That moon-like brightness might none behold,
Nor brook undaunted great Eric's brow:
As fiery serpent his flashing eyes shot starry radiance stern and keen.
- Egil's Saga, extract from Egil's poem about Lord Arinbjorn
"You're safe now, little ljosalfr, safe from the mermen. I am surprised they did not drag you into the river, then have you for dinner!" The barbarian poked Luna's ribs, she leaned away. "But I suppose you are too skinny for them."
Luna made no reaction, just kept a sad face, nose runny, big eyes shiny.
The barbarian tossed a towel to Luna. He opened a sack and handed Luna some rye bread and a skin of water, though Luna made no reaction. He put the bread and water down, nodded, and left. She sniffled, cleaning herself and her trousers, but did not eat. It reminded her of when Elmo gave her bread.
Outside, Guomundur asked, "How's the kid, Aakesson?"
"Sad and shaky, I don't blame her. I left her alone with some bread and water."
The driver sat up and held his bleeding head.
"Master Eric?" Aakesson asked.
"I am fine!" the driver barked. "Let's bury Ragnar and Olaf, they deserve that much."
They were buried near the river in all their equipment and possessions, shields atop them, alongside the two dead Zora and their flint-headed spears. The drowned man's body was not found.
The other Zoras did not return, but the Norsemen kept an eye out for them.
Aakesson looked around. "Alright, who is left? One of us drowned, I don't see a floating body in the river..."
"Sleipnir is missing, must have drowned," Guomundur said.
"He never even had a chance to kill, but I am sure he fought until he could breathe no more."
Luna remained in the wagon, drying herself of her little accident.
Eventually, she nibbled her bread. Amid her passive despair, something caught her eye. A blue aura pulsated within a leather bag. Luna investigated, calmed from curiosity. Inside the bag, she found a large blue orb and some Blue Rupees. Her big, shiny eyes reflected the emanating blueness. As she stared, a teardrop rolled down, the last one to fall, landing on the orb. The orb gently wobbled.
"Snooping around, kiddo?" Aakesson asked.
Luna stood, staring back blankly.
"Well, Eric wants to go to the castle town, do some trading and trust-building. I don't know if you understand me, but do you live around here? Are are you a runaway?"
Luna didn't know what to say.
"We can't take you with us back to our homeland, the trek is too dangerous for a child. Maybe we can find you a home?"
Luna grabbed her half-eaten bread and sat on the crate. The Norseman chuckled and went away.
The wounded were bandaged up, the five with serious wounds helped into the wagon. Haavelmo sat at the ledge of the wagon, letting his punctured shinbone dangle.
Luna disliked the Norsemen's pelts. There was something quite haunting about the lifeless skins and empty faces of animals, how their heads were just unnatural flaps... She contemplated the violence, how both sides shed blood...
Luna stared at the wall like the most bored Redead in existence. She dozed off, nearly losing balance, a few men chuckling. Their laughter reminded Luna of when Vera hit her really hard long ago, and the reactions of the Kokiri, that one boy who chuckled, Vera's hatred, all that staring... Luna shuddered from such memories. She sat on the floor, back to the crate, hugging her knees and kept quiet.
Soon, all horses were harnessed and Eric's head bandaged. The wagon rode on, the uninjured barbarians walking behind. The barbarians exchanged stories and mild jokes about the lives of Sleipnir, Ragnar and Olaf.
"...Remember when Olaf went fishing with Sleipnir, and a hawk flew into his face and stole his fish?" They chuckled.
"Maybe I should not say this, but Ragnar once went home and caught his wife cheating on him, but then his wife became furious and beat him up!" Laughter.
"Grotta was quite the powerful woman! When she was young, she could carry a boy on her shoulders!" The barbarians laughed, sharing their memories of the dead men.
"Sleipnir, Olaf and Ragnar died bravely, they will feast at Valhalla very soon!"
The wagon rode over a hole and bounced. Luna gasped; wounded men aboard nearly lost balance, the walking barbarians chuckling.
Luna almost chuckled, too. The idea of being around dangerous grown-ups, who meant her no harm, was something Luna struggled to comprehend. These foreigners were bad, and bad people did bad things, yet they helped her.
Luna stared at the wagoner's hauberk, impervious from so many spears just a while ago. The mesh of interconnected rings was quite strange for her, who had never seen such a thing.
Sunset streaked the sky with orange.
Meadows became wheat fields, livestock replaced beasts—farmland. Grass rustled, reminding Luna of Kokiri Forest...home.
Luna did not see many farmers, most ending their day's work. She was surprised to find that they used tools similar to her kin, but much larger. Horses and oxen pulled plows, and animals like cows, donkeys and goats grazed.
The wagoner rubbed his face, then noticed Luna stand beside him, blankly staring at scenery. Her eyes widened as an incredible sight came: Hyrule Castle. The towering structures of stone were so much taller than the town below. Now that she closer, Luna beheld a majesty contrasting her home.
Eric chuckled, Luna left to her amazement.
The wagon abruptly stopped; Luna gasped, lost balance, and landed face-down beside a horse, who turned his head and nickered.
Eric didn't notice Luna's fall. He dismounted the wagon and released the horses, allowing them to walk around, eat grass, and meet with some ranch horses.
The other Norsemen looked relieved to have a break. A few peasant women greeted them, feeding apples to their horses. Harnack and some barbarians flirted with the kind ladies.
Some children curiously ran to the wagon. Luna lifted her face off the ground, grass in her mouth, which she spat out. She sat up, shaking her hair to get the grass and dirt off, overly long sleeves flopping. She moved her hair out of her face, noticing the kids.
They reminded Luna of the Kokiri—didn't like that. The children were two boys, two girls, and a little boy. The boys wore trousers, buttoned-up shirts with the sleeves rolled back, and straw hats. The girls wore dresses as was the usual custom.
"Hi!" squeaked a young boy.
A squirrel ran around his body and sat on his shoulder. "Oh, hello Knut!" He pet his little friend, the squirrel checking pockets for food.
"Squirrel! Gimme!" the toddler squealed. He tried to grab the squirrel but the boy pushed him away. The two got into a scuffle.
Luna stood, brushing herself off.
"Ohh! Stop fighting you two," a girl barked.
"Hey!" the other girl yelled—loud enough that the fighting boys paused—then pleasantly faced Luna. "You're like from the stories... Green clothes, all mysterious... You're a fairy child!"
Luna held her breath, temples throbbing.
"Why is your hair so white?"
"Why is your skin so pale?"
"Why do you have pink eyes?"
"Why do you look so tired?"
"Why are you here?"
"Why are you with those foreigners?"
Luna sighed as the children bombarded more questions at her. She turned her head to find a distraction...
Over yonder, Eric went around speaking to farmers, asking them if they knew of a runaway...daughter...a strange word for Luna. The homesteaders were rather nervous speaking to the bruised Norsemen. Although word got around, nobody knew anything about a lost child or runaway.
Meanwhile, the kids patiently awaited Luna's answer. "So...are you from the forest or...what?" The squirrel popped his head out his rider's pocket, cheeks full.
"Yeah! Are you?"
"Well?"
Luna groaned. "Yes."
"Oh! So you-you are, uh, you are a fairy child!" the previous girl stammered. "That's so cool!"
Luna's eye twitched. "Do I look like I have a fairy?"
That surprised the girl. "Well, you're not from around here, so who are you?" She pleasantly clasped her hands. "Well?"
"None of your business," Luna retorted.
The curious girl's hands dropped to her sides.
The squirrel jumped off the boy and landed on Luna who was motionless. He went around but found nothing so returned to the boy.
"You don't like talking much, hunh?" the toddler asked with his high-pitched voice.
Luna did not reply.
"Hmph! If you act like that, you'll never have friends!" the other girl cautioned, one hand on her hip—as if she was already a mother.
"I don't talk to kids." Luna walked away.
A boy shrugged. "I guess she's just grumpy."
The girl crossed her arms. "Still, she had no right to act that way!"
Luna walked to the Norsemen; anything to avoid kids.
"Oh, hello little lady," Aakesson greeted.
Luna opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. She looked back. The five children returned to farmwork. Luna sighed with relief but then the kids looked back at her.
"Do you want to play with the little ones?" Aakesson asked Luna, irritating her.
"No, I'm not playing with some stupid kids."
"Well, aren't you a little wolf?" Guomundur complimented.
Luna wasn't able to retain a smile. She pushed her fingers through her hair.
"You have no time for childhood, hm? You look like a little girl who wants to be a little warrior. When we fought the mermen, you did not flee, even though you were afraid. You kept your ground, just like a little warrior!" Aakesson said.
Luna liked that.
Eric returned. "The ljosalfar here don't know anything about lost little ones. We will have to keep asking."
"We will have to look for adults who wear the same clothes as she does. The girls and women here wear dresses, this little one does not. She is tired and thin, she must come from far away...maybe from that town with the house with spinning wings."
Eric fetched the horses. The wounded remained inside the wagon, but Luna did not go back in. Eric took his seat on the wagon.
"Need help going back in the wagon?" Aakesson asked Luna.
"No, I'll walk," Luna replied.
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"Are you really sure?"
"Yes."
"But are you really, really sure?"
"Yes!"
"Can you really walk?"
"Yes!"
"Really?"
"Yes!"
"Really?"
"Yes!"
The Norsemen chuckled.
"Ha ha! Very well, you can walk with us, just like a big girl."
Luna didn't even want to look at Aakesson.
The wagon rolled on, everyone followed.
Luna regretted for being such a crybaby in the wagon, wondering why she even acted like that. She did not want to be viewed as weak, feeling better to walk with warriors.
One day, I'll be like them...
The wagon, Luna and the barbarians went along, not much happening. The men chatted about this and that.
Luna observed. Dogs barked amid playful children. Chickens clucked, their chicks cheeping, maidens feeding them. A polyphony of mooing cows, braying goats, and baaing sheep echoed all over. The ending of the day's scything, raking, haying, and a distant blacksmith's hammering, reminded Luna of home.
Nervousness yet also strength swirled in Luna. Not even a single day passed since she saw the violence and death, yet she felt older, stronger, bolder.
A white kitten with pink eyes crossed paths with Luna and hissed. She gave the furry thing a weird look.
"White-haired and pink-eyed, like you," Guomundur commented, the cat scurrying away.
Sunset.
Whenever the wagon reached a homestead, Eric halted and inquired about Luna but was always empty-handed. No one knew anything about the albino.
A kind, elderly couple spoke with Eric. They offered to adopt Luna with them. Eric went to Luna who observed flowers and grasshoppers.
"Hey, ghost girl. An old couple says they can take you in their home, raise you as their kid."
Luna made no reaction. Eric leaned over. She noticed his shadow and gasped, then glared.
"Oh? I am sorry, little one, didn't know you didn't notice me. Ahem... There is an old couple who say they can bring you into their home."
Luna's face dulled. Over yonder, a group of young girls happily and greedily picked pears from a tree on the old couple's property, placed them into baskets. Eric nodded at the girls' direction though Luna remained blank.
"Are you confused?" Eric gestured to the old couple. "They want to take you into their home, raise you as one of their children. They offered to adopt you. You as their daughter, one family."
Luna frowned, clueless.
"You know, live with them?"
Silence, confusion...
Several more uneasy seconds passed. The girls gathered pears, sometimes jumping to grab onto lower branches to shake fruit down.
"Sounds like she doesn't want to go," Morirex remarked as he ate an apple. He waved a wasp off.
Luna watched the insect go. You better not be from the same wasps as last time...
"Very well! I take it that means you do not want to be with them. I will tell them." Eric did just that.
"So, she doesn't want to be with us, then? That's too bad. Our own daughter died long ago, a few days after she was born. We never had the chance to raise a child, we wanted to name our daughter Luna," the old woman said, a failed mother. Her husband put an arm around her.
The old man nodded. "We must respect the child's decision. But beware, outlander, the castle town is a dangerous place. There are riots and strange things going on lately."
"And monsters!" warned the old lady.
"Oh, I'm unconcerned. I have lost three men so far. My friend, Gísli Súrsson, fled to this land after killing a brother-in-law to avenge another brother-in-law, and ten of his companions were slain by scaly folk in the mountains east of here. He told me much of this land. Farewell, elders."
A while later, some farmers offered adopting Luna. Luna was blank and confused, irritating Eric, who could not get her to talk. He stopped trying.
"Looks like the little one's with us for a while longer," Guomundur remarked.
Aakesson chuckled. "She wants to be a ghost!"
Twilight.
Flanked by the turrets of Hyrule Castle and the steeple of the Temple of Time, the castle town awaited the Norsemen. Some buildings were damaged. Broken windows and burnt sections here and there, though the streets had activity nonetheless. The citizenry wore nicer clothes than the farmers, though citizens appeared uneasy.
The road led through the middle of the town and reached the river which was also the moat. Behind the river was the gatehouse, drawbridge down, then the walls and towers. The gatehouse led to the inner city. Hyrule Castle stood upon a hilltop, and did not have to cast a shadow to serve as a constant reminder of where power and authority resided.
The Norse party neared the drawbridge, soon confronted by a dozen town guards, six at each side of the road, all of them clean-shaven and more muscular than the citizenry. Their lean faces contrasted the commoners'.
Each guard wore a mail shirt integrated with a coif, greaves over leather boots, mail swatches to cover the top of the feet, vambraces, demi-gauntlets, and a burgonet without visor or bevor stalked with a short plume.
The cuirass consisted of a horizontal plate strapped around the back, with a narrow plackart below, pierced with holes along the edge so that the mail links connected into them. All parts of armor were partly gilded and engraved with the nation's symbols.
They also had an arming sword and dagger sheathed in their sword-belt, an addition in weapons since Hyrule was invaded over twenty years ago. They held spears that seemed to have spearheads tanged into the shaft. A few soldiers wielded halberds instead. One guard had a greatsword slung over his shoulders, in his hands a notebook.
With the twelve guards was a captain, also clean-shaven, a large, muscular man who had similar equipment as the other guards. However, the captain's breastplate was larger and gilded. He wore a gilded helmet that looked like a one-piece Spangenhelm that was brimless and had a short plume. He also wore gilded greaves and long gloves reinforced with metal scales.
Beneath his armour, the captain wore a grey, short-sleeved gambeson. He did not wear any mail, but wore black shorts with gold lining. His boots were white but had black fronts and tops.
At the captain's sword-belt was an ornate longsword. A cinquedea was sheathed at his other side, a larger one sheathed horizontally at the back of his belt.
The captain approached the driver. The guard captain stroked one of the horses' neck. Beshadowed faces stern, the two groups of six guards attentively stood watch.
"Good evening!" the guard captain greeted as his comrades nodded or waved.
"Heill skaltu," Erik replied.
"Normally, we are more welcoming to foreigners, but life has gotten hectic lately. We would like to know your business, your names, and inspect your cargo, for security," the captain said.
The guard with the notebook jotted notes.
"I am Eric. With me are my surviving men: Guthram, Elfgar, Aelric, Harnack, Saelthorsson, Orgetorix, Guomundur, Riepsaame, Morirex, Reingardis, Kjeldsen, Aakesson, Hanhavaldi, Ljungovist, Risvaag, Cynfawr, Palomaki, Harold, and Adalgard. Three others, Ragnar, Olaf and Sleipnir, were killed by mermen earlier today, hence why we look bloodied and tired. Also, with us is a lost, quiet girl, who survived the merman attack. We are hoping to find her a home."
Amid pauses, the guard wrote down the names in his notebook.
The other barbarians watched the guards warily, the foreigners so much taller than the Hylians. The guards gripped their spears or halberds, while each barbarian kept his right hand on his hilt.
None of the Norsemen stepped aside to allow the notetaker room as he walked around.
"Be sure to check their cargo, Valioh," the guard captain called.
"I know." Valioh approached the back of the wagon though the Norsemen did not grant much space. What's their problem? He looked inside their wagon, those inside looked back.
Luna stayed still, stern and quiet, a tiny mimicry of the barbarians.
"Are you a fairy child?" Valioh asked Luna.
"Do I look like I have a fairy?"
The barbarians chuckled at her dull tone of voice. One of them stepped behind the guard as he made notes and checked barely any luggage.
"Ah, Gerudo shamshirs. I heard those blades can divide a man into two parts!" He finished notes and took his leave as if nothing happened.
"Did you check inside their wagon?" the guard captain asked aloud.
"Yup. They're good to go."
Eric gave the captain a little salute and the guards stepped aside.
The wagon drove on, the barbarians and Luna walked behind.
"Oh? They did have a kid with them," a guard commented.
"I didn't even see her."
"Neither did I, hunh!"
"It's like she appeared from thin air."
Luna moved a hand through her hair as the guards murmured about her.
"Yeah, I guess I'll write down ghost girl here, too," the notetaking guard joked.
Luna was curious about this town, it was so different than the forest. The buildings, the people, the cobblestone roads, the alleys, the windows, the chimneys, the bricks; all of this was so alien. Small groups of guards patrolled the streets, mothers called their children home as the sun faded, and whenever another wagon rode by, Eric waved.
I don't see how things are hectic here... Luna pondered.
Eventually, the Norsemen reached a coaching inn. Eric drove his wagon into the stables and was greeted by the innkeeper. Eric gave the innkeeper several Purple Rupees. A few stable boys appeared to tend the horses.
"How do you deal with our swords?" Eric asked.
The innkeeper was confused. "What? Oh, anyone who has a weapon can wear it if they wish."
"Hah hah! You ljosalfar are like us!" Eric turned to his men. "Remember boys, no prostitutes!" Some men groaned. "Don't betray your wives!"
"Some of us may never see them again anyways," Aakesson remarked.
Eric shook his head. "Death before dishonor."
"Well, I need ale to get rid of my headaches, so I'm still drinking!" Harnack said.
"Not too much drinking or gambling, either!"
"It's not that Egil is with us anymore!" one of the Norsemen chuckled as most scurried to drink.
"Don't even mention Hákon Góði!" Eric barked as he went to speak to the innkeeper again.
Luna hopped into the wagon, rummaging until she found the bag with the glowing blue sphere inside. She took it. What's this glowing blue thing?
Guomundur was not interested in chasing skirts or gambling, but he noticed something odd, stopping at the doors of the inn. Was someone missing?
Without a word, Luna walked away, by herself, down the street. She curiously looked ahead at a twilit Hyrule Castle. What a gigantic building…
Luna gasped and spun around.
"Oh! Sorry, didn't see you. Where are you off to?" Guomundur asked.
Luna just stared silently. The barbarian noticed the bag in her hands. The two just stood before each other, twilight overhead.
"Eric bought a room for you, too. He wants to find you a home in the morning. Or, maybe you already live here? Where do you live?"
"The forest."
"Who are your parents?"
Luna paused.
"You know, mother and father... The grown-ups who raised you."
That made less sense to Luna.
"I lived in the forest. There are no grown-ups where I come from."
Guomundur tilted his head in some confusion. "No grown-ups?" Parents and their daughters walked passed, their girls looking at Luna happily, but the Kokiri did not react. "Like them, parents. Do you have parents?"
"No."
"Oh? How old are you?"
"We never grow up," Luna replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Hm, so you grew up in the forest as an orphan, yet you speak as if taught by adults...and you never grow up?" Guomundur pondered. "What is your name?"
Luna frowned. "I'm Luna. I'm leaving."
Guomundur nodded. "You are just a girl, but you have chosen your own destiny as a woman. I will tell Eric. Farewell, Luna. May Odin, Freyja, Thor, and Tyr guide your path." They parted ways as the sun set.
