My Norse Story Pt. 5

Kjartan squinted against the light. As his vision cleared, the blurred figure before him slowly came into focus. He was tall and powerfully built, though there was a weariness in his blue eyes that resonated with Kjartan. His long sandy blonde hair was loose and disheveled, giving him the appearance of having recently been pulled from slumber, a stark contradiction to the sternness in his expression.

Despite leaning heavily against his walking stick, he still seemed quite the formidable opponent. Kjartan was grateful they were on the same side.

Well… They almost were.

“Who are they, Eylin?” The man asked in a low voice, never taking his eyes off Kjartan.

“Northmen.” She replied, taking care to keep her voice low. “We found them in the village, surveying the wreckage. They claim something I think you’ll want to hear, Uncle.”

Kjartan frowned slightly at the word “uncle”.

The older man let out a long breath, his expression turning grim as he gazed back at the camp full of refugees. “Alright. Let’s get them to my tent without causing a stir.” He turned back toward camp, favoring one leg despite his obvious effort not to.

Eylin nodded, following behind him, while the young men guided Kjartan and his men along, Finn bringing up the rear.

The rain started slowly at first, but by the time they made it halfway into camp it had turned into a steady drizzle. Nobody paid much heed to it.

As the small party picked their way through makeshift tents and smoldering fires, the stares of the survivors cut him to the bone, making it difficult to hold their gaze, but he forced himself to anyway.

There was a little girl playing hide and seek with the other children, and they all stopped when they saw the strange men. The girl had a curious, almost fascinated expression on her face, but the others quickly fled to family members. Kjartan offered a small smile, which she returned proudly, running up to meet them and sidling next to Eylin.

“Who are they?” She whispered loudly. Kjartan smirked. Oh, for the days when one could be an enthusiastic child again.

“We’re still figuring that one out, little one.” Eylin replied, resting an arm around the little girl’s shoulders. Kjartan’s smirk faltered at that.

They really were in for it, weren’t they? But, then again… he didn’t blame them. They couldn’t number more than thirty or forty, trying to scratch out a living in the woods, barely recovering themselves into some semblance of order, and here he was, the very enemy they thought they were facing.

He sighed. This was going to be fun.

He could smell the familiar aroma of meat cooking on a fire nearby. Good. That meant someone was hunting. He was glad of it.

Suddenly, he stumbled a bit on a root, righting himself quickly.

“Watch your step sir.” Finn murmured from behind him.

Kjartan chuckled in reply, and could have sworn he saw a smirk on the young man’s face when he looked back at him.

When he looked up, he saw Eylin watching them, her face unreadable. Finally, she looked away, veering off the path and ducking into a shelter a little ways away, taking the little girl with her.

They followed the older man a while longer, until they reached the far edge of the camp and he showed them into a small lean-to, slapshod in its design, but it was warm and dry, which was arguably the most important thing considering how the weather was turning.

Carson deposited their weapons on the ground behind the older man, stepping aside respectfully.

The man turned around to face them, setting his walking stick aside to lean against the tent pole, crossing his arms and fixing them with a glare.

“Make this worth my time.”

***

“Why are they here? Are they dangerous? Are they here to help us? Will they bring more people? More children to play with?” Tyra was practically jumping up and down with excitement.

Eylin couldn’t help but chuckle as she sat down on the ground in the shelter, bringing the little girl down with her.

“No, little one, there are no children with them. They claim to be a crew from the North, here to trade with us.” She pursed her lips, reaching into the bag Carson had given her for another strip of linen and began redressing her wound.

“What happened?” The girl’s little eyes bulged wide as she watched in rapt attention. She hadn’t noticed the wound before.

“It happened this morning during the battle.” She answered simply.

“The bad men did this to you?”

Eylin nodded, and Tyra’s face became fierce. Well, as fierce as a little six year old could be.

“I’ll go fight them for you!” She put her little hands on her hips, adopting an imposing position that was so utterly ridiculous on her small form that Eylin burst out laughing, gathering her close and nuzzling her face into the girl’s neck, causing her to start laughing too.

“Stop that!” Tyra shrieked. “It tickles.” She tried to squirm away but Eylin held her fast, and her cries soon dissolved into uncontrollable giggling.

“Oh, it tickles, does it?” Eylin smirked, tickling her more purposefully, her laughter getting even louder.

Finally, the two girls keeled over, laying next to each other on the ground, trying to catch their breath.

“You’re funny.” Tyra remarked with a toothy grin, rolling over on top of Eylin’s stomach.

“Oh!” She cried out, partly in jest, but also partly in legitimate pain. She sat up so the girl would be on her lap instead. “So are you, you little rascal.” She booped her playfully on the nose before gently setting her aside so she could stand.

“Where are you going?” Tyra pouted.

“I’ll be back, little one. I need to go hear what they’re talking about.” She reached out a hand. “Come on, I’ll take you to your grandmother first.”

Tyra stood slowly, pout still firmly in place. “I don’t want to be with Mormor, her and Morfar are no fun. I’d rather be with you, you’re fun.”

Eylin smiled softly, gathering the girl into her side.

“How about we go find the other children then? Perhaps you could go back to your game.”

The little girl nodded reluctantly and let Eylin take her to the other side of camp.

By the time Eylin made it back to Kalman’s tent, she could already hear their raised voices.

She ducked inside to see him and Ironfist glaring at each other. She huffed, crossing her arms. If looks could kill, she’d have two more bodies to add to the piles.

“Give me one good reason to trust you, man!” Kalman yelled, running a hand through his hair. “Your story is too convenient.”

Ironfist sighed, forcibly unclenching his jaw.

“I have none to give you, save the fact that we came here willingly. If we were responsible for such a massacre why would we have allowed a mere girl to bring us to you?”

Eylin stiffened, and Ironfist turned toward her, as if just now realizing she was there. He visibly cringed.

Kalman looked at her too, expression unreadable, as if debating something.

“What have you to say of them, niece? You’ve heard their claims as I have.”

Silence fell over the group. Carson shifted uneasily and Finn was itching for a reason to draw his sword.

Eylin stared at Ironfist for a long moment, then shifted her gaze to Blondie. She felt sorry for him. He looked as if he’d rather be anywhere else in the world than right here. Then she locked eyes with the big guy. His stare was fierce, unrelenting, almost rude… But honest. She sighed.

“I cannot say for certain. I would almost prefer they are lying, because that would be far easier to deal with. We could just execute them now and wash our hands of the matter.” Her jaw clenched at the thought, but she covered it with a glare. “Because if what they say is true, we have far more to deal with than the trust of three men.”

Kalman’s lips thinned into a hard line and he stared at her for a beat longer before nodding decisively.

“Today has been a long day. The sun is near setting and the hour grows late. I will decide this matter in the morning.” He turned to Finn. “You and Carson have first watch. After dinner I’ll send someone to relieve you. They are to stay near the edge of camp, away from those who might make… rash decisions.” He looked at them meaningfully.

“Yes, father.” Finn said, straightening up proudly under the older man’s appraisal.

“Understood.” Carson echoed, moving to stand beside his brother.

Kalman nodded and waited for them to escort the men out of the tent before turning to Eylin again, using his stick to sink into a sitting position on the floor, finally letting the tiredness of the day become evident.

“Do you think this wise of me? Delaying the inevitable in this way.”

Eylin remained standing, peeking out the shelter door to watch the party move away.

“It is all you can do. We all need the rest.” She looked back to him and offered a small smile.

“Good evening, Uncle.” With that, she stepped out of the shelter, moving in the direction of where she last saw Tyra.