So yeah, as I stated, for a while, Tristan nor Jacklyn will be mentioned; maybe seen in a cameo I put in there, but it still may not happen. Now as a description for the Raider's side, there will not be 2 Raiders, nor will there be 2 Orochi later. This will be interesting, as I'm so used to talking about the knights, now it's gonna be entirely viking for a while, then samurai. Know that when I bring the samurai into this, they'll speak Japanese from the Viking's POV. And I don't think I'll use any OLD language for the story, as I can't begin to find translations for what I write. Oh well. R&R.
(Apollyon's story)
"It did not take long for my lesson to spread across the whole of Valkenheim. But in the following winter, a lone Raider rose among the clan known as the 'Warborn'. That Raider set out to reunite their people."
…
"Sometimes a viking is born who carried the spark of gods: Raiders, we call them. It is a name that can summon armies. Ruthless, fearless, made for battle. The Dane Axe was the mightiest weapon of our ancestors; they wield it without mercy. The moment of a viking's death is chosen by fate. So what use have they of armor? ...Or of fear?"
…
(Valkenheim)
"Blood. Much had been spilled when Apollyon attacked our lands. The Warborn clan, nearly collapsed; other, rival tribes began attacking the once mighty tribe, until it was forced into hiding. Until the next winter came upon the land...that's when I stepped in."
"A year since Apollyon came. Our people starved. But the worst of us fell upon each other. Like beasts. Growing fat on their own people's misery. Ragnar was one of those. Even as people die from hunger or the cold, he raids and pillages strongholds, taking every scrap of food; leaving none for the people."
A lone viking stronghold sat under the snow falling sky. It bustled life but little sound; the most that could be heard was the feast being held at the great hall atop the hill within the village. Five guards stood watch outside the gate, all wearing little armor; some leather, and metal helmets. Nothing more.
"And so...I came down from the mountains."
A sliver of movement was seen within the thick of the forest, the lead guard gestured for one to investigate.
The soldier grumbled as he slowly walked into the bushes and trees. He instantly felt uneasy; sensing he wasn't alone.
"I joined the Warborn. And then we did something about it."
He heard a sudden movement and spun around, only to be struck down by an axe.
The guards at the gate stood in silence, awaiting their companion. The silence was broken when a disembodied head, the same head and helmet of the guard who went into the woods, was thrown back at them.
They looked up instantly when they heard a commotion from across the bridge. They nearly ran at the sight of a lone Raider along with a Valkyrie, Berserker, and a small army of viking marauders in light blue paint and colors charged directly at them.
This raider was different; he had a metal helmet upon his head that had two horns on both sides and curved forward and pointed upward to the sky, they had brass and gold rings forged into the bone. The helmet only covered the back and sides sides of his head along with his eyes; revealing his braided, and ring tied, brown beard along with his braided line of hair trailing from the back of his helmet.
The guards weren't prepared for the Raider to crush through them as if they weren't even there. He threw the gates open himself, leaving his fellow Warborn to finish the guards as they entered the village.
Viking swordsmen outnumbered the Raider by three as they surrounded him; big mistake. When the first one went to attack him, he blocked his attack instantly, and charged the swordsman. He grabbed him in a tackling stance, and threw the man almost over his shoulder as he didn't stop running.
When he reached a wall, he threw the man down, and kneed him in the face. The soldier, in a daze, slowly stood up, only to have an axe driven into his skull. The raider looked back to see the swordsmen approaching him again. He roared as he pulled a single sweeping motion with his axe.
The blade swung around and beheaded both of the swordsmen. The raider looked to one of their garrison buildings; he saw a brazier next to it as well. He kicked it over, the flames instantly set the door alight, it spread across the building, ceasing the soldiers from charging out to fight.
"Avenge the villagers!" the valkyrie roared, impaling a marauder on her spear.
"No mercy! Not after they showed us none!" the berserker growled as he drove one of his axes into a soldier's throat.
"That gate; burn it!" the valkyrie ordered, the raider complied.
The raider grabbed what looked to be a large pouch of a dark dust of some sort. He used a torch near him to light a string leading into the bag. He threw it at a gate blocking them from proceeding.
In a matter of seconds, the pouch, and the entire gate erupted in fire. It didn't take long for their path to be clear. The raider led them in and over to a stack of barrels; he used the head of his axe to tear the lid off.
"Ha ha! The food!" he roared with a hearty grin. The soldiers around them cheered.
"Told you." the valkyrie said calmly, the berserker kept laughing.
"Come on! It's what we came for! Let's find the rest! For our people!" the raider growled.
"Runa, take Helvar and find the second stash, I'll search for where they horde most of it." they nodded, Runa led Helvar and about half their force with her. The raider charged through the village; throwing his firebombs into garrison buildings, and at archer towers.
He burned down the gate leading to the food, a warlord, valkyrie, and two swordsmen stood in his way. Two more stood at his side; Runa and Helvar.
"Found the food. Thought you could use more help; seems we were right." he chuckled.
The trio charged the other tribesmen. Runa bashed the other valkyrie in the face with her light shield. Helvar took on the swordsmen, blocking and returning attacks with his dual axes.
The raider charged and pushed the warlord to the ground; he brought his foot down on the man's shield, and brought his entire axe down into the warlord's chest and upper gut.
Runa blocked an attack, and then thrust her spear into the other valkyrie's gut; she proceeded to flip it over her shoulder, and thrust it into the other woman's throat.
Helvar beheaded one swordsman, kicked the other one to the ground, and began repeatedly driving both his axes into the soldier. With the soldiers out of the way, the raider broke open the barrels and door to the food horde.
"Ragnar has brought us bounty!" he cheered, earning a war cry from the Warborn around him.
"To the great hall!" he ordered, Runa and Helvar at his side.
"We're with you, Theoden." Runa growled, the rush of battle had returned to the Warborn; the clan hadn't fought this well since Apollyon invaded their lands.
They all stood just outside the great hall; Helvar began pelting the doors with the guards' own axes.
When one finally opened the door to see what was happening,
"Who-?" another axe struck him directly in the face, he fell back dead.
"What's going on out there?!" a husky, raspy voice roared. A large brute of a raider stepped out of the hall, he wore a helmet that held a large skull upon the top; Ragnar.
He looked upon Theoden and growled.
"You…" he growled.
"Face me!" Theoden demanded; the other raider chuckled, throwing the doors wide open.
"Ha! Come on in then!" he stepped inside to ready himself.
Theoden prepared himself, his axe in hand as he, without a hint of fear, entered Ragnar's hall. Runa and Helvar, along with their Warborn rushed in to do battle.
The two raiders charged each other; they struck each other like the impact of a drum. It was mainly a battle of strength; Theoden would get a hit in, Ragnar would return with one just as hard.
The Warborn and guards of the stronghold fought as the two dueled. Ragnar spun his axe in a whirlwind of rage; Theoden ducked under it and grabbed the raider before carrying him directly into a wooden post.
Theoden kneed Ragnar in the face, the other raider only stood up as he shook the spinning feeling from his mind. He used the butt of his axe to strike Theoden across the face.
"You're no raider!" he growled, bringing his axe down to leave a large slice on Theoden's back.
"You Warborn are all the same! You're weak! The worst warriors of out people!" he roared, attempting to behead Theoden, who blocked the attack just in time, using a foot to kick Ragnar in the gut.
"You call us weak?!" Theoden struck him across the face with the butt of his axe.
"Only a true weakling would prey upon his OWN PEOPLE! You steal, pillage, and slaughter the starved people of Valkenheim!" Theoden roared.
He swing his axe upward, leaving a huge gash along Ragnar's chest, he shoved the other raider into a post and moved to behead him.
Ragnar dodged the attack, moving to leave. He pushed a Warborn soldier into Theoden's path, who the raider threw over his shoulder. Ragnar threw one of his own soldiers in the raider's way, which Theoden sent on his back dead with his axe. The other raider threw two more into his path; Theoden shoved them both against a post and out of his way.
He saw Ragnar leaping into a horse.
"Oh, like hell!" Theoden growled as Ragnar sped off. Theoden jumped onto the other horse stabled there and gave chase to Ragnar.
The chase commenced; Ragnar had him in distance, but Theoden slowly caught up to him. The two passed the ongoing skirmish between Ragnar's soldiers and the Warborn. Ragnar's soldiers began pursuing Theoden.
One rode up alongside him, he moved his axe to his right hand and struck the horse, causing them to collapse and roll.
It was a hard ride, filled with him dodging debris from the battle, fighting off Ragar's soldiers chasing him, and Ragnar's own firebombs.
"Why Won't. You. Die!" Ragnar roared, having run out of firebombs, yet Theodin still pursued him.
Theodin held his axe in his left hand when he spotted something; a small throwing axe stuck in a tree stump only a few yards in front of him. He reached out with his free hand and took hold of the axe.
He marked his target, pulled his arm back, and with a growl, threw the axe right at Ragnar. The axe struck the raider's back, causing him to fall from his horse with a groan of pain.
When Theoden finally had him, he got off the horse and sent Ragnar sprawling with the butt of his axe.
"What you've done is wrong!" he got closer to Ragnar.
"You feast, while all around you people starve?" he brought his axe down on Ragnar's own axe, breaking the blade from the shaft of the other raider's weapon before using the butt yet again to send Ragnar to the ground a few feet away. He pointed his axe directly at Ragnar.
"You and your warriors will learn to live like the rest of us, or you will become food for the crows!" Theoden roared, Ragnar spat at him.
"Idiot child! Might as well ask me to pick up on-" Ragnar grabbed the severed blade of his axe and swung it back at Theoden, "farming!" he roared, but Theoden quickly blocked it and sent him back down.
Ragnar coughed up blood. "We're Vikings!" he roared, Theoden lightly paced in front of him.
"So that's a 'no', then?" Theoden asked slowly, Ragnar opened his arms wide and grinned evilly.
"VALHALLA…!" he growled, cut short when Theoden swung his axe directly into his throat; Ragnar fell to the ground dead. Theoden had known Ragnar in the past...the two were once close allies, but turned mortal enemies later.
Runa and Helvar, along with Ragnar's remaining 'army' stood watching it happen. He looked to the soldier in front, who appeared to be leading them.
Theoden took a breather as he rested his axe in his left hand and approached the soldier.
"So you're in charge now?" he asked, the soldier looked back at his troops and Ragnar's bleeding corpse, nodding.
"Join us..." Theoden said in a deathly serious manner.
The soldier sighed, "We are with you." he sheathed his sword; the soldiers all began to do the same. Helvar and Runa both began laughing. With Ragnar's entire force under the Warborn colors, that was just more soldiers for them.
"They weren't much to look at...but, it was a start."
…
(Hours later)
The Warborn had taken refuge for the cold night in Ragnar's stronghold after clearing it of corpses and putting fires out.
Luckily, no villagers lived in this place, so no innocent lives were taken during the attack.
Theoden sat alone at a table within the hall, the others were either celebrating their victory or asleep. It was quiet within the great hall, he had taken most of his gear off; leather shoulder guards, wrist covers and gloves laid a few feet away with his chest straps alongside the freshly cleaned axe. His helmet sat in front of him on the table; all he had on was his pants, boots, and a poorly crafted shirt that was held together by poor stitching.
He had grim, yet narrow features, mostly hidden by his long beard. His hair was all tied into braids at the back of his head; he also had dark brown eyes, usually hidden by his helmet.
He sensed someone's presence with him; he turned to see the familiar face of Runa.
"I remember a time when you would celebrate victory." she said suddenly, he chuckled.
"Well, when you lead a successful attack for the first time, it tires you out; can't handle Helvar's drinking contests for once. I'd be out after three rounds." he chuckled again, this time earning a quick laugh from her. She had a light, yet raspy voice.
Her long, blonde hair draped over her shoulders; it wasn't tied into braids at the moment, leaving curled waves of dark blonde hair. She had a soft face, accommodated with her bright blue eyes. She had a light linen shirt on along with her heavy cloth patched pants that led down to her boots. She had her armor off along with her shield and spear.
Her body was deceiving, under her gear and equipment, she could almost be mistaken for a man if not for her obvious chest and smaller build. But when out of her equipment, there was nothing constricting her; she had long, muscular legs, a flat stomach that got slimmer as it went further down to her waist. Her arms were the only visible signs of who she really was; they weren't even flexed, yet he could see the muscles that had taken her years to work for.
He stood up and finally looked upon her, the two were very close now.
"You know, I'm glad you came with us. I don't think we could have won today without you." she smirked, he also smirked.
"You didn't do too bad today. Gotta give you some credit." he laughed, she chuckled along with him.
He sighed and looked into her eyes.
"You know that...our next opponent...is Siv...right?" he asked her, she nodded. It wouldn't be an easy fight for the Warborn.
"Don't worry about it though..." he reached down and pulled her to look at him.
"Siv won't be a problem...you just need to promise me something." he spoke softly.
"What's that?" she asked gently.
"That you don't drink too much tonight. AND that you stick close to me or Helvar." they both laughed, even though he was serious about the last part.
"I remember when you and Ragnar used to...be friends...you two were always caught drunk in the mead halls." she laughed, he chuckled as well.
"Yeah. Me, him, even Helvar...but that all changed when-"
"I arrived to the clan?" she asked, he shook his head.
"Partially. When he tried to court you, despite that I was already doing so at the time. After that, he wanted nothing to do with us..." he sighed; she felt responsible now.
"Why did you choose me? Over your best friend?" she asked seriously.
He sighed heavily.
"If he had truly been my best friend..." he leaned down and caressed her cheek gently, "he wouldn't have chosen a life of hatred and greed over his refusal to deny his own jealousy..." he smiled gently, as did she.
She reached up, placing her hand on his strong cheek, looking into his eyes.
"You know...you really do look much more handsome without your helmet." she whispered.
They both leaned in, just til their lips pressed firmly against each others. They felt their passion begin to leave and it was replaced with want, need: lust.
They began to kiss each other roughly. He suddenly picked her up, which she accepted by wrapping her strong legs around his waist. He shoved her onto the table as they continued to kiss. She reached up and tried to lift his shirt off, but when it didn't budge, she accidentally tore it into two.
She winced apologetically, he shrugged.
"Don't worry...I didn't like that shirt anyway..." he said calmly before her lips collided with his again.
It seemed everyone WAS celebrating that night.
Standing above the stronghold...was a lone figure. It appeared to be a knight sitting upon a horse. The rider looked upon the village for a few more moments before pulling back and galloping off into the shade of night.
So? How did I do with my first chapter of the viking story? I hope I did well because I personally loved the entire viking storyline; did I go too fast with the raider and Runa? I wanted there to be some romantic connection since I JUST flared Jacklyn and Tristan before they both go MIA. So I'll hopefully have chapter 8 up soon, but I doubt tomorrow is when it'll happen. R&R. Thanks!
