Fable - Ask Westward - A Tundra Tale P. 2

[Ivar]

Ivar didn't say anything.

What the fuck was there to say?

He wasn't exactly in control of anything at this point. It was clear that whoever this woman was she had authority over the people in this camp, and he wasn't about to press that. He had come here to find out about his father, to learn what had happened in his past.

Ivar was not the sort to put that at risk, not the sort to question or try to press things that he had no interest in.

The Inner-workings of the Nordenfiir were not his to understand. All that he wanted was to learn about what trade his father had done here. Who he had done it with. Once he knew that, once he understood he could simply leave.

At least he hoped.

Without a word the Northman shrugged, drawing his finger over his ax in an unconscious moment as he fell into step with Maude.

Briefly he wondered if he was going to get himself killed.

 

[Tyrfingr]

The norseman remained quiet as he waited for the person in charge to decide on things. It was obvious how this would go. His new friend Gylfi Runarsson alone could unravel the whole tale. A group of nordenfiir taking the word of a norseman was unlikely, as it also would be the other way around. They didn't know him. They didn't trust him. He knew this wasn't going to end well for him, but he still couldn't stop himself from trying to provide the man on the boar a possible way out.

And the man on the boar as well as his mute companion (who was using her hands to speak some soundless language that Tyr had never seen nor heard of before) had told the truth of things. Honesty was the honorable thing to do here. It was admirable and it gained some respect for the both of them from Tyr. But the woman in charge didn't like liars and made her feelings on the matter very clear. Tyr was unwelcome and unliked here.

The man just nodded silently to her. He was in no position to decline nor talk back. And he had already given his word he would help repair things with the camp so that was what he would do.

As he went about helping to pick up the camp his mind drifted. Thoughts about his clan interrupted plans for repairs often. The Rynstr valued honesty and honor. It was something they shared with many clans of norsemen in the Tundra as well as the nordenfiir. But lying was different for them. The act was not immediately scowled upon. More important than the act was the reasons that prompted it. A thief trying to avoid punishment? They would spit out a curse at their dishonesty. A thief taking the blame for the crime of an orphaned child? A feast would be held in their honor. The clan and its members had only survived for this long by lying about who they were after all. Call them liars. Spit curses upon them. Sneer all you wanted. Their had survived because of the act and that was the most important thing for them.

=============================

After relocating the camp further South, Tyr's mind was focused on what he would need for repairs when Hugi finally began to speak with him. A curt tone more akin to his new "friend" was what he had expected but the older man instead had greeted him in a way that could be called cheerful compared to everyone else.

A chuckle escaped from the norseman. "Aye? Never been known for doing things the easy way. As for why I'm here. Heard about the boars so figured I'd try to hunt one. Rumors about them hold truer than usual though now that I've actually seen one. Be tricky to hunt one alone, but not much I can do if I want parts to work with in my crafts."

The norseman gazed around the camp at the trees. He had an idea of a way to salvage most of the broken tents, but it required something specific. So he figured he could ask. "Know if any birch trees are nearby? Need them to fix the broken tents."

Maude Brenna Ivar Valthar Ruvsá Solveig Odasson

 

[Gylfi Runarsson]

Brenna​

How many times before had the Queen's verdant gaze regarded Gylfi with annoyance and fury? Enough for the warmth (if one could even venture to call it that) in her gaze to be mildly unsettling to the tallest of the bunch. Gylfi felt an odd sense of pride in being included with those who had avoided trouble; it was the usual group, the older ones in the party. Perhaps it was just the circumstance of not having been near the pair of culprits that had caused him to luck out.

Gylfi nodded to Maude and skirted the uneven perimeter that the party had formed around the destroyed camp as he made his way towards Brenna. He gave his ward a gentle nudge in her back with his elbow, urging her towards the lake, where he had just come from.

What's. This. About. A. Bet? Gylfi forcefully signed.

****
​

They sat about a dozen steps from the camp on a pair of the many large stones surrounding the lake's southern edge, looking in towards the frozen surface.

Maybe it was her guilt or her curiosity, or a mixture of both that made Brenna listen to Gylfi so attentively as he'd gone through all the "boring" details regarding the Molvaniir, such as the way their massive, thick skulls are great for digging and plowing, and how their strong neck muscles can upturn even a fully matured Svalen.

The Molvaniir are social beasts that center around an old matriarch in groups called strides. You never see matured male Molvaniir in a stride outside of the mating season. They're valued for the quality of their pelts- you can spot one by its larger size and from the thick mane that runs down its back.

Gylfi went on in length to Brenna about the boars, mentally taxing himself as he explained them with only the signs he learned from her.

They're great beasts. Their danger must be respected. Even the greatest, most experienced of hunters have blundered in the past when hunting the Molvaniir. What possessed you, who knew of the beasts by stories alone, to seek one out? Gylfi frowned and let his hands hang between them. It wasn't pleasant, being so firm with Brenna. But, it was firmness that would teach her. Does that not insult those who dedicate their lives to raising and hunting them?

 

[Ruvsá]

Indeholm
Late in the Night

Ruvsá had descended from the top of the Ruuk and was bidding Harek farewell when she spotted a pair of returning scouts coming in Indeholm's gate. Making certain that the packet of letters and documents was securely hidden one last time, she gave Harek a final nod and stepped away from the shadows at the base of the tower.

"Scouts!" she called out, loudly enough for them to see her, but quietly enough to not disturb the sleeping Nordenfiir in the nearest homes. The senior scout looked up from the seemingly intense discussion and crossed over to her.

"Jarna Ruvsá." He respectfully inclined his head. "You're out late."

"I was delivering an urgent missive to the Ruuk master for Jorn Aggar." The lie slipped smoothly off her tongue. She needed to keep them from asking to speak directly with Aggar, since he was in a drugged sleep still. "I'm heading back to the hall. I can relay whatever information you have."

The scout hesitated for a moment, but she could see weariness in his eyes, and Ruvsá gave him a sympathetic smile. "Tell me, and then go home and rest," she spoke soothingly.

"Borvenir's slayer approaches," the scout said. "She and her party disturbed a boar, and are setting up camp on the south side of the lake. They will likely arrive in Indeholm within two days, at most."

Borvenir's slayer... Queen Maude! Ruvsá kept her expression neutral, but her mind began to race.

"I will pass the message along," she answered, hoping her voice didn't waver in the slightest. "You're dismissed."

She turned away from the scout, back in the direction of the Jorn's hall, and forced herself to not look back too soon. Just before she reached the point where the Jorn's guards at the hall would spot her returning, she sidestepped into a shadow, and looked back toward Indeholm's gate. The scouts were gone.

Quickly, Ruvsá wound her way back through the streets and alleys, sticking to the shadows. Then, in a spot along the low wall that ran around Indeholm where the snow had been cleared away, she shifted into her Svalen form and vaulted over the wall and into the wildness of the Tundra, without a noise. She paused a moment on the other side, listening to hear if a cry of alarm was raised, but there was none. She snorted softly, pleased that she'd not been spotted, and disappeared into the trees.

 

[Brenna]

Gylfi Runarsson

* * *​

Despite being the elder of the two, it was Brenna who sat with her head bowed whilst she twiddled her thumbs awkwardly. Her cheeks hadn't lost all of the red kiss of embarrassment from earlier giving her a rosy complexion despite the chill coming off the lake. It was the guilt that kept her hands still and stopped her from interrupting Gylfi's long - and very interesting, truthfully - lecture on the boars they had been hunting. Her only reactions were an occasional grimace at some gruesome detail or, when she did interrupt, it was to gently correct one of the signs he used. Even when it was she that was in trouble Brenna couldn't help but still teach.

His last words finally drew something more out of her.

No! The symbols for pain and anguish accompanied the word to get across her tone. Blue eyes the colour of a summers cloudless sky rose to meet that of her Guardian's. If her symbols meant nothing then the look she gave him certainly did. No... I... We didn't mean any insult. Solveig said his family were trained in raising them and I thought... She trailed off and let her hands go flat in her lap. Unable to hold his gaze she turned and looked out towards the lake instead. For a while Brenna didn't say anything more though it was clear from the way her jaw worked she was searching for the right words to explain it in the symbols he knew. Eventually, her hands began to move. I know what it is like to have a famous father. To want to live up to their name. People have stopped me pursuing my path my whole life because they are afraid one knock will see me dead. A deep sigh. I just wanted him to be able to... Brenna shot him a rueful, tired smile before returning her gaze once more to the lake. In fairness I didn't think he would just jump on the things back...

 

[Maude]

A successful hunt meant Maude, Ivar, and Valthar returned with two caribou from the nearby valley. They arrived just before sunset and set to work skinning and butchering the kills. Quick tasks for skilled hunters - meat was cooking over the new campfire by the time the skies had gone dark. Maude claimed a spot at the base of a tree near the fire and set her bow and weapons aside before turning to face the fire, palms out. She wasn't cold, but that didn't mean the warmth of the flames wasn't soothing.

"Indeholm isn't very welcoming to non-Nordens," she explained to Ivar once he found his own spot, "for now, anyway. Stick with my group once we get into the settlement and I'll make sure you get your answers - though I cannot promise they'll be helpful or the answers you were looking for."

She couldn't even promise she would get the answers she was looking for. Maude was here under the pretense of assessing purported undead interference and intrusions on the shoreline west of Indeholm, at Jorn Aggar's request. Despite Nordengaard's tenuous agreement of peace with the Eternum she could not help but distrust them as a whole. Something that went far beyond a Nordenfiir's natural inclination to distrust those not of blood or kin. Who in their sound and sane mind would trust the word of a Necromancer?

Her eyes cast about the camp, pausing briefly over Tyrfingr before moving on to where Brenna and Gylfi sat talking. She stepped off from the glow of the campfire to join them. Though Maude's expression was hardly ever such that one might call her warm and friendly, she looked far less perturbed than before. Her irritable neutrality was enough to put most people off on a good day.

[I hope Gylfi has helped you understand the danger of these lands,] she signed to Bre once the young woman was looking her way, [your curiosity about the Molvaniir is ... ] Maude struggled to find the right words to say what she was thinking, but her own advancement in the expanded sign lexicon was still a work in progress, much like everyone else, [normal.]

The Queen offered her a small and short-lived smile. She knew that same curiosity; the Molvaniir of Indeholm were quite a wonder, "Gylfi, once we are settled into the great hall I would like you to take Brenna to the Head Tamer so that he can show her the tamed boars. Safely. She might also like to see the Strekkers." Brows rose as she looked between the two before she settled once more on the blonde, [But no more poor choices. I need you alive to meet with the Priests after, yes?]

 

[Ivar]

He nodded his head. "I suspected as much."

In fact Ivar had never doubted it.

Around his neck hung his fathers totem, a small thing that had been carved for him ages ago. His original plan had been to show that, perhaps buy himself enough leeway that he could not get instantly thrown into the fire pits.

"I will take what I can get." He told the Bear Queen after a few seconds.

Perhaps he would not find the answers that he wanted here, but it would at least be another step taken. Better than having just stayed put and done nothing. Better than having left without looking to see if there were answers at all.

When the conversation was done Ivar leaned back quietly, watching the Nordenfiir with no small amount of interest. He observed Maude's flickering fingers, glancing at the girl she was clearly 'speaking' to.

 

[Hugi]

Their guest was open about his exploits, and shared something that made Hugi smile and laugh with a healthy sense of chagrin. "Aye, the easy way tends to lack a lesson. Though boars tend to be higher on the kill than ride list. Lots of good parts in 'em though."

He'd been working on something, when the mention of birch trees was made. There was an audible pause, with a distinct look around them before looking back to Tyrfingr. "There are, and take those that are already dead or dying. The good neighbor looks poorly upon waste."

A cryptic warning but one that he had used when inside towns here in the north. There was a spirit somewhere on the isle that frowned upon taking the birches still young in heart, and they had made it clear the repercussions of the insult and misstep.

He'd spied a young lass, or what he had guessed was a young lass that had warned him from traveling a certain path on a hunt, or using certain trees. It had been a highly uncomfortable moment for him, and it had left his skin crawling since thinking about birch trees.

 

[Tyrfingr]

So there were birch trees around them. How had he not noticed before? Could blame all the bears and boars, but was just a case of idle neglect on his part to pay attention. Good knowing they were here though. Now he just needed to get moving onto his idea.

But before he did anything, the reaction of the big bear and the warning given got a raised brow from Tyr. The good neighbor eh? He didn't know what that could possibly mean but if it spooked this previously jolly soul so much then it was best to head his words.

The norseman smiled. "Good thing I'm just after the bark then. Birch got plenty of that to give and rather freely as well."

Then he headed off towards the trees hatchet in hand. He needed the green bark and plenty of it if he wanted to turn it into enough pitch to fix the broken tent poles. Picking up broken branches wouldn't hurt either if they were straight enough to act as replacements for the poles he couldn't patch up.

Hugi Maude Ivar Solveig Odasson Brenna Gylfi Runarsson Ruvsá Valthar

 

[Gylfi Runarsson]

Gylfi looked down at his ward with a solemn expression. A million thoughts swam in his head, but the young man struggled to voice them. ...Solveig is a fool, no? He wryly smiled.

He turned to face Maude as he heard her approach. Gylfi watched the two speak, and nodded when he was addressed.

"And what of me?" He asked the Queen after she had set her attention back on Brenna. Him accompanying the party had been a form of punishment for the brawl he started in Nordengaard, but it hardly felt particularly... punishing. Whatever the Queen's intentions with Gylfi were, she hadn't made them clear to him.

 

[Brenna]

Brenna's lips were pulled halfway into a grin until she caught the scent of the approaching woman. It withered instead of blossomed on her lips and an unusual grimace took its place instead. The expression looked as out of place upon her face as a flower in bloom in Mid-Winter's frost. She slid herself a little closer to her warden though she knew the Queen was not on the list of things Gylfi was expected to protect her from. When she met the Queen's tempered gaze it was with the innocent plea of a pup who had known it had done wrong and didn't want to get kicked.

When she didn't get kicked she let out a relieved sigh.

Relief turned to surprise, excitement, reached feverish joy then came swiftly back down to guilty glee. She nodded in agreement but the Queen could have asked anything of her in return for seeing the Strekkers. The legendary horses were the stories that had inspired her into following in her fathers large footsteps.

I've always wanted to learn to ride. Before the... accident, it's what I wanted to be.

The confession was not one many knew but she shared it shyly with the pair now.

 

[Ruvsá]

Ruvsá was grateful for the speed which her Svalen form granted her, and she sprinted on all fours through the forest and around the lake shore, allowing the scents she caught on the air to guide her. What baffled her were the scents of not one but at least two humans among the group. She knew Queen Maude was attempting to make the Nordenfiir more welcoming to outsiders, but she was surprised that there were already some among her traveling party.

It was one of these humans (Tyrfingr) that she encountered first amongst a copse of beech trees. He carried an axe, and was investigating the trees in search of... something. She waited in the shadows for a moment, grateful that her black fur made her nearly invisible within them, before stepping out quietly into the moonlight.

"Greetings," she spoke in the Common tongue. "Do you travel with Queen Maude? I have vital information for her concerning Indeholm."

 

[Tyrfingr]

The birch trees had plenty of extra bark for Tyr to strip away. It was thick, sappy, and required little effort to obtain. These were good birch trees. The pitch he was going to extract from them should be high quality as well. Perhaps it would help ease the nordenfiir's minds a bit knowing he was using materials for their repairs.

He had managed to nearly have what he needed of the bark when he heard a noise coming from the trees. His grip tightened around the shaft of his hatchet and his stance widened for a fight. Then a black bear came forth. Oh great. He was going to be mauled again. Hopefully this time he didn't end up nearly dying.

After the bear spoke to him, Tyr just looked a bit puzzled. So a nordenfiir instead of a bear. A friendly one at that. Good news. He might not be mauled after all. But this one was looking for a Queen. He couldn't say he knew one of them. Perhaps the leader of the camp? That frightening woman certainly had the kind of weight of presence you would expect from a Queen Maude.

Letting his stance shift to a more passive one, the man said, "Follow me. People in camp probably know where she is."

Tyr waved his hatchet to indicate to follow him and he began to head towards the camp. He sure hoped the leader of the camp was this Queen that the black bear was looking for. He might avoid the kind of tussle he didn't want to have with an angry bear.

Ruvsá Hugi Brenna Gylfi Runarsson Solveig Odasson Ivar Valthar

 

[Ruvsá]

Ruvsá kept her body language gentle. Passive. Of course the man would take a defensive stance. Nordenfiir were not the only thing that stalked these woods and shores.

"Thank you," Ruvsá said as she began to follow behind the man. "Do not be startled when you look back. I'm shifting to my human form."

It was as simple as a breath. One moment, she was Svalen. Next, human. She wore a blue woolen dress of simple cut, but still obviously finely made with intricate embroidery around the neckline, hem, and cuffs. Aggar preferred his jarnas in dresses unless they had an actual reason to be otherwise, and while Ruvsá didn't mind wearing them in general, she would have preferred to be dressed as a Shield Maiden when she met the queen. But it was not meant to be.

Soft sealskin boots were on her feet, a lightweight brown wool cloak was clasped about her neck, and her dark hair fell loose around her shoulders.

She made no effort at conversation as she followed behind the man until they approached the camp, and then she stepped around him to survey the inhabitants there. Her eyes latched onto the woman with a stern face and red hair. She'd not met the queen, but her description was known throughout the tundra.

"Queen Maude," she bowed her head respectfully. "I am Ruvsá. I trained as a Shield Maiden in Hjerim, and have been a jarna of Aggar's since just before the Usurper took the throne. I have information you need to see before you enter Indeholm."

She did not want to say more in front of this many people she didn't know. If they traveled with the queen, surely they must be trustworthy, but she was also about to accuse the jorn of a respectable holding of treason, and she did not want to paint that much of a target on herself.

Tyrfingr Hugi Brenna Gylfi Runarsson Solveig Odasson Ivar Valthar

 

[Tyrfingr]

Thankfully the new bear was friendlier than most gathered here. Birch bark tucked under his left arm while the hatchet was still held in his right hand. His grip suggested less any worry of being attacked and more a general sense of comfort to have a tool in hand.

The norseman glanced back after the mention of transforming back to a human state. A woman was what he was met with. Pretty face. Firm, thick muscles. A northern beauty to be sure. Shame the dress on her was not made to match its wearer. Certainly pains were taken for it to look as beautiful on the outside as possible, but he could still notice the foundational flaws. Stitches weren't as tight as they could be. An uneven line here. A crooked line there. The dress wouldn't handle much casual wear before it would be in need of repair. Real sloppy work that wouldn't cut it back with his clan.

Tyr had been so deep in his analyzing of her dress' workmanship that he had forgotten to make small talk. Wasn't much for them to say but some found the lack of it insulting or rude. He wasn't sure if this woman did or if she was more like his new friend Gylfi Runarsson and found making small talk to be very rude. These nordenfiir were hard to sort out with these kinds of things.

Once they reached the woman in charge, introductions were made by the new comer. Sounded like the matter at hand was none of his business. Since he would rather avoid pissing off the woman he knew would maul him here again, he found the nearest unused campfire and got to work getting things setup to extract the pitch from the birch bark he had gathered.

Maude Ruvsá Hugi Solveig Odasson Brenna Ivar Valthar

 

[Maude]

Maude wasn't familiar with Brenna's family aside from her brother, but she had a sneaking suspicion that Brenna was treated with far more fragility than necessary at home. The admission of her always wanting to learn how to ride might not have gone over well in Faarin, but here with the Queen she would be treated with the respect of the young woman trying to make her own way, as she was.

"That so?" a brow lofted in curiosity at the mute, "Perhaps a few lessons can be arranged. I expect we'll be here for a while." The words were spoken while her hands did their best to sign the same. Even if Brenna could read lips, it behooved Maude to get as much practice in as she could. She'd already given Brenna permission to correct and critique her Sign as needed.

"And what of me?" this, next, from Gylfi. The question garnered a switch of her gaze and a general look-over.

"That remains to be seen. This journey is far from over and your duty as Brenna's guard will end only once she is safely back in the capital." It was imperative to her that he not forget his assignment and prove to her that he took it seriously. The strong line of her jaw suggested very little in the way of room for him to wiggle out of his responsibility. Maude sighed, "But, I understand this is your home. You have family...friends here, yes? So long as Brenna remains at your side I see no reason you cannot enjoy your time, visit those you care for, show Brenna around. But you must stay within the city. I will have need of you. Both of you. Brenna has her own duties she will need to attend to with the Priests."

With that matter settled, Maude offered Brenna a short smile before stepping off to find Solveig. He was off to the side of the camp, mending a tent and keeping to himself - smart man. She saw no reason to interrupt or pull him from the job, and so Maude took a seat on a nearby stump.

"Indeholm is also your home, is it not?"


Setting a pole straight, reinforcing it, lashing it with sinew. He had supplies, and though he felt Maude's approach on the wind and carried scent, he said nothing until she did. Wasn't much more to say. What had started as a daring feat ended in disaster. Much as it often did for him. Volund knew why he had been picked. When the Queen spoke, he spared her a glance to see he sitting and nodded. "Aye. All my early life. Grew up chasing after piglets and feeding Gylfi's socks to them."


Maude raised her brows at the last part, "Indeed?" Well, perhaps that explained a bit about Gylfi. "And why was it you decided to move to the Capital?"


"Old enough and frustrated my father enough. Always under foot and getting into things. He thought learning a trade and aging would settle me down." The conclusion to his father's hopes was seen in the mischievous smile he fixed Maude with and sat down to lash a few more poles, humming quietly but now facing her.


"This was before or after you Took the Path?"


"Not long after. I found that way young, and so my parents believed I would mature quickly. But trouble follows me, it seems. The mischief of Chaos, ever the opposite of Volund and his calm creation." Touching the pendant briefly at his neck, he then nodded, eyes fixed on his work but clearly lost in thought.


Maude narrowed her eyes at the pendant. The name of Volund, one of the Old Gods of her people, was spoken so rarely anymore that the very existence of the Old Ways had become more of a fable than a true history. The Priests of Sittekar knew of them, of course, and she as one of royal blood had the opportunity to seek out knowledge from her family's expanded archive. But the Old Ways were no longer taught - forsaken or forgotten, it depended on who you asked. The Nordenfiir of today knew only one God and his name was Eogorath.

Perhaps there were more pockets of the Old Faith than she knew. Curious as the subject was, now was not the time for it.

"This trouble of yours is bothersome, Solveig. The duty I have placed upon you is one of utmost importance - not just to me, but to our people. After your stunt today with the boar, I question if I can trust you to see your task through. Am I wrong?"


"The task will be done. It carries weight more import than my impulses. Which are fewer than usual, since... Well..." Here he raised his hands, still wrapped in soft leathers as an indicator. Volund was an obscure name, and he hadn't talked much to Maude about his time with the Priests. What they had told him had happened. What he was supposed to be. "I have to learn to grow beyond the impulses. They are of my less ideal self. But the priests who healed me also explained what I did at that Keep. And there isn't a choice... Everything has to change, or what I can do will turn from creation and beauty to chaos and destruction."


Maude's gaze shifted to his hands. The significance of what happened at the Keep wasn't something she wished to overlook, but her life presently held too many significant things and the Old Gods just wasn't one of them. Despite what the Priests had told her, and she suspected it was not all that they told him if only not to upset the ways of current faith (speaking of the Old Gods was as taboo as it was offensive or viewed as simply a joke), the Queen felt it pertinent to set aside.

"I want to believe you," she admitted with some sourness to her words, "but change is a difficult thing. I need you to show me you are capable of fulfilling your duty. By the next full moon we will be at the southern Portal Stone and I want to stand there, bidding you a safe journey, without any doubt in my mind." Maude inhaled deeply, lips pressing into a thin line as she sat up in alert to a newcomer's scent in the campsite, "Can you do this for me? Put my mind at ease?"


"I can. Though, warning on freeing the mother boar... If you do, she's apt to check on her piglets and then come back to the camp. She will listen to me now that she is broken. Take the piglets. You can gift or sell them in the town, but gifting might look more befitting of a Ring-Giver visiting a Jarl under them..." Tapping his temple, he smiled. "Good for more than thinking of ways to torment my childhood neighbor or kiss pretty girls...."


Maude narrowed her eyes at the man, no humor to be found there in the acidic green, "You were told to release the boar and you will do so tonight when you have finished your repairs. The piglets are not to be touched, I will deal with the mother myself if she returns."


"As ordered, so done. Merely a suggestion alone. I would not keep her for myself. And the piglets are left be. No harm meant. Only suggesting help."


A nod was given in reply - about the closest thing one could get to a 'thank you' coming from Maude. She stood, clamped a hand on the man's shoulder with a squeeze that might've easily crushed bones were it not meant in a gesture of camaraderie. "Don't take too long, I cannot promise Hugi will save you any dinner." And off she went to greet the new face in the camp.

A dark haired woman in a dress met her gaze near the main fire, one whom she approached with a calm but tethered sense of suspicion.

"Queen Maude," she bowed her head respectfully. "I am Ruvsá. I trained as a Shield Maiden in Hjerim, and have been a jarna of Aggar's since just before the Usurper took the throne. I have information you need to see before you enter Indeholm."

Maude looked upon her, unsmiling, and offered Ruvsa a welcoming gesture with an outstretched arm, "Well met, Jarna Ruvsa. Come, we will speak at my tent." A sideglance was given to Valthar and Arnor Skuldsson before she turned and lead the way back through the trees to a separate, smaller fire and black tent.

"Have a seat, what information is it I need to see?"

 

[Ivar]

The nordenfiir, he decided, were not all that different from his own people.

Though he had lived most of his life in exile, he had spent enough time in Kjos to see the inner-workings of...pretty much everything. He knew the politics, the arguments, everything that came with it. For Ivar, it seemed that most everyone here was the same as home.

In a strange way it was oddly comforting, as though he had never left.

These were all strangers of course, people he did not know, yet their actions still reminded him of those he had left behind.

A small smile touched his face, fingers slowly playing over one another as he watched the conversations flow and the looks turn inward. It was comforting, strange as it was. Even in his silence by the fire he could feel that within himself.

The northman shifted in his seat, his hands folding upward as he warmed himself.

 

[Ruvsá]

Ruvsá turned back briefly, giving Tyrfingr a nod of thanks for leading her to the camp, then followed Maude. She didn't miss the glances the queen gave two of the others, and knew she would be watched closely until she had proven herself. With the information she was bringing... she couldn't blame them.

"Have a seat, what information is it I need to see?"

Ruvsá unclasped her cloak and folded it carefully into her arms, then sat as ordered, near enough to the campfire so that they would both be able to read over the letters when she brought them out.

"There is a secret pocket sewn into my cloak," Ruvsá said before even thinking of reaching in it. She wouldn't have anyone assume that she was reaching for a weapon. "In it, I have letters and documents that I've collected the last several months from Aggar's correspondences, things that he ordered destroyed but I managed to get to first." Well... some of them she'd plucked from the fire when the guards assumed that no one would care and walked away before they'd turned to ash.

Slowly, then, she opened up the folds of her cloak, and brought out the thick packet of bundled parchment from within, holding it for Maude. "They are sorted from oldest to newest," she said. "Aggar has been plotting with those loyal to the Usurper, and Indeholm's streets are filled with those loyal to him. I have reason to believe that you are walking into an ambush."

Maude

 

[Magrin Kor]

He'd arrived late to the eastern shore of Boar's Head Lake, perhaps he had business elsewhere or had merely lagged behind the group. Magrin didn't explain his absences as most the time it was inconsequential, likely he was just out scouting the perimeter around the camp and hanging far to the rear before coming back in.

When the Nord did arrive, stepping into view his figure had not change. He was still tall but short for a Nord, wide in the shoulder and thick of wrist. His hair remained graying, his jaw set and his eyes deep and penetrating when they set upon someone. He wore a faded tunic beneath a heavy cloak to help insult him from the elements when necessary as well as boots made for travel across the northern terrain. An Axe hung, looped through the leather of his belt over his right hip for ease of access.

In camp there were faces both familiar to him and those less so but Magrin didn't seem to pay them any mind. He approached a fire so that he could outstretch his arms and warm his hands, trading glances with anyone in the vicinity before remarking..."Where's Solveig? He isn't dead yet is he?"...despite the indifference in his tone Magrin had become fond of Solveig Odasson ever since Maude had tasked him with keeping the man safe, it was no easy task some of the time either but Magrin had managed during the first legs of their journey. Anyways, despite the difference in their demeanor's Magrin would begrudgingly admit he considered Solveig a friend now if pressed about the matter.

Another person Magrin was on the lookout for was Brenna, he liked her though this only showed through in the thin smiles that were barely evident on his part when amongst a group.

As for the rest the Nord was content to warm his hands, he didn't much care for horses having traveled on foot the majority of his life though that didn't mean he couldn't see the utility of the animals. Indenholm was famed for their Nordenstrekkers but if Magrin came back this way after the journey was complete it might be to hunt one of the Molvaniir, he imagined that would be enjoyable.

 

[Gylfi Runarsson]

As the Queen left, Gylfi faced his ward before casting an absent gaze over the lake. His expression told little of what he felt regarding what Maude had said.

Looks like you won't be rid of me so soon.

Gylfi thought about Brenna's confession. The people that surrounded him since leaving home all had aspirations of some sort. A dream to follow. Wishes to fulfill. The young Norden quietly snorted and stood up, picking up his sword that rested by his feet.

I'm hungry. Let's go back.

 

[Maude]

The Queen took her seat at the campfire with her back to her tent, at the far side from the others of the main camp and keeping them well in her view. Valthar and Arnor were not too far away, within earshot. While she did not presently fear for her life from this woman, she also was not familiar with her and, frankly, she'd rather not deal with an assassin on her own if she didn't have to. The true mark of a good leader was the willingness of their followers to have their back - Maude believed that wasn't something she had to be concerned about.

Then again, her grandfather had thought the very same thing about Borvenir.

Watching her guest in a strong silence, Maude leveled Ruvsá with a hardened stare the more the woman spoke. That stare broke only when the bundle of letters were presented, landing on them as though the Jarna was handing her the skull of her late King. Disgust filtered through the Queen's expression, chiseling the lines of her already piercing gaze into something molten. She took the letters with a steady hand and carefully unbound them, opening the first to read.

Her silence continued, growing ever more profound as she read letter after letter after letter.

So it was him. Aggar was the ringleader of the Blodvalhar, all this time under her nose. Why, it hadn't been but shortly after the sundering of Borvenir himself that Aggar had sent his men to help take care of the remaining insurrectionists. Now she saw why - he hadn't taken care of them at all. He gave them a place to flee to, shore up defenses in, and regroup. Now he was conducting the Blodvalhar's affairs from afar, safe from royal scrutiny under the guise of innocence and loyalty.

Indeholm is at your beck and call, my Queen, he'd written just a month ago before they'd set off on their voyage south, and eagerly awaits your expedition's arrival at the great hall. There will be a feast and a grand celebration in your honor. We will sacrifice a boar in the name of our late King.

So he was expecting her and her group. He'd been waiting for this moment to take glory for the Usurper. Maude couldn't help the boiling of her blood as she thought of everything Borvenir had done to destroy the progress her grandfather had made. Bridges burned to cinders, entire families slaughtered, nearly a full generation lost to his savage whims. The Nordenfiir could not afford another Usurper, they would never recover from it. Her gloved hand squeezed a fist around the letters, crinkling them at the side in simmering fury.

"Has our arrival to Indeholm lands been announced?"

If he didn't know they were here yet, that bought them some time. She knew now their voyage had come to an abrupt end. They would need to turn around and go home or they all faced certain death.