Important note! I will change the character settings depending on who's got the main role in the newest chapter. I will continue this at the very least until the story has stabilized... whenever that happens.

Oh, and this chapter is unbetaed. The rest are betaed by the ever-wonderful, ever-amazing, beautiful, but Swedish, Yura-chan :D

Europe was... not a good place to stay in. Not for the pathetic humans, crawling, walking, running, striding, and not for the nations doing a fair impression of the same. Maybe it was actually worse for the nations. Some nations? All nations? Regardless, Europe was not nice. The Dark Ages were called dark for a reason; the land was scoured. Invasion upon invasion, sickness, hunger, plague. The weak perished in a blaze of fire and death, the stupid in incredibly less glorified ways, pawning off lands until they had nothing left. Disappearing with barely a footnote in the pages of history, swallowed by other countries, overtaken, sometimes broken in as territories in the most brutal way possible, just to make sure there would be no rebellion later. It continued long after the dark age ended, well into modern times. Well into the age of enlightenment.

Alliances forged and broken in a matter of years or centuries. For the extent of one war or until one royal line died out or until one king died. Or simply until other, more powerful allies offered themselves.

Ages came and went, countries shrank and grew once more, disappeared forever, tore themselves away from older countries. And always, unrest, war, sickness, hunger, usually in that order, but not always and the eternal, infernal fear that next, you were the one presented on the proverbial chopping block.

In the beginning, it had been mostly internal strife as the Roman Empire retreated, shrinking slowly, then not so slowly. First the Byzantine Empire emerged, then France, Spain, the rest of Europe barely more than a mass of tribes, with no unity, no chance to stand against an actual, unified, army, when suddenly, tribes that could emerged from the north. The Vikings pillaged, burned and raped, conquered and then left towns razed to the ground or near enough so. And they had no respect for anything except death.

When a tall blond with wild hair blowing haphazardly in the win emerged in front of a raven banner, people soon learned to flee. The Vikings, finding their adversaries gone, thought up games, killing each other when they found their prey gone or too weak to satiate their blood lust.

The Vikings soon retreated, after only 300 years of spreading terror, trade and craftsmanship all over Europe, though England did not escape conquest again, only just tasting freedom before conquered by Normans, though he escaped the influence of the Habsburg Empire, even after the Swiss-Austrian Habsburgs married themselves to Spain's crown. That lasted at least 500 years. 700 if you counted the Habsburg-Lorraine (and one usually did), the Austrian Empire and lastly Austria-Hungary.

Spain, not a part of Habsburg until his king made it so in 1515, went from lover to conqueror and back more times than he could count. Conquered Southern Italy, fought France and England and Portugal and Denmark and Austria and Ottoman, laughing madly. Lost almost his entire territory and reconquered it

The Holy Roman Empire rose and fell, suffering through the Viking ages yet surviving until enlightenment became predominant in Europe, strife and zeal following him everywhere. Crusades North and South scouring the surface of the Earth for Pagans; non-believers, superstitious, unholy, and fair prey.

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania, expanding and expanding and expanding, swallowing both the fledgling Belarus and Ukraine, stealing territories by the Mongol plagued Rus until the 15th century, heedless of the pain he caused, until his territory stretched from the Baltic Sea in the North, to the Black in the south.

The 100-year-war, where England, finally free, finally strong, and France, forever longing for that moment once again when the little, barbaric nation would lie under him helpless and vulnerable, both sought final dominance. The conflict sowed both countries with so much hatred, it was impossible to determine right from wrong. England raped and plundered as he saw fit, eager to prove his worth, eager to avenge himself, desperate to never again fall under the rule of someone else, to be defenceless, helpless and hurt.

The 30-years-wars, where Sweden killed so many civilians on his way, even starvation and epidemics put together could not equal the numbers where he had put foot. Until Spain and Austria saw no other choice but to throw Denmark, already conquered at that point and chained and collared neatly, against his neighbour.

Only one among many wars between Sweden and Denmark, more numerous than any other countries, not least because especially the Germanic States to the south did not want either blood hungering kingdom to turn their interest south and Holland, the trader and schemer, did not want the toll through Denmark's straits risen, impeding his trade with Russia and other states bordering the Baltic Sea.

Russia's rise in the East after the 14th century. A growing power that quickly gained much more land than anyone could have anticipated. A child, who had been torn by holy war and conquest, from both east and west. He did not waste his time cementing his power. He did not waste his time, showing that he would no longer tolerate abuse and soon, Lithuania had to enter into a commonwealth with Poland, just to not be swallowed up.,

And finally, the Ottoman Empire, always seeming to be smiling through that damnable mask, even if his eyes were always too shadowed to truly tell, always eager for more land to call his, more territory to lie under his rule, under his thumb, to manipulate, punish or reward as he saw fit.

He never told any of the other Europeans why he bore that mask. Never told them the joke; it was his, private and all the funnier for it. Because everyone in Europe wore a mask. In Europe, you did not survive without it.

The wars didn't stop until 1945.

Well, so far.

NOTES!

The Raven Banner was the first incarnation of Dannebrog (and what the current Dannebrog was named after) and was two black ravens on a red field. Denmark conquering England and Danelaw... well. Several times, kind of. But definite conquest from 1016-1035. (My head!canon says that Denmark taught England to fight during his rule here XD 'Cause he saw how helpless the little guy was against his brothers and felt pity even if England is Denmark's senior (officially, kind of) by a few decades.)

Norman Conquest of England: 1066. (Too bad it wasn't good enough to keep descendants of Norway out.) It ended the Viking era for good.

Habsburg Empire 1200-something until, counting all the later kind-ofs, 1908. I think.

I actually don't know which countries Spain has fought. I know he's fought England and France and Denmark (30-year-war and won, the bastard). I assume Portugal, since they're neighbours and, well, neighbours fight. He probably did also fight Prussia at some point, considering they were both major military powers and those generally do not like each other. He definitely fought Ottoman XD Uh, dunno when it was Spain was almost entirely consumed. I think there's some amazing story of how he regained his archipelago.

HRE: 962 to 1806. The southern crusades mainly went to Jerusalem. The Northern consisted of mainly Danish, Swedish and Teutonic knights and the Livonian Brothers of the Sword, killing, well, pagans in their own territories but mostly the Baltics. Sometimes the Swedish and German campaign against the Russian Orthodox Church is included. And just because I find this hilarious, Prussians were at the time a pagan ethnic group, residing in the Baltic region, what is now, I believe, Poland's coastline. They were conquered by the Teutonic Knights (duh)

Grand Duchy of Lithuania: 12th/13th century to 1569 (where it became part of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth). ...It was really huge in the 15th century. I mean, seriously, wow. Went from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea.

100 year's war: 1337-1453. Notable figures: John of Bohemia, Henry V, The Black Prince (Prince Edward of Wales), Jean d'Arc.

I laugh in the general direction of -anyone- who thought Sweden was just a big teddy bear.

Russia freed from tartar rule, uh, well, not 1380, but as I understood it, that was a turning point. Was not entirely freed though until 15th century by Ivan III also known as Ivan the Great.

Reviews are welcome :) Please remember that this is unbetaed and, yeah.. please keep it in mind XD

Writing this was extremely educational, actually. I planned on writing it without looking up any facts, but apparently, I cannot help myself XD There are a few discrepancies, though. Still, mostly correct according to wiki.