She wants to rule the land and he lives for the sea. Is their love fated or cursed?
Shieldmaiden Brenna may be young, but she knows her mind. As the daughter of King Aric’s most trusted Huscarl, she is well-schooled in the art of battle and weaponry: skills vital for defending what is hers. Having fought to defend her homeland against would-be usurpers, she knows the cost of plunder and pillage.
Vali is a seasoned warrior. His thirst for adventure and battle has served him well in his many raiding expeditions. He has no use for the politics of position and land, preferring the freedom of the open seas.
Brenna and Vali’s young love is torn apart when the King offers Brenna’s hand in marriage to the Jarl of his most important trading centre, Birca. Believing this to be the will of the gods and a prophecy revealed to Brenna as a child, she agrees to the marriage.
Death brings Brenna and Vali back together to defend Birca. As their love is rekindled, Brenna must choose between Vali and the prophecy once more.
Her fate has been determined by the gods, but is it the destiny Brenna always believed in?
She wants to rule the land and he lives for the sea. Is their love fated or cursed?
Shieldmaiden Brenna may be young, but she knows her mind. As the daughter of King Aric’s most trusted Huscarl, she is well-schooled in the art of battle and weaponry: skills vital for defending what is hers. Having fought to defend her homeland against would-be usurpers, she knows the cost of plunder and pillage.
Vali is a seasoned warrior. His thirst for adventure and battle has served him well in his many raiding expeditions. He has no use for the politics of position and land, preferring the freedom of the open seas.
Brenna and Vali’s young love is torn apart when the King offers Brenna’s hand in marriage to the Jarl of his most important trading centre, Birca. Believing this to be the will of the gods and a prophecy revealed to Brenna as a child, she agrees to the marriage.
Death brings Brenna and Vali back together to defend Birca. As their love is rekindled, Brenna must choose between Vali and the prophecy once more.
Her fate has been determined by the gods, but is it the destiny Brenna always believed in?
The silence of the forest had a sound of its own, dense with unspoken secrets. The sudden flight of a bird echoed as if dragons hid in the trees. It’s birdsong, a faint, ethereal melody. Creatures, both mystical and real, peered from their hiding places at the golden-haired girl who could already wield a sword better than most men.
Brenna exhaled loudly, refusing to let her imagination overwhelm her. Vali was the one who saw enemies hidden behind fallen trees and in trickling creek beds. By joining in his imaginary quests, Brenna was simply keeping him out from under the feet of the huscarl as they trained. Getting onto almost twelve summers in age, she assured herself she had outgrown these childish games and only continued out of loyalty to her best friend.
Vali had taken off at speed when he spied the illusive enemy hiding in the pine trees, leaving Brenna to guard the pile of smooth rocks they’d declared to be silver. She’d not argued at the allocation of her task. Even though pretend, she had no appetite for attacking without cause.
The canopy of trees kept the forest cool as the sun blazed beyond their make-believe kingdom. Distant birdsong kept her company. Sitting on a fallen log, she practised balancing the hilt of her sword on the palm of her hand. The breeze came out of nowhere, surrounded her, whipping her hair across her face. Whispers bounced off the trees.
The sword clambered in the dirt as she jumped to her feet. Twisting each way, she looked for the source and found naught. The birdsong seemed to have been swallowed by the forest; only cloying silence greeted her.
“Vali?” Her question was strangled by the unease winding its way around her spine.
An echo of words she could not discern whispered past her again. It seemed even the trees leaned in closer and tighter, trying to catch the words before they died in the wind.
She stumbled against the log behind her. Her heart galloped in her chest as though a thousand tiny horses were trying to escape an unseen terror. She sent a silent plea to Heimdall to spare a moment from his task of guarding Asgard to come and keep her safe as she crouched to collect her sword.
“You need not fear me, Brenna Ragnarsdotter.”
Brenna turned all around, searching for the unfamiliar voice. The empty space mocked her. Turning back to where she started, a vice-like fear gripped her heart, pulling the strength from her bones. Standing just beyond the reach of her sword, stood a figure shrouded from head to toe in black, only his dark and decaying mouth visible beneath the cloth.
The Seer.
“What are you doing here?” She forced bravado into her speech, determined not to show fear.
The ancient oracle lived in the caves above Birca and she’d heard no talk of him travelling to Fornsigtuna.
“I go where the gods direct me.”
Her eyes darted around the dense foliage, as if evidence of the gods would appear.
“They are here; the gods are everywhere, child.”
His voice was low and echoed off the deep, green leaves and dark tree trunks, crowding in on her. A shiver ran up her spine.
“They see you, child. The gods are watching you.”
She cursed the fear that stole her voice; a glare settling on her face to compensate.
“The gods have a message for you.”
Somehow, the Seer now stood much closer to her. She held her breath, gripping the hilt of her sword tighter.
“You, Brenna Ragnarsdotter, will fulfil the destiny of your ancestors. You will heal the scars that run deep in their veins.”
The invisible vice reached inside her chest once more, squeezing so tight she could not speak, could barely breathe.
“You will rule in the place of your ancestors. The gods have fated it so.”
The vice around her heart and lungs let go and she fell to her hands and knees, gasping in the sudden abundance of oxygen.
When she raised her head, the Seer was gone, leaving only his words engraved on her heart.