she continues speaking, her tone suggests she is a tiny captain or hero or girl scout, and if there's a problem, she's here to solve it:
"Gentlemen, I noticed the half-sunk ship and a few other oddities. Are there people in danger right now?
"I'm a stranger in your land, but I'm happy to help those in need." If need be, she'll ask the horseman to kindly explain the situation—particularly the shipwreck, mangled bird, broken bucket and general lack of people.
Uncanny Valerie looks at Verve in confusion. Completely seriously, she utters, "Wait, I thought you called yourself 'Verve'?"
"Oh, Miss Nissa, do not be alarmed, but you have leaked a little." She offers Nissa a handkerchief.
Shrugging, she turns to the others. "I call myself Uncanny Valerie. We indeed are here to help!"
"Aénlic ansýn!" the man says, his eyes taking in Uncanny Valerie and Nissa. You understand the words despite not knowing them "A unique appearance!"
"I call myself Uncanny Valerie. We indeed are here to help!"
The man on horseback seems to understand, but he waves Valerie's words aside when she says her name. "Nú ic éower sceal frumcyn witan aér gé fyr heonan léasscéaweras on land Dena furþur féran Nú gé feorbúend merelíðende mínne gehýrað ánfealdne geþóht: ofost is sélest tó gecýðanne hwanan éowre cyme syndon."
"I must learn your lineage, strangers from across the water, before you travel far in the land of the Danes," he lowers the spear and points it at you. "I advise you, tell me quickly."
From this point on, he refers to you as "feorbúend" meaning "fardwellers" unless you tell him to do otherwise.
"Who we are" Verve said "are travelers. As long as we are not offered violence, none shall be offered in kind. Also, is it not rude to demand someone's name but not offer your own first?"
"There is much violence in this land, but it has never been freely offered. We pay a heavy price for this violence, and have little left of anything to spare, even manners. My name, fardwellers, is Haward and I serve as coast-guard to King Hrothgar."
Nissa remains calm for one experiencing spear-point for the first time. If he dares, Charles will rip his arms off faster than I can draw my mercy pistols.
“I don’t know my lineage, by blood. My mom died birthing me, so I’ve been told. I don’t know who my father is, if he lives, or if he knows I exist. My adoptive parents are Phineas and Milesandra van Donk of Harvard. The town, not the university.”
She looks up at Valerie. She hands back the handkerchief and smiles sweetly at the android. Though she doesn’t seem to understand emotions as fleshy people (?) do, she certainly cares in her own way. Nissa appreciates that.
Valerie returns Nissa's smile, and then answers the spear-bearer.
"In truth, Haward, I am an exile from my own home, and bear no lineage I could repeat. I am but a lorekeeper and servitor to these others."
Nissa suspects lineage is important to the old man. And exile... maybe not a big deal, but Nissa has a gift, and she's not afraid to use it.
"What Val's getting at is she has no connection to her birth family. In other words, she's a van Donk like me—my sister, fathered by a different mister." Note to self: never repeat that phrase, like, ever. "The name van Donk means from a high place, in case surname meanings are important to your king.
"Some take high place to mean, like, literally, a hill. And then there are those like my adoptive parents who take the figurative meaning. Y'know, from a moral standpoint, serving a greater good." Gesturing to the android, "Valerie lives up to that meaning of the name more than, like, everybody. So if you need a lineage, I would appreciate you marking her as a van Donk.
"And y'know what else I'd appreciate?" The sunny yellow glow of Nissa's eyes dims to a hellfire red. Her voice grows coldly firm. "I would be delighted if you would point that spear in a direction other than at my sister."
Charles takes all the goings-on in slowly, eyes darting back and forth and ears swiveling. He tried to stay calm, remembering that he was secretly a three-headed monster in armor and so not really threatened by this spear, and the others... well, it would be better if they could keep things civil here between everyone.
"Charles Wilde. Of Columbus, Ohio, uh, not that some of you have probably heard of that place. I, uh... my parents are..."
He tries to think of how to translate things into something a man from the Middle Ages would understand.
"They're humble craftspeople. They live in Indiana, though. I wasn't always like this. I, umm... think of it as getting cursed by a sorcerer, to look like this."
“I don’t know my lineage, by blood. My mom died birthing me, so I’ve been told. I don’t know who my father is, if he lives, or if he knows I exist. My adoptive parents are Phineas and Milesandra van Donk of Harvard. The town, not the university.”
Haward, whose name, you now implicitly know, means 'High-warden,' rolls his eyes at Nissa's names. "I once traveled with King Hrothgar to Frisia and there met fardwellers with such names. They spoke of cities named Athens and Rome. They were not so fair as you, Nissa of Harvard."
Valerie returns Nissa's smile, and then answers the spear-bearer.
"In truth, Haward, I am an exile from my own home, and bear no lineage I could repeat. I am but a lorekeeper and servitor to these others."
"A scop? It has been many years since our hall heard new poems that were not found at the bottom of an empty mug. But, I cannot promise my King will be welcoming to an exile with no home to return to. Our land has fallen on hard times and cannot feed any for long. I would welcome a story and a song, and such might open our King's heart to you."
Nissa suspects lineage is important to the old man. And exile... maybe not a big deal, but Nissa has a gift, and she's not afraid to use it.
"Some take high place to mean, like, literally, a hill. And then there are those like my adoptive parents who take the figurative meaning. Y'know, from a moral standpoint, serving a greater good."[/b]
"The name's meaning is not unsimilar to mine own." Haward (High-guard) muses. "Although, in my elder years, I guard the coast, the lowest of places, but such happens to us all in life. I judge no one on their lot and station; I but predict my King's regret at not being able to offer a welcome befitting of a scop."
He tries to think of how to translate things into something a man from the Middle Ages would understand.
"They're humble craftspeople. They live in Indiana, though. I wasn't always like this. I, umm... think of it as getting cursed by a sorcerer, to look like this."
"I know not Indiana, but have heard of such sorcery," Haward pauses. "Have you tried pouring some wine on it?"
"And y'know what else I'd appreciate?"[/b] The sunny yellow glow of Nissa's eyes dims to a hellfire red. Her voice grows coldly firm. "I would be delighted if you would point that spear in a direction other than at my sister."
He lowers his spear, and then hoists it again and straps it to his side in a way that would work for one spear, but not several. He's put his weapon away.
"Come to our hall, Heorot, which was once praised in song as unassailable. Many guests slept safely beneath its roof and marveled at its height and beauty. We will take the gently sloping path, for the steep climb is difficult for my horse, and I would have them see us before we arrive, and see that you come with my permission."
He takes you up a longer path than the one that heads directly up the hill. He indicates the monument and says that it speaks of King Hrothgar's love for his parents, but he himself cannot read the runes. He looks at Valeria as he reveals this. "King Hrothgar might test you on this, for all scop should be able to read the runes Odin paid for with his eye."
"I will let my King decide whether to welcome the fardwellers under our roof." He looks you all over, including Charles and says "Aénlic ansýn!" in a tone of wonder. He unlatches a fur cloak and swings it around on one side of his horse passing it to you. "Nisha Highplace and one other could keep warm under here. It's a long climb and the wind will blow."
He urges his horse forward and rides ahead of you a bit. His shield protects his back, but he is still outnumbered and unarmored. Either he trusts you or is unafraid of you.
On the way, he asks for Theo and Verve's lineage so that he might recount it to King Hrothgar.
Charles glances at the others. He's pretty sure he recognizes some of those names, though his one college literature course was a long time ago. He kind of hoped one of the others remembered things better.
...he was pretty sure the other guy saying he was a son of Zeus was crazy, though.
Or it would have been, had he not just been sucked through a hole generated by someone's head into an old myth.
Something tickled at his thoughts. "You say it was once unassailable? Um... would it be rude to ask what happened?"
"You must have come from far, not to hear of our misfortune." says Haward. That's all he says for a long while. The road brings you around the island a bit, and soon you see that the island is a stone's throw from some smaller islands. Haward tells you that at low tide, you can walk from one to the other all the way to the mainland if you don't mind getting wet or ride on horseback without getting wet. He says he did it often when he was young.
"You could walk, but you would not want to. There are caves beneath those islands and a monster dwells within. King Hrothgar will tell you about Grendel, but you may regret your visit to Heorot as so many of our recent guests have. We do not make merry within our halls, for joy angers Grendel. It's the dryest mead hall any warrior has sat in!"
He barks the last part with a laugh and then becomes quiet. He pauses again for a long time. "But few warriors sit in it now."
Nissa smiles at the old man. When he offers the cloak, she decides not to mention how her solar armor protects her from extreme temperatures. "How can I refuse such chivalry? Thank you, Haward."
Nissa gladly wraps herself in the cloak, leaving more than ample room for a frigid friend.
After the mention of Grendel, Nissa says, "It sounds like Grendel is the source of your troubles." She punctuates her words with the drumming of fingers on a holsted gun.
On the way, he asks for Theo and Verve's lineage so that he might recount it to King Hrothgar.
"Well, I'm the latest of hundreds of bastard half-god children of Zeus, God King of Olympus and God of the Sky and Lightning." Looking to the others, Theo nods, "Yep. All the greek myths you learned in 5th and 6th grade are real. Gaea. The Titans. Minotaurs, Hydras, all that jazz. And most other mythologies, like the Norse, Eqyptian, Mesopotamian, Chinese, and the like, are so very real. Most likely, Hera, Zeus's put-apon Queen of the Gods, killed all my family over the years, ending with my mom. I save the world when I can, do odd jobs for the Gods, blah, blah, blah..", explained Theo, who sounds like he's told this tale many times before.
After the mention of Grendel, Nissa says, "It sounds like Grendel is the source of your troubles." She punctuates her words with the drumming of fingers on a holsted gun.
The Olympian punches his hands together, excitedly. "A Grendel! Excellent!! I'm sure Grendel's head would look pretty righteous hanging on my wall! Let's kill it!"
"I bear no lineage worth mentioning."
She then flashed back to the fantasy novel she was reading in one of her literature classes and added "You might say that I am first of my name. You may address me as Verve."
At the Olympian's suggestion to murder the Grendel, Verve rolls her eyes and says "Perhaps we should avoid getting involved in other people's wars unless we have to?"
"Maybe we should wait until we hear the full story before making decisions?" Charles suggests.
What kind of crazy world had they ended up in? Hercules and Grendel colliding? Not that Theo exactly seemed like Hercules... though admittedly, Charles knows he's not the best judge of who is and isn't like Hercules. At least there might be an opportunity to be the good monster around here.
Nissa agrees with Charles, though she adds, "We may have little choice, if this Grendel attacks people for the crime of being joyful. I am a repeat offender."
Considering the joyless place Haward mentioned is a mead hall, Nissa asks the man, "I don't suppose this mead hall has any non-alcoholic beverages. I'm a few moons shy of the drinking age, and... well... I hear body-weight and susceptibility to drunkenness is, like, inversely proportional. And, y'know, children outweigh me, sooooo...
"What do children drink?"
Nissa has been notably fearless... ...until the moment that question slipped from her mouth. It is an innocent question likely to be answered in a word. Milk. Or maybe orange juice or water. Or watered-down mead. Or meaded-up milk?
Or maybe Haward's reply will be exactly as Nissa grimly anticipates...
Considering the joyless place Haward mentioned is a mead hall, Nissa asks the man, "I don't suppose this mead hall has any non-alcoholic beverages. I'm a few moons shy of the drinking age, and... well... I hear body-weight and susceptibility to drunkenness is, like, inversely proportional. And, y'know, children outweigh me, sooooo...
"What do children drink?"
"When we had children and mead, the children drank mead. Perhaps, with some water in it. There are fewer children now, and less mead. And, yes, my son's at 8, outweighed you. They would have been men by now."
When you arrive at the mead-hall, you find an A-framed building sitting on a wall of logs banked on the outside with stone and earth. The building wouldn't be impressive in your time, at least, not for its scale.
You've seen signs of life along the walk up here, but no living. Smaller farms have been abandoned along the route. Some burnt ruins sit here or there. In one place only an old path suggests people used to go this way. It's only as you circle around the hill and approach the hall that you see a few people working and just as many watching over them holding spears. Someone runs in when you approach and a large number come out and watch as you climb the last little bit of the hill.
Haward signals for you to stop and approaches a man about his age, who looks like he might once have been an able warrior, but that day is past. "King Hrothgar, Fardwellers from across the sea. Valerie the Uncanny, a scop; Verve, first of her name; and Nisha, from Harvard, a city near Constantinople; and two unfortunates they guide--one cursed by a sorcerer with a monstrous appearance, but the voice and manners of a man; the other touched by the gods."
"You could have brought us fish, rabbit, or pig! Throw these back in the sea," shouts a man, to grim laughter. "One or two look good to eat, but we bar our doors against one monster; why do you bring us another?"
"Watch your tongue, Unferth," says King Hrothgar. He goes to Charles first and fearlessly gets in his face. "Let me hear this monster speak."
Haward says as Nissa feared. "Grendel is a child-murdering coward." What she failed to consider is Haward's personal loss. His sons, he said. His wife, he didn't, but Nissa suspects he lost her as well. "I'm sorry for the losses you suffered, Haward."
Her eyes again dim from sunfire-yellow to hellfire-red. What goes on behind those eyes, she keeps to herself.
"...Nisha, from Harvard, a city near Constantinople..."
Nissa's eyes warm to a heckfire-orange as the introduction bewilders her. She tunes out the potential threat of cannibalism when she finally realizes the city is in Turkey, but it's Istanbul (not Constantinople), though why they changed it, Nissa can't say. People just like it better that way, she supposes.
The king's words snap Nissa out of her funk. If you want to be a hero, you need to understand that monsters kill children. On this world. On your world. On any. That's what makes them monsters.
Thinking on this, Nissa suspects the king already knows that Charles in not a monster. But it is not her place to interject. She remains silent, so Charles can speak for himself.
"A scop? It has been many years since our hall heard new poems that were not found at the bottom of an empty mug. But, I cannot promise my King will be welcoming to an exile with no home to return to. Our land has fallen on hard times and cannot feed any for long. I would welcome a story and a song, and such might open our King's heart to you."Valerie returns Nissa's smile, and then answers the spear-bearer.
"In truth, Haward, I am an exile from my own home, and bear no lineage I could repeat. I am but a lorekeeper and servitor to these others."
"I know many stories. I would be happy to share them."
Nissa suspects lineage is important to the old man. And exile... maybe not a big deal, but Nissa has a gift, and she's not afraid to use it.
[dice=Bluff (BS Haward)]d20+11
"What Val's getting at is she has no connection to her birth family. In other words, she's a van Donk like me—my sister, fathered by a different mister." Note to self: never repeat that phrase, like, ever. "The name van Donk means from a high place, in case surname meanings are important to your king.
"Some take high place to mean, like, literally, a hill. And then there are those like my adoptive parents who take the figurative meaning. Y'know, from a moral standpoint, serving a greater good." Gesturing to the android, "Valerie lives up to that meaning of the name more than, like, everybody. So if you need a lineage, I would appreciate you marking her as a van Donk.
"And y'know what else I'd appreciate?" The sunny yellow glow of Nissa's eyes dims to a hellfire red. Her voice grows coldly firm. "I would be delighted if you would point that spear in a direction other than at my sister."
Valerie frowns slightly in surprise, which then grows slowly into a smile. "Nissa, your impassioned response is most moving. And I thank you for your kindness."
When the cloak is offered, she urges Verve to share it with Nissa. While she feels the cold, she feels it's prudent for the fully biorganic beings to get priority coverage.
On the way, he asks for Theo and Verve's lineage so that he might recount it to King Hrothgar."Well, I'm the latest of hundreds of bastard half-god children of Zeus, God King of Olympus and God of the Sky and Lightning." Looking to the others, Theo nods, "Yep. All the greek myths you learned in 5th and 6th grade are real. Gaea. The Titans. Minotaurs, Hydras, all that jazz. And most other mythologies, like the Norse, Eqyptian, Mesopotamian, Chinese, and the like, are so very real. Most likely, Hera, Zeus's put-apon Queen of the Gods, killed all my family over the years, ending with my mom. I save the world when I can, do odd jobs for the Gods, blah, blah, blah..", explained Theo, who sounds like he's told this tale many times before.
"Well of course, they are real," Valerie remarks. "Although some of the historic recountings are quite inaccurate. I admit I often felt sorry for Hera in those tales. She should not have taken out her rage on Zeus's bastards, but she was the goddess of marriage, and yet not even her husband would not be faithful to her. She must have felt she utterly let down her portfolio. And a person who cannot fulfill their purpose of being can do horrible things, such is the pain they feel."
"You must have come from far, not to hear of our misfortune." says Haward. That's all he says for a long while. The road brings you around the island a bit, and soon you see that the island is a stone's throw from some smaller islands. Haward tells you that at low tide, you can walk from one to the other all the way to the mainland if you don't mind getting wet or ride on horseback without getting wet. He says he did it often when he was young.
"You could walk, but you would not want to. There are caves beneath those islands and a monster dwells within. King Hrothgar will tell you about Grendel, but you may regret your visit to Heorot as so many of our recent guests have. We do not make merry within our halls, for joy angers Grendel. It's the dryest mead hall any warrior has sat in!"
He barks the last part with a laugh and then becomes quiet. He pauses again for a long time. "But few warriors sit in it now."
"Grendel?" Valerie had been reminded of Beowulf earlier but had not expected to hear the monster of legend was nearby. "Goodness! I have heard of such a monster, but did not know we were so close!"
The Olympian punches his hands together, excitedly. "A Grendel! Excellent!! I'm sure Grendel's head would look pretty righteous hanging on my wall! Let's kill it!"
"I suggest gathering more data before going on a monster hunt. Especially as where Grendel may be, that which spawned it may be there too."
When you arrive at the mead-hall, you find an A-framed building sitting on a wall of logs banked on the outside with stone and earth. The building wouldn't be impressive in your time, at least, not for its scale.
You've seen signs of life along the walk up here, but no living. Smaller farms have been abandoned along the route. Some burnt ruins sit here or there. In one place only an old path suggests people used to go this way. It's only as you circle around the hill and approach the hall that you see a few people working and just as many watching over them holding spears. Someone runs in when you approach and a large number come out and watch as you climb the last little bit of the hill.
Haward signals for you to stop and approaches a man about his age, who looks like he might once have been an able warrior, but that day is past. "King Hrothgar, Fardwellers from across the sea. Valerie the Uncanny, a scop; Verve, first of her name; and Nisha, from Harvard, a city near Constantinople; and two unfortunates they guide--one cursed by a sorcerer with a monstrous appearance, but the voice and manners of a man; the other touched by the gods."
"You could have brought us fish, rabbit, or pig! Throw these back in the sea," shouts a man, to grim laughter. "One or two look good to eat, but we bar our doors against one monster; why do you bring us another?"
"Watch your tongue, Unferth," says King Hrothgar. He goes to Charles first and fearlessly gets in his face. "Let me hear this monster speak."
Valerie gives a slight bow as she is introduced. She turns to Charles as he is addressed.
Charles gives what he supposes is an appropriate bow, though really he has no clue how you're supposed to treat Danish kings.
It was Danish, right?
Pushing the thought aside he stands straight. It still feels strange to tower over people like this. Wait, focus!
"I was not always as you see me now. I was once a keeper of animals, but a, um, fell sorcerer found me and thought it would be amusing to combine me with beasts. And so I became what you see. I was not a trained warrior before, but now I fight to defend others from true monsters."
It was Danish, right?Pushing the thought aside he stands straight. It still feels strange to tower over people like this. Wait, focus!
"I was not always as you see me now. I was once a keeper of animals, but a, um, fell sorcerer found me and thought it would be amusing to combine me with beasts. And so I became what you see. I was not a trained warrior before, but now I fight to defend others from true monsters."
Hrothgar, the Danish King, studies Charles closely. "I dislike magic and sorcerers--usually because they predict my doom or promise hope I can no longer afford--but I have fought beside bands of warriors called Svinfylking and Úlfhéðnar. I've seen these men turn, in the midst of battle, into something more like what I see now--part beast and part man. My heart-pounded to see them throw shield and axe aside and fight with tooth and claw? I would have trembled had I been one of Ingeld's Heaðobards. Instead, with them in my war-band, I triumphed over Ingeld and Froda." He pauses and looks nostaligic, "Tell me, does battle excite you as it once did me? And what should I call you, if not 'monster'?"
"This change is recent. I do not yet know," Charles replies, trying to remind himself that this is a different culture, a different time and place and dimension, and thus battle-lust isn't seen as a dangerous, evil thing here. "I have not fought to kill since I became as you see me."
"You can call me by my name, Charles. My body may be changed, but my name is not."
"This change is recent. I do not yet know," Charles replies, trying to remind himself that this is a different culture, a different time and place and dimension, and thus battle-lust isn't seen as a dangerous, evil thing here. "I have not fought to kill since I became as you see me."
"You can call me by my name, Charles. My body may be changed, but my name is not."
"An honest answer," answers King Hrothgar, "but I know not whether I like it yet."
Unferth loudly taunts, "King Hrothgar, I heard you say these berserkers, the Úlfhéðnar, grew larger in their battle rage, but I fear perhaps this man shrinks." As he says the word shrinks, he makes a gesture suggesting a man becoming flaccid.
Haward wheels on Unferth and gets within 6 inches of the slightly bigger and much younger man. Unferth doesn't step back right away, but when he does he whithers.
When Haward steps back, King Hrothgar says, "I would not have you mock the courage a guest in my hall, Unferth. First you fear he is too much of monster, and then you fear he is not enough of a man. You fear too much to mock his courage."
Hrothgar steps away from Charles over to Theo. "And, Haward says you are touched by the Gods?"
"Yes", The Olympian states plainly. "From before I was born, and throughout my life so far. I am the half-mortal son of a god; a godling, if you will."
"Yes", The Olympian states plainly. "From before I was born, and throughout my life so far. I am the half-mortal son of a god; a godling, if you will."
King Hrothgar inspects Theo intensely, "Which gods?"
"The Gods of Mount Olympus. The Gods of the Greeks. Zeus, their king, is my father", replied Theo
Verve remained quiet and watched the interaction between the group and this king. She knew that Vikings were historically famous for assaulting women, and she did not want to say anything that might be seen as either an offer nor an offense.
"The Gods of Mount Olympus. The Gods of the Greeks. Zeus, their king, is my father", replied Theo
Hrothgar looks at Theo for a bit and then turns to Haward who shrugs. King Hrothgar examines Theo's face, "Yes, I met one of your cousins once. I can see the family resemblance," if he's joking, he's very good at keeping a straight face.
He moves away from the men and over to Valerie, Verve, and Nisha. He takes in the three of them in his tired but thoughtful gaze, "I have known many shieldmaidens and some have joined me in my halls as we prepared for war, in years long past. I asked each of them what brought them to this decision and their answers were often like those of men--glory, Valhalla, treasure. What brings you three to these grim and dangerous lands? Is it glory? Loyalty? Or love? Are your chests filled by the same passions as men?"