《Righteous Viking》


 Chapter 1 - The Wager

    "Valkyrie...STOP!" The words that were spoken did not so much enter the Valkyrie''s ears, as permeate her body and mind without a sound- the voice of the All Father, El Elyon- The Most High... was not simply ignored - El Elyon could create or eliminate worlds with a thought. Now, she was stuck, halfway through finishing her "Chuck Norris" round house.


    "But Grandfather, he''s laughing at me" she snarled through clenched frozen teeth.


    "Uhh...yeah, of course he is- you made a wager with the god of war child." God''s deep baritone chuckle echoed through the Egyptian motif arena, "Aries is not one to trifle with; he humored you with your little sparring match. You made a wager - you lost. Your mouth was ''writing checks that your butt couldn''t cash'' child. Who in their right mind would bet, especially the father of combat, that they could land a punch on him?"


    "Father", Aries chimed "you should let her go now, I think she is relaxed enough." Aries had backed up a step, standing there in is his cool Kung-Fu pants with his arms crossed over his chiseled chest, still chuckling under his breath.


    "Fine, child. Valkyrie, what is the wager that you must pay?" El Elyon asked.


    The Valkyrie looked her grandfather in the eye, a bit embarrassed, but determined as well, "I have to do something that completely repulses me. I have to teach a human creature how to fight properly, Grandfather." The look on the Valkyrie''s face was priceless- like getting a big whiff of bad cheese - and that got a chuckle from the Allfather and Aries both.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    "So", El Elyon pondered, "I know that you will do as you have agreed, you are a most honorable warrior even though you''re an impetuous child, what exactly will you be teaching to said human?"


    "Angel combat, or at least what they can handle, Grandfather, Aries to think that I will be able to find at least one human that will be able to learn."


    God ¨C Allfather - grinned. "You will be surprised granddaughter, they are much stronger and more resilient than you can imagine, I did create them after all, you will get to know them ¨C probably better than you think. You know I always have a plan, this is your destiny, as well as at least one other humans as well. I have seen this coming for...umm, eternity as it is", God''s eyes gleaming over the top of his smirk, "and now with you losing your wager, the world gets a protector. You are probably thinking ''you already sent Jesus, what now?'', but he was the savior of souls. With your teaching, there will become a protector and deliverer of righteousness, against the purveyors of evil, that have persisted on earth since the fall of the Morning Star. You will help to create the greatest "human...ish" warrior in their history, and he will deliver what no other human can - justice." The All Father walked to the Valkyrie and gave her a hug, then turned to exit the giant arena. As he passed Aries, they hit a heavenly high-five that shook the pillars of heaven and God left with his plan in motion, "Come Michael, I have some archangel things for you to do."

 Chapter 2 - Introductions

    The Valkyrie, Is?lde as she decided to call herself now, made her way to the village of her would-be student.  Early June was a perfect time to start this assignment, not too cold, and never too hot in the north. She was not exactly sure who she was supposed to mentor, she just knew that he was a Viking shipwright; and if you''re looking for a shipwright, you may as well start in the most prestigious ship building village of Norway - Elg Hjem, "Home of the Elk", was originally settled generations ago because of its coastal proximity and access to the forest and game which housed and fed the villagers. Now, the village is extremely prosperous from building canoes and longboats of all types for the most influential Kings and Jarl''s in the north of mainland Europe.  It is close to what will one day become T?nsberg, Norway.


    Using her uncanny angel abilities to get the lay of the land, or as modern people would understand - flying on her angel wings, she flew back and forth over the village like some flying drone with laser mapping abilities. She memorized every square inch of the village, from the southeast where the boats of all sizes were assembled, to the northwest, where the raw lumber was brought in and processed.


    With the reconnaissance completed, she got down to business: disguised in a typical home spun skirt and blouse of the local women, Is?lde discretely made her way into the village from the south, close to the shipyard, fifty meters or so away from the saltwater inlet where finished boats were launched. There was a good-sized river running past the village into this saltwater inlet - it made for the perfect place to build and launch boats. The countryside was covered in old growth oak, elm, and ash- perfect supplies for boat building.


    The village was a flurry of activity late in the morning. Everyone was working together like the parts inside a Swiss clock. Young black smiths in training were making rivets and nails while the master smiths were beating out oar locks, swords, and axes ¨C the tools that made the Viking''s so unforgettable. Other men and women were at looms making sails and cloth, or, at cook fires preparing lunch. Smaller children, not yet in their teens, were playing with wooden swords and shields under the guidance of veteran warrior men and women who already paid their dues with hard labor and combat. Everybody had something going on, there were no idle hands- she also noticed that everyone was working with a good-natured smile on their faces, amazing!  This was several generations of sons and daughters with spouses and children, cousins, working in conjunction with the whole family.


    The more Is?lde studied her surroundings, the more she noticed the sheer genius and ingenuity of this clan. The layout of the village was a model of efficiency. The lumber was harvested north of the village and brought into their milling area. The mill was incredible! Beyond the typical hand splitting of the trees to create the planks, the millwrights had giant steel planes mounted between old growth trees and used a swinging log, like a giant hammer, to force the large raw pieces of timber through the planes to create the individual planks.


    The planks were hand milled to exact specs and hauled by mules, south, down a road to the shipwrights. The road through the village down to the water was amazing, it was paved with large flat pieces of granite and basalt that made the travel with the wooden carts much easier on those mules. When the carts passed the smith''s, those carts with smaller loads of lumber would pick up materials that needed delivered to the shipwrights.  The paved road was wide enough for traffic in both directions, to and from the assembly area. The rest of the village''s clinker style log houses were set on the eastern edge of the village, about halfway between the mill and the shipyard. A bit further to the east of the homes was a huge longhouse. The long side closest to the village was actually a series of doors that could be opened and turned into something resembling an amphitheater. In true Viking fashion, it was used daily, for the evening meal, as well as the other important village wide events throughout the year.


    Is?lde had taken in enough of the village, she decided it was time to find the shipwright she was going to teach.  As she turned south to leave the area of the blacksmiths and sail makers, she heard loud voices that quickly became agitated shouts. Is?lde picked up her pace, not too fast, she didn''t want to draw attention to herself in her first thirty minutes in the village. In all the hustle and bustle of the assembly yard, she could see three angry men, clearly outsiders with their bumble bee looking accoutrements, animatedly shouting at one particularly bullishly shaped Viking man, who was walking toward them.


    It was clear the "bull shaped" man was in charge - while he was sauntering directly toward the yelling man and his companions, other villagers drifted to far edges of this confrontation. Anticipation of a scuffle was oozing from the body language of the "bee boys"; they were coiled like springs ready to release, hands on their weapons, eyes flitting across the locals.


    Is?lde took note that this shipwright...undoubtedly her student, she could feel it now - was handsome...for a human. His brassy, light brown, shaggy hair pulled back in a leather thong and his long beard braided down the front of his thick chest, pushing the limit of his home spun shirt. Notably, he was not as tall as the visitors, but made up the difference by being much broader than the trio he faced. His arms were solid like weathered oaks and hands like iron bands that looked like they could crush stone...and he was calm, that scary calm before a wicked storm. Is?lde chuckled to herself,  she thought the look on his face was akin to that of a bull eating grass, being intimidated by a rabbit These three visitors were failing at the intimidation ploy.


    The outsiders were equipped for battle; domed helmet, wooden shields, painted yellow and black alternating like a four pieced shaped pie, hanging from their backs and matching yellow tunics and black trousers. Each had a short sword in a scabbard on the weak hand side, and a small axe stuffed into their belts on their strong hand side- all close to or taller than six feet.


    "Okay Magnus'''', the leader said loudly to the bull shaped man, "the Jarl wants his boat, and he wants it now."


    "Oskar, I am so glad you are here," Magnus calmly replied - condescendingly, "you can go back and tell Jarl Sigurd that he has to wait his turn. He should have come to me sooner with his request and down payment...we work first come, first serve, and he was not first."


    Apparently, Oskar thought getting loud would be helpful in his cause, "Look Magnus, I won''t say it again, if you don''t get the Jarl''s boat done and ready to sail, there will be consequences...the Jarl won''t wait for you to finish the other boats, he wants HIS boat now!"


    "I am done talking to you Oskar." Now, had Magnus been a bull, he would be raking the ground with his hoof, prepped to charge, "You cannot, cannot come into my village and threaten my family and friends. Threats, you moose dropping, is a definite way to get your ass beat." Tore was violently pointing as Oskar, "You, and especially the Jarl, know that we are not beholden to any of the clans, we are only bound to ourselves. That is for the good of all of us, all the clans. We are the best, and fastest, at what we do, he will have his boat when he has his boat! You need to leave; we will sail the boat around to him when it is done, in two months."


    "Well, that''s not going to work Magnus, we are going to..."


    Oskar did not get another word out as Magnus crossed the two meters in between them and knocked Oskar flat with an elbow to the chin. Magnus rolled low and to the right, taking the next man in the solar plexus with his large wooden mallet. The last man drew his short sword and began to stalk toward Magnus, the mallet flew at the man''s head at the same time Magnus sprung forward diving into a roll and as the fighter blocked the flying hammer, Magnus grabbed the man in a classic double leg take down. Rising up and through, he drove the man into nearest stack of lumber, knocking his head and sending him into a stupor. In less than fifteen seconds, all of Jarl Sigurd''s men were incapacitated and Magnus hadn''t even broken a sweat...impressive. Now that Is?lde had witnessed this display, she definitely knew Magnus was her student and it would not be as hard as she initially planned.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Is?lde finished making her way down to the edge of the building site to follow up on the destruction. Magnus was directing some of his foreman, "Roderick, get some buckets of water to dump on them, point them in the direction of their boat, and kick them in their arses to get them moving." She snuck around to his right, just out of his reach, and asked, "So, you really made a mess of things here, now, didn''t you?" Magnus turned to her, "I have been waiting for that moment for a long time...wait, I don''t know you...can I help you with something?"


    "I want to buy a boat." Is?lde smirked.


    Magnus just looked at the tall, blonde, fit woman, dumbfounded, "Okay, so...I''m not sure what''s going on at this moment, it all seems a bit weird to me. The Jarl''s men and a pretty woman show up at the same time to get me to make them a boat, hmmm?", he growled, "Please go have a seat over in my hut and let me finish getting these idiots conscious and back to their ship." Magnus pointed her over to the east, to a small open side wood building. The building was large enough for four or five people to stand comfortably and contained a table and two chairs. The open side was actually a large door split in the middle and hinged on the corners, so it could shut and enclose the space. Ingeniously, there were adjustable slats built into the door that could be moved up or down to keep prying eyes out and let plenty of light inside. Is?lde made her way over and sat in the chair furthest from the table.


    Magnus finished getting the Jarl''s men out of his hair and the building crews back to work. He did a quick double check of the sight, turned around toward Is?lde, and paused taking a deep thoughtful breath. Many ideas were running through his head: the confrontation with the Jarl''s men - the Jarl knows the rules, this beautiful woman asking to buy a boat, and she seemed to think that he was afraid of Jarl Sigurd. Things to ponder for sure. One thing was clear to him though, she was not a typical Viking woman. He could sense something about her, something he just couldn''t put his finger on - like being stalked by a wolf in the forest, you can just see them out of the corner of your eye, but you cannot look directly at them, or they vanish ¨C but you know it is there.


    He made his way to his hut, to sit at his work bench with the mystery woman, "Gunther!", he shouted at his page, "Please bring some ale and two mugs." Magnus quickly drank in the sight of this woman. She had beautiful long blonde hair and intensely blue eyes. She was slender and taller than average with a powerful physique ¨C not soft. She held herself with an air of authority...not arrogance, she moved like a puma through the forest, she need not fear any natural predator, she was an apex predator.


    "Okay" Magnus sighed, "one thing is taken care of, let''s see about you. You seem to know a little bit of what I am about, so, what in the name of the Allfather are you about? Maybe we should at least start with your name?"


    She smiled broadly, and sat more upright taking in deep breath, "My name is Is?lde, and I as well think the Allfather can shed light on this situation...I have been, in fact, sent here by the Allfather. You and I, Magnus, have some work to do."


    "Gunther!" Magnus shouted, "Change the ale to mead and hurry up!" Magnus proceeded with a slow and deliberate face palm and swipe down, "Is?lde, right, that is your name?" She nodded and smiled in confirmation. Magnus asked, "This is a significant bit of information, and I don''t know what to think of it. Most of the people we know don''t believe in an "Allfather", just the "One father" - Odin, so, claiming to be from the Allfather makes me wonder, even more, what you are about." Is?lde just sat there, back straight hands clasped in her lap, smiling broadly. "Okay - the easiest wat to get to the bottom of this mystery you present ¨C prove it. If you''re not telling the truth, then ¨C well... I don''t know what we will do. I should tell you though, we don''t appreciate anyone mocking the Allfather, like I mentioned - how can you prove yourself, Is?lde?"


    She stood up smiling, like a child seeing her father on the boat dock after weeks away from home, in front of Magnus and laid her right hand on his left shoulder. She pushed her consciousness into him washing away any doubt that was in his mind. The doors to the hut slowly shut by Is?lde''s will, the shades tilted up slightly to limit people being able to see inside. Is?lde took a step back, so she had room to change - the air shimmered around her as she transformed into her angelic battle form- she was donned in leather cuirass and battle skirt. The leather was accented by platinum colored chain mail, shoulder pauldrons, and plating. A short sword angled off on her left hip and a two and a half hand broadsword sheathed on her back. The broadsword leaked some sparkly looking energy that dissipated as it hit the wooden floor. Her angel wings were mostly furled, as she could not fully extend them in Magnus'' shop...she inspired Magnus. Not just an angel like the ones his grandparents told him about, but also, like a Valkyrie from the sagas of old. He was speechless.


    Magnus, captivated by her form, took one step from his chair immediately to kneeling with his head bowed. She stepped forward, leaned down, and gently placed her right index finger under his chin to lift his eyes to hers. "You do not ever have to kneel to me Magnus. I am in service to the Allfather the same as you. In most senses, we are equals, we just come from different backgrounds. Please rise." He rose and asked, "I don''t know what to say Is?lde. You just really want a boat?", he asked with a grin.


    Is?lde snickered and then she shimmered again as she returned to her original guise. "Magnus, we are going to work something out, and I am going to get one of your boats. What we should do first, is figure out what we are going to do about Jarl Sigurd whose men will show up here in a few days, I am sure. I have no plans on going anywhere, so questions about who I am and what I am doing can wait these few days."


    The two new friends sat back down in their respective chairs. Magnus was still taking in the beauty sitting next him ¨C big grin and sparkling eyes. Is?lde was very concerned though, "What are you going to do about the Jarls men coming to your village, Magnus. By the look on your face, I don''t think you are taking this seriously. You fight like no man I''ve ever seen, but how will the rest of your village fare against an experienced fighting force?"


    Now it was Magnus''s turn to smile like a kid on the dock, "Oh Is?lde, I have been waiting for this moment for a while... Jarl Sigurd is an asshole. He has been pushing people around for a long time - flaunting and abusing his power. He keeps his men in check just enough as to not soil his honor, for it''s honor that is keeping the other Jarl''s from taking a stand. He pushes them, and then pulls back ¨C pushes, and then pulls back. Sigurd takes more offerings from his farmers and smiths, he keeps more of the plunder than his men fight for, and he keeps more slaves for his sick perversions ¨C he has no honor. Now, he came to my village and threatened us ¨C I don''t have to let that stand. We are highly respected by all the other clans, even ones across the sea to the east and the south, so when he shows back up here and we beat his ass and take his chiefdom, nobody else will dispute us. One major bonus for us though...see those three fella''s working on those two boats there?"  Magnus points to her left, down by the water, Isolde nods in affirmation. "One of those fellas is from Jarl Halfdan''s and two are from Jarl Leif''s villages - Sigurd''s biggest rivalries. They are learning how to handle the boats we are building for them, by helping us build them. How is that for you? We have our own witnesses of Jarl Sigurd''s dishonor in progress." Magnus grinned.


    "You still haven''t explained to me how you think you can take on the Jarl''s whole clan?" Is?lde asked with a truly alarming tone, "There are what, maybe fifty or sixty people in your village, including women, children, and old folk?"


    "Well, there are actually over 250 of us, many are out of the village right now hunting or logging, or, even mining now that I think of it. We are much better warriors than boat builders, and we build the best boats. Even if we had to fight five-to-one, we would beat them." Magnus stated, his chest pushing out a bit and his shoulders squaring up as he was just thinking about a good scrap.


    "That is very impressive, or you are a serious liar. Why do you think you can take them on five to one? I have seen a lot of battles in my day, Magnus, and I have never witnessed too many people that could fight five opponents at a time."


    "First off ¨C we won''t be fighting a direct one versus four of five, we have some protective measures in place that will allow us to pick them off as they come up to the village. My village has been down this road more than once in the past. We''re prepared. Beyond that, I think I should tell you the story of how we became the greatest fighters in the north...and west." His voice pitching up just a bit, tinged with just a hint of pride. "It is a great story, although a long one. We have several days before those idiots show up to the village, so, let''s get the story going, shall we?" Magnus shouted one more time, "Gunther, get the bloody mead out here, and now I need some cheese and bread! Hurry your arse up boy."  Magnus stretched his back and began his tale.

 Chapter 3 - The Warrior Clan

    Magnus'' great grandfather, three, maybe four times removed, was a great boat builder ¨C his name was Bj?rn Odinsson. He was the most pioneering builder of his day, many of his inventive techniques are used today by all boat builders in the north. Bj?rn''s most important innovation was his practice of ensuring that his technical advances were practical ¨C he would do so by traveling with clans, on raids, in the boats he built, so he could see his work in action.  In this way, he could fine tune his latest innovations and make them better for the next boat he built. The fact that Bj?rn was such a perfectionist lends much to understanding why Magnus'' people are the greatest fighters of this land.


    Bj?rn began building boats with his father when he was just big enough to swing a mallet. By the time he entered manhood, he had built more boats than most shipwrights much older than him. As it just seemed to be his destiny, shortly after the village declared him a man, he departed the village with a group of explorers looking for a southern passage to a sea known as the Mediterranean. His goal was to learn how other builders plied their craft. It was a bold move, one that was inspired by the All Father ¨C not Odin, not that Allfather. On his life changing journey, Bj?rn would become the first of his clan to change his beliefs away from the Norse pantheon to follow the One God, to the singular creator they refer to as the Allfather, same name ¨C different creator, but using the same moniker keeps them from causing too much trouble amongst the other clans. It was Bj?rn''s dreams that inspired him and his fellow explorers to set south and know that they would be successful.


    The group took as much food and water as they could hold but were also planning to stop many times to hunt and restock. Part of the plan was to establish trade partners along the river system that would take them to the fabled city of Byzantium on the Mediterranean. Their trip took them initially west and south...there is no need to talk about the sailing and how hard it was, and how tough these twenty men were, so on and so on...it should be understood that the hard work of sailing is one of the things that makes Vikings physically superior to other tribes and countrymen - they exercise on the way to plundering.


    The group had to camp on the coast of the Danes the first few nights, they would have liked to avoid the Danes as much as possible - they were some real son''s o'' bitches, but it was a long trip and they had to rest, of course. The first evening the men were setting up camp on the Danish coast, a small number of locals stumbled across them.  It must be noted that initially, Bj?rn was a kind man, not prone to violence ¨C on the raids he went on, he rarely left the boat. He preferred to stay with the boat and do what he could to ease the trauma of the slaves that were taken. In an un-Viking like fashion, the village of Elg Hjem did not approve of enslaving people. So, this is to say that as soon as the Danes found the explorers - Bj?rn nearly shat his breeches. There was no time to react to the attack - Bj?rn was the closest to them, unarmed, and poorly trained, he took a sword stab to his left shoulder leaving him incapacitated for the rest of the fight. Bj?rn curled up into the fetal position as the rest of the group, all seasoned fighters, dispatched the dozen or so Danes in a few minutes. Bj?rn''s friend Rognald picked him up, patched him, and set him down with a small mug of mead next to a fire. It was at this point in Bj?rn''s life that he decided that he would not be hurt in a fight ever again.


    The explorers kept making their way west and south to the region of Germania. It was slow going, rowing into the prevailing wind, but again, this made these men hard and tough.  While they traveled, Bj?rn made sure to spend as much time as he could at an oar ¨C even if it was one handed for many days. He wanted to improve his physical being as well as show the men he was willing to do the hard work too - leading by example. When he was not rowing, he worked with Rognald learning the basics of combat. Each evening after the group landed and camp was set up, Bj?rn would spar with every fighter who would give him a moment...he was well respected, they all gave him time. This activity went on for more a couple of weeks...the group was practicing daily, and at times - all day long if they weren''t having to row. Sometimes they stayed longer in a spot if it had a good water source or plentiful game. Bj?rn was trying to get in as much practice as he could before they passed into the land of the Germanian''s. He did not want to get stabbed ever again.


    Intermission -


    Magnus paused for a drink, "Grandfather was a builder and engineer at heart, always wanting to do better - this distinctive trait carried over into everything he did, blacksmithing, cooking, learning how to fight ¨C it didn''t matter what he did, he improved everything he learned how to do. As he was learning how to fight, he would constantly analyze, critique, and improve those skills he was learning. He had a knack for engineering and how bodies moved, how they would respond, react, so on and so on. He took learning how to fight to a new level. As he learned and adapted, he devised new forms too. He showed these ''moves'', so to speak, to his friends, and in turn and they all began to work and analyze their fighting styles, constantly making improvements, sometimes just the most subtle of foot spacing or elbow height...always making forms better."


    End Intermission -


    The river tributary that Bj?rn had dreamt of in the land of Germania was open like the top of a mead pitcher ¨C they literally took a left and started heading south. The unknown territory excited the explorers. They were the discoverers of a new land ¨C they would record the sites and tell the tales of this expedition, earning them fame and valor. Their names would be recorded in the Viking annals of history!


    Traveling was much easier on the glassy green river than on the turbulent ocean. Trees and brush reached out over the water, the shore keeping the travelers at bay with no place to land. Breaching an occasional glimpse back into the ancient forest, they could see giant fir and walnut trees imbuing the landscape with their spirit into atmosphere. Branches and roots offer safety to the animals that chose to stay within their confines. The power of God''s creation rolled off of the giants like heat waves from a smithy''s fire. It was several miles into the land that the explorers finally found space enough on the shore to land the long boat. Bj?rn''s plan was to stay here and relax for a few days. They could hunt, gather water, train...and a few days spent resting would be good for the men.


    The first evening at camp, Bj?rn could feel the forest calling to his soul. He wandered through the fir and walnut trees, feeling as if he was being guided ¨C something was calling him...someone. Bj?rn signaled to Rognald, pointing at himself and then into the forest, that he would be heading off ''that'' way, he made his way through brush and bramble. Following the pull of the spirit on his heart he came upon the gnarliest old tree he had ever seen. Its giant gnarled trunk with mammoth branches soaring into the darkening sky. Bark so dark and tough, nearly black, protecting its life-giving inner core. Small mammals and birds were creating a chorus of sound that was naturally soothing. As Bj?rn walked a circle around the massive trunk, there was one specific spot, directly on the east side, at the base of the ancient behemoth, that looked as if someone had come and cleared it of debris just for him. The spirit of the forest was intense, he could feel the Allfather in all the things that surrounded him, encouraging him, building him up, strengthening his resolve. Bj?rn sat in the mysteriously clean spot, on the ground next to the Allfather tree for several hours, meditating and deliberating over his heaven-sent dreams ¨C still not sure what to make of all he had just recently discovered. Bj?rn finally found himself feeling spiritually satiated and made his way back to camp.


    Over the remaining few days, in between hunting and sparring, Bj?rn would depart camp and meditate at the ancient Allfather tree. The meditation sessions were fortifying his plans and strengthening his belief in the One creator. Bj?rn now knew that he and his explorers were destined to do more than travel to Byzantium to learn boat building, blacksmithing, and combat ¨C this trip would set the foundation for their clans - generations to come. They were going to create something new...and good.


    These few days of rest and simple training were refreshing, the explorer''s hearts and souls were once again in the frame of diligent and wanton voyager. In between training and eating, Bj?rn felt it prudent to take each one of his friends to the Allfather tree too, being one on one with them, bolstering their trust and building relationships with those who would be with him to the end of this strange, fortunate journey.


    The morning the crew packed up and headed south, they kept to their regimented schedule - either practicing fighting methods or rowing. Late that first morning, the crew passed through a settlement that was built on both sides of the river. Slowly passing through, Bj?rn watching one side and Rognald the other. This was the first sign of people they had found since setting into this new land. Not wanting to take anything for granted, Bj?rn decided they should just pass on through to avoid any initial fear they might cause ¨C they were Vikings, not cuddly puppies. This seemed to be a small village, and it felt as though, by the look of the folk watching them, they would not be interested in making a trade deal right away. Bj?rn kept an eye on their stern after making it past the last of the small river dwellings, ensuring they were not followed ¨C just in case.


    Pulling off the river and setting up camp for the night started out like one of those "normal" moments, but the light mood was soured - their kindly banter was broken by the sound of boats running up on to the shore. Two row boats to be exact, bearing a sun motif flag of the settlement they passed through, pulled up onto the tree lined cove behind them. Two men from each boat jumped out into the shallow water to finish dragging the boats up on to the beach. All were wearing matching blue tunics with the same sun motif on the flag, over chain mail, brown home spun pants, and brown leather boots. Nineteen of the men wore a simple steel helm. One man, in particular, stood out as his helmet was decorated with a horsehair plume dyed blue and his uniform had the addition of a blue cape with the sun motif emblazoned on it.


    Bj?rn''s crew all stopped and slowly gathered up - not drawing any weapons, they stood fifteen yards or so, inland from the visitors. There was an honest attempt to look peaceful...their raggedy beards, long braids, or bald heads - it could be imagined that it was a little difficult for those villagers, all dressed uniformly with well kempt clothing and beards, to understand the men they beheld. Bj?rn had his hands out to his front, away from his torso and axes, and slowly stepped away from his crew to head toward the militia leader. The plumed leader began speaking loudly and quickly, repeating something that Bj?rn could not understand. Bj?rn had stopped in his tracks, now ten yards away from the militia, and raised his hands a bit further, trying to look more reassuring ¨C but it was not working. The plumed leader was still repeating the same phrase, and was now, attempting to make his point more forceful by raising his voice and drawing his sword ¨C the two men could simply not communicate - with the plumed leader drawing his weapon, a line had been crossed.


    The clearly palpable tension finally snapped like a center mast in a lightning storm - something triggered the commander of the soldiers to order an attack. The Vikings had not drawn weapons initially, so they were taken aback at the surprise movement. Bj?rn was the closest to an enemy, followed by Rognald; their bodies simply shifted to autopilot ¨C this was going to turn out badly for the blue men. Bj?rn''s hours of constant practice kicked in without a second wasted as he closed the gap on an attacker. He was inside the leader''s attack sphere, grabbing the sword wrist and elbow, then hip tossing him over, reversing the grip of the sword to instinctively stab his opponent in the heart for a kill...but he never finished that killing blow - a thunderous voice with the power of a winter squall froze all motion¨C "STOP!"


    All the men literally stopped in the middle of their movements ¨C falling, swinging a sword, or running into the forest afraid. A man dressed in a homespun, dark brown habit was stepping from the boat, furthest away from the battle. He was older than Bj?rn, but not "old", brown, short, mussed hair and lacked any facial hair. Shaken to his core, tears coursing down his cheeks. That man began speaking frantically to the leader of the town''s men, using his hands to emphasize his fear, and clearly chastising the leader for his stupidity, a tirade of fear slowly coming to an end as he noticed that everyone was staring at him, and him alone.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Bj?rn stepped back from the leader and allowed him to roll over and up to his feet. The plumed leader took stock of the entire battleground, making sure no one was moving, and speaking some words that the Norsemen did not understand, the opposing force began to withdraw away from their combatants, moving toward the boats. The man in the homespun frock slowly moved toward Bj?rn, his hands out in front, indicating he was unarmed. The towns militia were gathering on the beach behind the strangely clothed man, stowing their weapons. Mister homespun brown began to speak, in broken Norwegian, "I am sorry, deeply, for the attack on your persons. Please forgive us, we are quick to judge and your appearance to these men is fearful ¨C can you forgive us?"


    Bj?rn was a bit confused and changed the subject a bit, "You speak our language, who are you?"


    "My name is Fulton, I am a friar from port city of Treva ¨C just back up the river", his hand still in front of him and shaking with fear. "I have travelled to many places, including the land of the Danes, stayed with them for many years in order to learn their language and to try and teach them of God the father."


    Bj?rn was caught off guard by Fulton''s last statement, "What do you mean God the father?" The militiamen were put out of Bj?rn''s mind at this point.


    "Please, can you let me know that you can forgive the commander and his men for being rash and attacking you without provocation...I-I am happy to stay here and talk about anything you wish, p-please let the other men go ¨C you would have clearly destroyed them, th-they are not fighters like you."


    Bj?rn slipped his axe into his belt and turned a bit to his right, "Put your weapons away friends, we do not need to kill anyone today. Move back some, let''s give these men room before they shat themselves, and let them leave. I am interested in what the man in the brown dress has to say." Bj?rn''s men did as he requested, most began to finish the task of setting up, but the lieutenants kept an eye out for the sudden change of temperament, as the militia boarded their boats and began to shove off.


    Fulton turned to the commander and began speaking in their strange tongue. The commander, clearly agitated, was worried about Fulton staying behind with the Norsemen. Fulton, grabbing the commander by both shoulders, must have assured him of his own safety, as the commander eventually climbed into his boat, and the men rowed away ¨C the commander watching Fulton for as long as the vegetation growing on the riverbank would allow. Fulton waved one last time to his people, and slowly turned to Bj?rn, chin down, eyes looking up, and thin frail looking shoulders slumped in defeat...a face of submission.


    "Don''t worry Fulton, we won''t harm you and you are not our slave ¨C if that is your fear." Bj?rn assured Fulton, "Please come and sit with me by the fire."


    Bj?rn turned to his right and Fulton followed him to sit on a couple of stumps that acted as stools for the two men. "What did you tell the commander?" Bj?rn asked, back straight and head held high.


    Fulton, a bit hunched and head held down, still submissive, replied "I told him he had to go, and it was my job to keep you... the north men, from killing the Treva militia. I told him he needed to put in trust in God, that whatever happens here tonight is meant to be ¨C that he must have faith, that I will meet the fate, that I am meant to have."


    "I told you Fulton, you''ve nothing to fear from us, so long as you don''t attack ¨C I''m fairly certain you''re not a warrior. Please, sit up" Bj?rn mildly scolded, "... you are your own man, you do not have to submit to me, or my men. Now, tell me ¨C who is this God the father you speak of, I would hear more of him?" Bj?rn, was easily able to change the subject away from that last fearful moment, where many men had almost died.


    Fulton squared his back and shoulders, composing himself, knowing that Bj?rn was sincere in what he said. He turned to look Bj?rn in the eye ¨C man to man, "I can truly say I have never met a Dane, or other northman like you, what should I call you?"


    "My name is Bj?rn... Bj?rn Odinsson. My clan and I hail from the east side, of the south of Norge, north, across the sea from the Danes. We are looking for a passage to Byzantium as we wish to learn from the master ship and weapon builders of those ancient lands. We are looking to find these things that are only stories among my people - things that are regarded as mere legends, fanciful tales from fanciful story tellers, but things that I and my travelers feel are facts."


    "Well, Bj?rn of Norge, I think that we are both in for a treat ¨C I can tell you of the one God the father, and, I have been to Byzantium, and it may be that I was planning to go back - and am in need of transport. See," Fulton grinned "I told James to have faith that the Lord would look out for me. So, Bj?rn, where shall I start, with Byzantium, or God the father?"


    Bj?rn was now excited, as well as pleased to hear about both, "Rognald, Asger, please come here. Fulton is going to tell us of his God, the father. It sounds very much like our Allfather ¨C what say you?" Both men made their way to the fire to hear more about this new religion from this man in the strange garb. Grabbing wood for the fire on their way, they sat to hear the news.


    Fulton''s demeaner changed as he began telling his story to new ears. His voice cleared, back and neck were rod straight, his eyes moving to each man in turn, "I belong to a group of men known as the monks of Saint Anthony. We are traveling teachers that bring the news of our savior, Jesus Christ, to the ears of the untold. Now, as you have asked about God the father, He is the father of the Christ and the creator of all ¨C the world as we know it and all of the plants and animals herein..."


    Fulton kept talking into the late hours of the night. Bj?rn''s men were joining the fire as they finished their tasks, all of them were eventually consumed by the words of Fulton. Bj?rn was incessantly asking questions, comparing his dream sequences of his Allfather, to the likeness of Fulton''s God the father, comparing what each knew to the other ¨C confirming that both Fulton, and the clan of Bj?rn, were of the same belief in the same, one God and one Creator. The night turned to the wee hours of the morning - the men were so captivated by the news that Fulton was sharing, none of them could stop listening. Though, as the sun started to rise, the men had all they could to eventually stand, and they succumbed to exhaustion. Those men had been enraptured by Fulton, the monk of St. Anthony, the traveling teacher.


    Rognald woke Bj?rn, frantically, at the sound of a boat landing on the shore of their small cove, the two men scrambling for weapons ¨C just in case. Rognald stood watch as Bj?rn woke Fulton, Bj?rn sure that they would need some interpretive assistance. The boat that pulled in only had four men in it, the commander was one, another dressed like Fulton, and two regular militia men at the oars.


    "Please stay here" Fulton implored to Bj?rn and Rognald, "the other man is one of my brethren, probably worried I was not going to go home alive." Fulton made his way to the boat. He greeted all the men cheerfully; his dialog was short, and the visitors departed.


    "I explained to my friends that I will be traveling with you to back to Byzantium. They tried to sway me to stay, but alas, I feel it is with God''s guidance that I go with you south ¨C we don''t want any more casualties than necessary, seeing as I speak the language and you, do not. My brother is going to get my meager belongings and return later, if... that is, it is okay with you - that I guide you to Byzantium Bj?rn?"


    "Yes, yes!" Bj?rn shouted, "this is wonderful news Fulton, I was actually going to ask you to travel with us! I cannot wait to get back on the river... But, how about we stay here for a few days, we can stock up on food and water, we can talk more about God and the Allfather. Maybe we can even make better amends with that commander, begin some trade agreements with them? My people have many things to offer and many things we need that we cannot make ourselves..."


    So, on and on Bj?rn and Fulton went, making plans for travel, as well as setting the foundation for trade in the area that would someday be known as Hamburg, Germany, on the Elbe River.


    Five days later, ready for travel and trade agreements made for the benefit of the Norsemen and Hamburg''s future, the explorers began the trek south once again...


    "Men" Bj?rn shouted, "gather ''round before we set sail. Rognald, Asger and I have been discussing some things, talking about things with Fulton as well. Fulton will be guiding us to Byzantium, he has been there before." Bj?rn began to walk, weave in and out of his crew, "We are on a path of adventure, trade, and enlightenment ¨C not conquest ¨C am I right?", the question was raised with emphasis. The men replied with a solid "Hoo ahh!". Bjorn continued, "Therefore, I refuse to have an incident such as we had the other day. It is important that we establish many good trade locations, and I don''t really like having to kill someone because we don''t know the language. We are not killers like some of our kin ¨C there is a much easier way to make money than pillaging and raping ¨C trade. It is safer too" he grinned, "not to mention we can sell southern goods to our neighbors ¨C at a huge profit!" Bjorn laughed at himself for being so savvy. "This is my proposal for you ¨C mallets, quarter staffs, or fists. Leave axes, swords, and seaxes as the last option, or for raiders ¨C we don''t kill unless there is no other option." Bj?rn had glanced up at Fulton, to gauge his response.


    "My new-found friends" Fulton stated loudly with his teaching voice, "the spectacle that I witnessed three days ago, was unfounded in my lifetime ¨C I have never witnessed such a fighting force as you. Had the Lord not shouted through me for you to stop, you would have literally killed every man of the sheriff''s party in a matter of moments ¨C I saw it all, and I was afraid. We are going to come across many villages as we travel south to Byzantium, most of these are peaceful and welcoming. We will have many opportunities for you to make trade deals with them, but to be honest ¨C there are stories among those hamlets, about the raiders from the north and...you look like raiders from the north. So, we must go slow and let me talk and set the atmosphere for us to deal with them. I have taught and worked with these people for many years, I know them well, we will make it through, and when done right, you will be the first northerners to make trade with these river folk."


    "Now", Fulton followed up with a more serious tone, "don''t be fooled into thinking that we won''t run into any bandits now. Sections of the river are ripe with outlaws that take a ''toll'' from any boat that passes through their territory ¨C these men are a menace to hard working people everywhere. I know I have been teaching you about the compassion of our Allfather, but he is also a God that will defend his proverbial sheep from the wolves. I know that you will do as you must when we pass into these waters."


    "Come now Bj?rn" Fulton shouted, "Let us be off. I am excited to show you - my new brothers in God -Byzantium!"


    Another Intermission:


    Magnus took a swig of his mead. "I''m not sure how you feel about this," he plainly stated to Is?lde, "but, to some people, killing is killing and it matters not if it is an animal or a person. I know that even now, life is tough and sometimes brutal, but so many generations ago - it was much worse. There was no value on life or for our fellow humans. Slavery, brutality, and murder was very normal. To our clan, belief in the Allfather has given us a different perspective, life is important. Now, don''t get me wrong, if someone comes to try and take my life or the life of one of my clan, and I am left with no other alternative, I will take a life - I won''t like it, but I will take a life if I have to, just like everyone else in my clan. The last thing that we learned from grandfather Bj?rn, some people are just bad, they have literally sold their soul to the Dark One, and they do not seek anything other than destruction - for the sake of destruction."


    Is?lde did not respond with words, the thoughtful look that crossed her face as she looked into Magnus'' eyes, told him that she agreed with his perspective, fully. She took a pull of her mead and tore off a hunk of bread, "Please go on, Magnus. This is a great story, and I''m learning much about your people."


    Magnus leaned back in his chair and kicked his feet out in front of him, "So, as we were talking - all of the men agreed that they would assess every volatile situation they were in, and choose appropriate action...


    End Intermission:


    Author''s note: The boat trip from Hamburg, Germany to the Adriatic Sea, exiting the European continent on the east side of Italy, is over 500 miles ¨C as the crow flies, and a Viking long boat is NOT a crow. Sailing from that point to the south of Greece and then to Byzantium (Istanbul, Turkey) is over 1,200 miles. These men followed meandering rivers, so needless to say - this is a long trip of the same activity''s occurring day after day ¨C I don''t want to bore the reader by writing about all of the repeated days of rowing, sparring, and education about the Allfather, yada, yada, yada - So, just know this, there was about four months straight of rowing ¨C making our heroes lean and strong. That is about four months for Bj?rn to spar and train, and to learn and fine tune his fighting skills. Four months'' straight of Fulton teaching these "heathen" Vikings the ways of Jesus, a.k.a. God, a.k.a. el Elyon - The Allfather. The men were being molded in spirit, body, and mind...nonstop.


    Just like Fulton said, they did come across some bandit camps ¨C that did not go good for the bandits. But as the way fate, God blessed, would have it ¨C the results of clearing the bandit camps resulted in many good trade deals for Bj?rn''s long boats, northern furs, lumber, ore, and many other Viking related items for southern food staples, cloth, leather and more.


    We should though, talk about the time the sailors came across some rogue Roman centurion''s pillaging a small town close to Italy...

 Chapter 4 - Legionnaires

    Bj?rn awoke early from a sleep born of hard work - something in the air was not right, a vileness was heavy around the camp. Throwing back his covers, Bj?rn looked over to Rognald and Asger who stared back at him, no words necessary. "Come on lads!" Bj?rn bellowed to the whole camp, "we need to move ¨C now".


    The dawn sky was ashen with a dusky red hue off to the south and a sulfurous scent of smoke in the air. As the men quickly readied the long boat, they noticed an odd stillness to the normally, more rapidly flowing Elbe River. The river was glassy smooth; the normal sounds of animals at the edges of the river was non-existent. There was none of the normal banter or good spirited vocal jabs among the explorers, just enough words were used to get the longboat loaded. They moved out with the anticipation of something unpleasant on the wind. Fulton sat in the middle of the longboat recounting grand tales of David, Joshua, and Gideon ¨C bolstering their spirits and calming their hearts with stories that told of unlikely biblical heroes that threw back the opposition. These seasoned warriors were not afraid of a good fight ¨C the feeling moving up the river to them from the south, was not your ordinary foreboding, there was evil in the air, and they were going to end it.


    After two hours rowing on the glass smooth river Bj?rn steered the longboat into some reeds on the east bank when he could no longer see the prow due to smoke. The sailors stowed their oars letting the boat drag to a stop - grinding of the sand dully echoing through the hull. The smell of charred meat was staggering, and the heat of fires could be felt from infernos a hundred plus yards away. Men disembarked with the tools of conquest on their backs and in their belts. They hunkered down a bit, trying to minimize any silhouettes, waiting while Bj?rn and Rognald could take stock of the situation.


    The two leaders crept toward the fiery hell. They caught site of two centurions that appeared to be posted at a point, to keep people from fleeing the town via the river. The site of the centurions seemed to play a trick on their eyes - the faces of the Roman centurions were WRONG. Within the helms of the men, there seemed to be a second face hiding just on top of their teeth and cheekbones, a rendering of a skull. Their eyes were dark, not a solid black, but there was no separating the pupil from the iris, it was a clear black on white. In the background of their bodies there was a smokey looking black aura, burning around their whole figure ¨C you could just notice it when they were silhouetted against the light gray color of the graveled road. In their hearts, Bj?rn and Rognald now understood the deep foreboding they had felt back at camp ¨C this was an enemy not of this world ¨C something else from one of the nine realms, these were spirits of Helheim holding on to a living body, causing destruction for the sake of destruction.


    Bj?rn led Rognald back to the river where the men were waiting. Bj?rn was looking for Fulton - "Fulton" Bj?rn whispered hoarsely, "I don''t know what these are, but they are not men. Their bodies are infused with death and smoke, I don''t understand what I am seeing."


    Fulton was immersed in prayer, he barely heard Bjorn speak...his feal was palpable, "These things are born of hell, Bj?rn. They are men who have sold their sold their souls to Satan. They have no other purpose now except to cause destruction. The people here are doomed, we cannot help them all. The demons are powerful Bj?rn, we should save the ones closest to us and flee." Fulton was now looking into Bj?rn''s eyes, pleading, "Please, we cannot defeat the spawn."


    Bj?rn took a knee in front of Fulton, who was still kneeling in prayer. Bj?rn spat the man''s name, "Fulton! You''d better get up and get moving, your acute lack of faith is embarrassing. You cannot profess to be one of the Allfather''s children while planning to flee from the enemy. Get yourself together son, we will not leave these people to suffer if we can help in any way. We," Bj?rn waved his hand around, indicating ALL the Vikings, "would all rather die than not go to battle with the spawn. I need you to think...what can we do, how can we defeat them? What has your church done in the past to fight evil like this? You have fought evil before, have you not?"


    "You are right Bj?rn, I am weak ¨C my sincere apologies." Fulton stood, beating back his fear, "I have some knowledge, yes - it should help. Gather the men, circle them around me." Fulton pulled his Holy Water from an inside pocket of his smock, "Point your weapons in here men, I need to sprinkle the water on them." As he treated the weapons with holy water he chanted in Latin, words of blessing on the weapons to give them power beyond the plane of man.


    "Allfather" Bj?rn began, "give us the strength and stamina to free these townsfolk from this demon infestation. Guide our blades and arrows, protect our backs, and lead us to victory. We will fight and fall for your glory. Use us as the hammer of your vengeance. Amen."


    With added vigor, Bj?rn set the men into action, "Sven, Leif ¨C take your men, go far left. Asger, Arik ¨C your team goes left center. Rognald, take Bodvar and his team and go center ¨C eliminate the two goat sacks we saw. Felix, with me ¨C we will circle the docks." Bj?rn pulled his axes from his belt as he looked over his men. "Do not play with these Hel spawn. If you can take them down with a bow in the back, do so. These aren''t honor bound warriors, they have sold their souls to the adversary, they have forfeit any fairness. When you come across survivors, send them back to Fulton, he will find a place to keep them safe...won''t you Fulton?" Bj?rn, arrow focused his eyes to Fulton''s. "Rognald, I have a feeling the leader will be close to the docks since they came in by boat. He is probably directing from there. I think if we cut the head from the snake, it will weaken severely.  Meet me at the leader."


    The men all left at a trot to their respective routes. Bj?rn leading his men toward the docks, with the river on his right. He wanted to clear a path, so civilians could flee back to Fulton. They slowed pace as they came to the first building, veering slightly left as they met the corner. One of the demon centurions was surrounded by dead civilians. His right hand, pulled back and loaded with a short sword, was at its peak ¨C prelude to a death blow, when an arrow zipped past Bj?rn''s right ear sinking into the left eye socket of the centurion and out the back of its skull dropping it like a sack of meal. Bj?rn stepped through the carnage and grabbed the man who had nearly died ¨C pulled him to his feet and motioned for him to run back the direction the Viking''s had come. "Go, go!" he shouted. Bj?rn took stock of the area before they took off again, he wanted to head away from the river a bit, see if he could find more survivors. They took the street away from the river to the next intersection at a jog and hung a right.


    A centurion had some men, women, and children cornered in a dead end. One man was in front bleeding from his left arm, holding an old rusty sword in his right, attempting to defend a half dozen of his people. "Hey, goat-shat for brains ¨C back up and let''s have a go" Bj?rn yelled, begging for the demon''s attention. The demon slowly turned an about face to his left wanting to find out who, or what, had the spine to call him out. He looked Bj?rn up and down seemingly unimpressed. He turned back a bit to the would-be defender, "I will be right back to finish, please don''t go anywhere." The demons voice grated like a steel billet being dragged across stone. The look on the demon''s face seemed pained as he spoke, like it was unnatural. "You should not be away from Hel demon, let me send you home" Bj?rn goaded as he walked toward the centurion. The demon began stalking toward Bj?rn, rotating his short sword in circles. Bj?rn had a one hand bearded axe in each hand, flexing his arms at the elbows, prepping for the battle to come. They met in the middle, demon striking first, overhand blow toward Bj?rn''s exposed neck and shoulder. Bj?rn easily caught the blade in a scissor move of his axes, rolled the blow over his head and to the right sending the sword off, and following up with an attempt at the demon''s exposed spine with his left axe ¨C the demon had used the momentum to step forward and out of reach. The opponents faced each other once again.


    "What are you?" the demon asked, perusing Bj?rn like a new weapon, "you are not like these peasants, there is strength... and light in you."


    "Nothing for you to worry about, you smelly beast. How about less talking and more ass kicking, you soul selling worthless sack of goat bits."


    The demon snarled and launched at Bj?rn with a straight stab toward his heart. The way the demon moved this time, was not at human speed, it was something more. Bj?rn barely sent blade wide as he caught the shoulder charge of the centurion right in the sternum and sent him barreling backwards. Bj?rn curled his legs and used the momentum to drop into a roll. As he came to his feet, he jumped further backwards to make sure the demon was far enough away for him to set up for the next round.


    The demon was surprised at Bj?rn''s backward spring and the fact that his short sword did not pierce flesh. Bj?rn was two paces away from the townsfolk survivors, the fear in their faces strengthened his resolve. His men moved to engage the demon, but Bj?rn jerked his chin up as a sign to ward them off.  Bj?rn started forward, doing his ass kick shuffle, keeping his feet close to the ground in case he needed to push off. The demon stalked slowly toward Bj?rn, moving his sword in a figure eight pattern, using it as a diversion. Bj?rn kept an eye on the demon from the waist and down, looking for those telltale signs of a next move. The combatants were close enough now - the demon''s right foot touched the ground and turned a bit in, the telltale sign Bj?rn was looking for ¨C Bj?rn beat him to the literal punch and launched first, off of his left foot that was posted. As he came inside the demon''s reach, his axe handles slid down in his hands, so the axe heads were solidly resting on the tops of his fists ¨C as he came inside the reach of the demon, the tips of the bearded axe heads punched into the unarmored arm pits of the centurion demon. Bj?rn''s powerful arms tried to push the axes together, as much as he could, puncturing the demonic breathing devices. With the forward momentum, Bj?rn performed an inside leg sweep to force the demon to the ground, withdrawing his weapons from the body as they fell. In order to make sure the demon was truly sent to Helheim, Bj?rn tilted his axe heads in, like a big scissor, over the demon''s neck ¨C ''Schnick'' ¨C no more head.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    Bj?rn stood, head bobbed his men, and then pointed to the townsfolk. Felix ran to the scared people to talk to them. He had picked up enough of Fulton''s language to enable some rough communication. He got them off to the monk. "Okay guys", Bj?rn started "these are not men, they are stronger and faster ¨C know that. If we can cut them down with arrow''s, that''s what we ought to do, no more hand to hand. Let''s head back that way and cut back, see if we can catch Rognald."


    The men headed back to where they shot the first demon they found; it was clear. They moved back south with the river on their right once again. There were only a few bodies here, the townsfolk must have seen the demon''s make landfall and fled ¨C they needed to end this before the people were herded together and slaughtered. Off through the smoke, Bj?rn could just make out some type of roofed pavilion several, streets away. Probably the main market where goods came in and were sold. This was his goal; he had a feeling this is where the head goat-shat eater was.


    Quickly covering the distance, he saw Rognald, and his team come out of a side street just in front of them and turn left to make the market center as well. Rognald stopped his team though, to wait for Bj?rn to catch up.


    "These are NOT human, Bj?rn", Rognald nearly shouted "they do not die easy and if you''re not careful, they even dodge arrows" he stated incredulously.


    Bj?rn gave a rough grin, "I know my friend, we ran into one, or two, as well. We need to finish this quickly. I really hope cutting the head off the snake works. If not, we are in big trouble. Were you able to find any survivors?"


    "Yes, we found a pocket of people being ravaged by two of the centurions. Not easily dispatched, but we got them."


    "Okay, let''s move- let''s see if we can find the serpent''s head."


    The men moved toward the pavilion. Bj?rn and Rognald heading to the center, their 15 men spreading out on either side to create a net, keeping anything from slipping through. Making their way past the tables and stalls, they came out into a large, airy gazebo ¨C looking on the primus pilus, the leader of this centurion legion.


    He was not a big man, but his posture and presence spoke volumes about his capability. He held his horse hair plumed helmet under his left arm, resting on the grip of his short sword, and his kite shield was hanging on his back. The primus has the same smokey aura as the other demons the Viking''s killed, but the smokey aura on the Primus was darker and more pronounced. The skeletal features within the plumed helm were more defined on the primus, and the eyes were all black, no sclera at all. "I could feel you believer..." this demon''s voice did not grate when he talked, it was silky smooth, like a used horse salesman. "I did not think to find any of your kind here." The demon was slowly walking around the edge of the square, still mumbling. Bj?rn not sure if it was talking to him, or himself "Oh, there are some ¨C many people, in fact ¨C who simply believe in the Christ, but you ¨C you actually hear him, don''t you?" the demon asked still  rambling, "No. No ¨C there are not many like you, I will need to finish you here, I have work to do for my master. It is time to turn the tide ¨C we will win the war; we will walk free." The demon''s eyes bored into Bj?rn accusingly.


    It took a minute or so for Bjorn to decipher what the demon''s monologue meant. Much of it seemed to be the internal musings of the monster, but the demon eluding that Bj?rn could hear the Christ...that was something new, something plausible, but how did he know? Bj?rn did feel like he could hear something in the back of his mind. He could often feel a presence or hear a voice surrounding him ¨C he usually felt it as being his own thoughts, not the voice of his Allfather. Bj?rn came back to reality when the primus spoke again, "Your men are making it hard for my associates to do what has been tasked by our master ¨C come, we must finish this. Shall we do this ''quie est homo'' Bj?rn, man to man." The primus flourished his cape and walked toward the center of the open, vaulted, pavilion. He donned his helmet, drew his short sword, and pulled his kite shield from his back, setting himself up for combat facing Bj?rn and Rognald.


    As Bj?rn moved forward, Rognald grabbed him, "Stop" he snarled "We have to do this the smart way ¨C you know that I am the better fighter, Bj?rn. You are good, but you are still learning from most of us. I''m the battle leader, I''ll go. Besides, if I happen to lose he should be soft enough for you to finish then."


    "I can''t let you do this Rognald, the Allfather is with me ¨C us, we will prevail." Bj?rn implored Rognald, attempting to move from that iron grip.


    "I know the Allfather is with us, but that doesn''t mean that we do something childish and stupid. We know what we know ¨C I am the best fighter we have here, by far. We must play smart. You know that being blessed does not protect you from doing something stupid?"


    "Okay, you''re right. You go but be cautious and take your time. See how he ¨C"


    Rognald cut Bj?rn off ¨C "Who taught you how to fight Bj?rn, Thor''s goats? I what I''m doing. Pray for me, grant strength and cunning ¨C we. Will. Win." He turned and began marching to meet the primus in the center of the pavilion. His two-hand broad axe in his right hand and a small buckler shield mounted to his left forearm. Well-armed and lightly armored, the six-foot-four giant was no one to be trifled with. Bj?rn knew he was not the best fighter of the explorers, but nobody else scared him, just Rognald ¨C he was the monster that monsters looked for under their beds before they went to sleep.


    "Come children" the primus bellowed, "one of you needs to come out here. I can''t have any more of my brethren die than necessary. My patience is wearing thin, Bj?rn. Make sure no one else interferes ¨C the Creator did not give us much, but he did give us the benefit of fair single combat. If anyone else interferes once combat is underway, they will die at the will of the Allfather." Bj?rn looked to the Primus, confusion rolling across his face, "I don''t know what you''re talking about demon...we''re honorable regardless..." Bj?rn''s words tapering off, but the demon responded cryptically and Bj?rn could sense the truth through the spirit of the Allfather, " I am sure you are not aware...this has not been done in a millennia ¨C the fallen don''t live by any rules but their own...except for single combat with a chosen of the Creator. Once committed to combat if any of your men interfere, they will literally, just die. This is the only assurance the fallen now have from Him. We don''t have to abide by many rules, except for this is one." The primus was watching Rognald enter the proverbial ring, "Don''t worry about interference, Demon, I am going to make sure you can''t do this" Rognald used his hands to indicate the whole town, "to anyone or any place else."


    "Time to quit playing, Rognald" the primus snarled with venom, "it''s time to die!" The Primus shot forward with his sword aimed at Rognald''s heart, the Viking spun into the attach with his buckler, deflecting it to his right, and spinning with his axe in an attempt to cleave the primus'' head...near miss.


    Facing each other again, primus began banging his shield with his sword. Rognald was too seasoned to take the bait ¨C he could not really hear any of it. Rognald began circling to his left, giving him the advantage of power to use his large axe. One step, two step, primus lunged ¨C Rognald stepped inside the sword, but was bashed with the shield catching the brunt of it on his axe arm. The primus'' strength was much more powerful than his sub six-foot frame would indicate. Rognald was not easily pushed aside and recovered almost immediately.


    Sortie number three began; the primus began to circle to the right forcing the advantage of his shield. Rognald juked ¨C the primus flinched and raised his shield above his eyes and shied back just bit ¨C Rognald reached out with his axe and hooked the top of the shield and pulled. Caught off guard, the primus used his demon strength to pull and lift against the tug. Rognald let go of his axe, as the primus'' shield flew up, Rognald lunged in while drawing his long seax to punch it through the primus'' bronze armor ¨C the seax was deflected - the armor was steel, not bronze. The primus came across his body with his sword in hand and punched Rognald in the face with the pommel. The demon infused blow knocked Rognald off of his feet and a couple yards off to the side.


    Rognald was down for only a moment, dazed as he came up. The primus was there to meet him with over hand strikes to Rognald''s head region. The buckler took the first blow, the second blow he stepped back a half step, the third blow cracked the buckler and Rognald went to his right knee. The fourth blow, the buckler split, and half of the wood fell from the iron frame. The primus paused in anticipation of victory, as he pulled his arm back for the fifth strike Rognald blessedly stumbled across his axe. The fifth strike fell obliterating the final bits of wood in the buckler. As the primus pulled back acticipating the final blow, Rognald stood and in the same fluid motion, kicked through the primus'' left knee completely shattering it.


    With his post gone, the primus was falling to his left. Rognald''s momentum never stopping, he spun to his left, full circle, regaining the two-handed grip on his axe, and severed the primus'' head from his body, as they met in combat for the final second.


    A cheer went up immediately at the same time the primus'' head left his neck. The Vikings lifted their fists and eyes to the heavens in a triumphant shout. It was not lost on them that Rognald had really almost lost, almost died ¨C Rognald had NEVER been knocked from his feet like that, never a friend and especially not a foe...Rognald was blessed. That sounded like a good name to the explorers - Rognald the Blessed he would now and forever be.


    Off in the village, there were feral howls rising and falling. Bj?rn guessed it had something to do with the demon leader being beaten in fair, single combat.  "Lads!" Bj?rn shouted, "head into the village, check for survivors. See what we can do to assist in stopping the fires from burning down the rest of the homes and shops." No longer than a heartbeat after the words left Bj?rn''s mouth, the sky darkened with thunderheads that opened to douse the fires of the demon''s fury. The cleansing rain cleared the blood and dirt out of the town, and into the waiting river, like it was trying to erase at least some of the damage that had been done.


    Bj?rn kneeled down next to Rognald who had collapsed to his arse, and pulled the man into a brotherly embrace, speaking words of thanks to the Allfather for delivering the town from evil while preserving the life of his best friend and life mentor. A few moments passed and Rognald groaned in pain so Bj?rn released him and fell to his back side. They looked at each other, a bit dumbfounded - and wet - Rognald ran his left hand over his face where the primus punched him, "I have a real headache, Bj?rn. I have never been hit like that in my whole life."

 Chapter 5 - The Odinssons

    Isolde was leaning forward, her hands on her knees, intently listening to Magnus as he finished his tale. "You mean to tell me, that the student Bj?rn killed a lesser demon...and Rognald killed a demon?" Isolde''s skepticism was as clear as the blonde of her hair.


    "Well," Magnus explained, in a matter-of-fact tone, "Bj?rn may have been a student, but you have to remember how long they had been traveling through the south, his only past time was rowing a boat or sparring with friends ¨C not to mention, if Bj?rn was here now he would give the credit to the All Father. And Rognald, Rognald was a legend among all of the villages in the north ¨C ALL of them, long before he killed that demon. He too, would give his victory to the All Father, Is?lde. This story is mine to tell, and it is the truth, so help me Allfather." Bj?rn swore, "Many of the folk you see in the village are cousins and distant relations to the other men of that original exploration party.  But me, I am directly related from Bj?rn''s first son to his son, to his son, etc. I can tell you that all of the story is true the same way that I can tell you that the All Father exists. You of all people...or angels should be able to believe as well."


    "Hmm" Isolde hummed, "you''re right, I shouldn''t be skeptical." Is?lde''s body language showing she was having some issue believing the tale, "But I have never heard of a human defeating a lesser demon, let alone a regular demon."


    "So..." Magnus questioned, eyebrows giving a raise, "you know of all the people over all of the world?"


    Isolde smirked at him, "No, you have me there, I have not met all the humans of this world.  But, among angels and demons, if things like this happen, I would think that I would hear about it. Angels are like hens...or nosy aunt ¨C there aren''t really any secrets in a small village."


    "Maybe your family isn''t as tight as you think they are. Only recently, maybe ten years ago, my father killed a demon ¨C it had killed my grandfather, stabbed him in the back during a raid. I don''t know if it was what you call a demon or a lesser demon. What is the difference?"


    "A demon, just a demon, is an angel that has been cast out of heaven. Their eyes are almost all black, just a little of their whites can be seen. There is a black smokey aura that burns around their body. Angels and some humans can just see it against a light surface, otherwise you miss it. Demons normally take over the bodies of humans who don''t have a conscience ¨C those people who lack empathy and enjoy hurting people. Something about these humans leaves a "gate" open for demons. The demon voices though, that is what really gives them away. When they talk, their voices are silky smooth, like a snake oil salesman-all.


    Now, the smooth-talking demons ¨C they are what create the lesser demon. Lesser demons are humans that usually trade their soul for something of value, something of benefit to the human. Power, long life, money... usually something selfish. Their eyes have the whites, but there is no pupil and color, just all black in the middle. The voice of the lesser demon though, it sounds painful when they talk. It''s like they have some sort of sore throat that holds back their voices. The humans that trade their soul, they are typically weak of body with evil intent...they need power to back it up.


    The last type, the most powerful ¨C the greater demons. These are archangels who were cast out of heaven. You won''t see them anywhere around. They live in the pits of hell with Lucifer. If they come to earth ¨C they possess people. These are the same type of people who would sell their souls...except they usually have power already but are much more ambitious...and usually psychotic. Murderer''s, evil kings or queens ¨C often crazy humans with a pension for evil who have power over others. They are bad news. There have been entire civilizations wiped out by a greater demon who possessed the right human. Atlantis...the peak of civilization during their time ¨C wiped out by a greater demon who possessed the Atlantean king''s psychotic brother. That was too bad, such great people ¨C although extremely arrogant. As far as the voice goes, no one know if it is an indicator, as no one has lived to know what it sounds like ¨C the demon has either left, or, those in the know were all killed."


    "Hmmm..." Magnus responded, not even phased by the descriptions he just heard, "I think my father killed a demon, uncles didn''t mention anything about a painful sounding voice on that fella''. I think that would have stood out. Anyway ¨C when my father Erik, saw his father killed by a cowardly stab to the back, he lost his mind - literally. Went full berserker, he did. The stories told by his men had him frothing at the mouth, unable to speak ¨C some men swore there was a fiery halo hanging over his head. They say the demon began to speak ¨C maybe asking for single combat like some of the other stories have told, now that I think about it ¨C but Erik did not even let him form a second word as he struck with his great axe, splitting him diagonally from hip to shoulder, nearly cleaved the demon in two. He was so distraught he proceeded to destroy all of the remaining enemies from the other village ¨C demon, lesser demon, or just a man.


    He was never the same after that. No more raids, no fighting - he went up to live with the monks for a few years; we rarely saw him. When he finally did come home for good, he went straight to the boat yards and began building, every day, just building boats. When I was old enough to swing a hammer, he brought me to the yard too, and every day we just worked on boats.


    He did not discourage me from learning how to fight from my uncles, but he never gave me his blessing either. Mother kept me from fretting ¨C she told me that his NOT dissuading me from fighting was as close to getting his blessing to fight, that I would ever get. That last battle where he lost his father had broken him, but the brothers at the monastery were able to help him get past the hardest healing.


    Anyway, that is a story for another day. What do you say about going back to camp for some dinner? It should be getting close to time."


    Is?lde stood up and stretched, "That sounds like fun, maybe a bit interesting. Just so you know, I don''t eat for the same reasons you do, I like the taste of food, but  don''t need to eat. I''ll like to see how your food compares to the Sumerians, or the Egyptians. Now Egypt, there are some tasty morsels."


    The pair stepped out of the little hut, Magnus shouted down to the boat yard, "You guys head up to the longhouse for dinner when it''s time. My new friend, Is?lde, and myself are heading up now." The crew leads gave him affirmative nods, and Magnus began leading up to the longhouse.


    "So", Isolde said questioningly "when did your grandfather return to the village, how long were they away?"


    "He and the explorers were there for many years, maybe six...or seven just in Byzantium. There were many months of travel in just creating those trade partners that we still have today, many decades of good partnerships.


    Bj?rn and the other two smiths from the village worked with the Byzantium craftsmen. They learned about crucible steel and the benefit of adding other metals in the correct amounts, to make a much higher quality steel. This is the main reason our tools and boats are so highly desired ¨C steel is the key.


    Being in the center of so many cultures, they were also introduced to many types of other weapons and armor they had never seen¨C most of them were specific to the culture and terrain of the people who used it. Back home, when they finally made it back, Bj?rn began to unleash his creative imagination and developed many of the special tools, armor and weapons we use today. He encouraged his people to take his designs and make them better. Nearly all of his creations have been modified ¨C made better than he would have even thought."


    Magnus continued pleasantly, enjoying regaling Is?lde with the history of his family, "Ragnold and the other warriors were paid by the king to fight the enemies of the crown, Heraclius I, from Constantinople. The king sent the Vikings to worst places possible, always to the places that were close to getting conquered ¨C they were deemed expendable ¨C but they were never defeated. Rognald and Felix always came out on top. Even though their battle prowess could not be surpassed, the duo never underestimated the enemy, even learning things from their enemy to use against them. So, not just tools and weapons were improved, but battle tactics strategies as well.


    The warriors made a king''s ransom from the ruler of Constantinople. Every time they threatened to leave, Heraclius would heap gold and weapons on them to encourage them to stay. They were so well known in the years just before they did leave, Viking or none, anyone who showed up on the king''s side for battle, dressed in the colors of Rognald, the enemy would simply flee. I am sure the king was able to use that ploy for at least a couple of years after Bj?rn and Rognald left, before the easterners caught on."


    Is?lde cut in, "I''ve spent time in the middle east ¨C your Bj?rn and Rognald are nothing short of amazing. Easterners can be very hard to get along with. I am very impressed with those boys. But, as you know, once you are in with them, you are in forever so long as you don''t disgrace them. How are the other trade partners doing?"


    "Bj?rn established many partners that we still maintain today, along the Elbe River from Constantinople to Elg Hjem. Not just trade, mind you, we lend money in the larger trading cities. We also buy slaves in order to set them free or bring them north to be part of the family. Our village is very well known throughout the north and the east ¨C for many reasons."


    "So", Is?lde questioned, "how do you keep people honest and protect your assets from bandits? How do you get the money back to the village ¨C I have so many questions about your system. I know people, most are only honest to a certain point. Not just your people that lend money and such maybe skimming off the top, but it''s easy for magistrates, sheriffs, or mayors see your profit, and demand unfair taxes tribute."


    "We did of course, deal with some rough times. Now we trade post managers out yearly. We send several longboats south with warriors and new post managers, to take the place of the previous year''s post managers. We share the burden of being away, while at the same time trying and keep people from becoming corrupted with too much wealth or responsibility at their sole hands. We keep garrisons of our own warriors in several of the popular trading towns. They are there to deter black mail and keep people from stealing our interests. In return, we assist local magistrates or sheriffs with problems too large for them to handle. It keeps a semblance of security amongst our holdings and the garrisons are close enough together, in the event a sheriff or magistrate gets brave enough to think they could take from us, we are close enough to respond with additional Vikings."


    Is?lde was genuinely amazed, "You guys really have this together. You have a huge distribution ring and maintain command and control over thousands of miles. This is truly amazing."


    "Well, "Magnus responded, "we did have some problems, but Bj?rn had trust and faith in the All Father. He spoke often with the All Father asking for guidance in order to maintain control. It''s hard to explain, but we just know who to send and when. Our post managers and garrison commanders seem to always know when something wrong is on the winds ¨C and they are ready for whatever it is. We have certain things that we support, for the All Father, with our money. We free slaves and assist villages that need it, without asking for anything in return, because it''s the right thing to do. The All Father returns our kindness. It is the benefit of believing, it''s like a supernatural sixth sense."


    "My friend" Is?lde piped up, "you guys are absolutely amazing! Ooh, is that the longhouse?"


    "Yes, yes - here we are." Magnus grabbed Is?lde''s hand and pulled her down the large side street, passed the shops and houses, ignoring the confused stares of his people. "You are going to love this. We have the largest longhouse of all the clans. We love to feast and dance. We wanted to make sure there was room for the entire village. It just so happens we are having a feast, and you are here to enjoy it. Come, come..." Magnus called as he was dragging Is?lde with him.


    "Stop Magnus" an authoritative female voice grumbled, "Just because you''re the Jarl, doesn''t mean you get to go into the feast early. You have to wait, just like everyone else."


    Magnus looked down, to see Hilde - her right index finger jammed into his chest, right in his diaphragm. "Hilde" Magnus grinned, "I have a special guest I need to show around before the feasting starts. I won''t be able to keep her safe from the hens and show her around if I wait ¨C please let me take her now. I promise I won''t sample the feastings...too much." He smiled lovingly at her, "Besides auntie, who loves you the most, huh?" and pulled her into a caring bear/bull hug, placing his chin on her head.


    "Okay you giant brute, you do love me the most. BUT don''t put your fingers in the desserts ¨C unless you clean up well. Wash your friend up too, I don''t know where her fingers have been either." She pushed back from Magnus and as she turned away, she shot a wink at Is?lde. The pair kept walking toward the longhouse, Magnus excited to show Is?lde the village crown jewel.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    They approached the front of the longhouse, Is?lde could see it was twice again as long as it was wide, and as tall as four of five men ¨C gigantic for Vikings. The front doors were sturdy on silent hinges when Magnus pulled them open. As the pair entered, she noticed the interior was surprisingly bright ¨C at that moment, Isolde felt as if she had been transported to an emperor''s palace in the middle east. There were imported oil lamps built on to the roof support columns, straight out of the Byzantine empire. They each had clear glass shrouds that split the lantern light, making them more efficient. Mirrors on the back walls reflected light back to the center, and more lanterns adorned the three chandeliers that hung overhead along the length of the longhouse. Mildly stunned, Is?lde let out a small breath, "Magnus ¨C you guys are amazing. This is beautiful." Still grinning, Magnus replied, "Thank you. Our village has worked on this for many generations. Our trade with Constantinople has allowed us many inventions that we have not shared with others ¨C yet. We like to keep our edge; it reminds those others that we have knowledge unknown to them. It makes arrogant Jarls take a second though about raiding our village.


    Okay, let''s keep going. The blue, black, and white fabrics are hung on the wall and the tops of the columns to keep the echo down while we sing and dance. See how the centers of the outside walls fold down ¨C this is where we put the food when we feast. Now, the two banquet tables are set just far enough apart to allow two people to pass each other if needed. We also separated them, so you can pass from side to side without having to walk all the way to either end."


    "Umm", Is?lde pondered, "where is the big fire pit that most longhouse have?  Isn''t that a normal thing to have?"


    "Normal longhouses have them because they don''t have what we have ¨C let''s go back there" as he nodded his head to the far back wall. "The stone wall here, is actually the chimney and the back of the ovens that are used in the kitchen. The stones stay hot for a very long time, which keeps this end of the hall the warmest ¨C the guests and lamps keep the rest of the hall warm enough for everyone else. Also, our village shares smaller longhouse with each other ¨C we don''t all sleep here. It is dangerous, we could potentially lose almost all of the village if someone decides to bar the doors and set us on fire. Okay, that is a topic for another day. Let''s see the kitchen."


    Magnus took Is?lde to the right side of the large chimney and into the kitchen. The main thing that stood out to her, was the impressive amount of steel cook tops that these Vikings utilized. Stone and mortar firepits had the giant steel plates over the tops of them, where men and women could cook all manner of meat and vegetables. The ovens were filled with breads, pastries ¨C they were large enough to bake the quantities needed to feed the village.


    "Is?lde, you can see how the food starts in the middle there, with the hottest fires for baking and meat preparation. As the hearths move to everyone''s right, the fires are reduced in temperature to make vegetables and keep cooked food warm, to then move it easily out into the sitting area. The idea was brought back a few generations ago from the emperor of the Byzantine at the time ¨C one of the greatest entertainers of the world.


    What do you think? Do you have any questions?"


    Is?lde looked around the kitchen for a minute, "Magnus your people are just ingenious. I can truly appreciate what you have done. I can''t wait to try some of this amazing looking food."


    The pair was standing close to the ovens, as well as the food getting ready to be put out for the guests ¨C and nobody was looking at Jarl Magnus. He discreetly tugged her hand moving back out the way as he palmed a couple of berry filled pastries on their way out. Moving just out of sight of the kitchen, handed one to Is?lde and took a big bite of one for himself, looking her in the eye awaiting her reaction. Is?lde took a bite and closed her eyes, savoring the taste of the sweet treat. She chewed slowly and finished the last of the crumbs. Having nothing else on hand, she grabbed the apron attached to her skirt and gently wiped the crumbs from her lips, and offered it to Magnus, as he clearly needed it. He chuckled lightly and wiped his face.


    "We are early, let''s go back out and close the doors ¨C I need to set a good example as Hilde pointed out. The village will begin arriving soon and it''s my duty to welcome them all. We can talk some more about what you are actually doing here, later." Magnus gently took Is?lde''s hand and led her back outside, to the front of the longhouse, closed the doors, and sat down at one of the benches lining the road to the building.


    "So," Magnus started "I know about Demons, but more clearly now. I have met an angel of the Allfather, so I just have to wonder what else is out in the world that I have heard about, but thought was a tale...?" his tone indicating his longing question.


    Is?lde pursed her lips before starting to answer, "Pretty much everything you have ever heard of; faeries, dwarves, vampyr, werewolves, witches ¨C even other so-called gods, but with the lower case "g" ...are all based in some sort of truth, and they exist in one way or another. The Allfather has more than one story and has been around for eternity, humans have a limited understanding of their surroundings, but with your short life spans you can''t be expected to keep it all strait. The Allfather adapted his creations ¨C human and non-human ¨C to fit these limitations in understanding.


    Beings have existed for so many eons, and before the Allfather walked the world as Christ, humans and angels lived together. Angels were initially on earth to protect humans from the fallen. But the sneaky nature of the fallen made it extremely hard for angels to protect all humanity ¨C so of course demons took advantage of the humans, spawning pretty much all of the non-human ''beings'' that you know of in this day.


    Now, this is heavily debated among those who are in the know, but the Allfather eventually tired of the fallen mixing the blood of former angels and humans, which was spawning non-human offspring ¨C so he sent the fallen to the pit and took all the angels'' home. As I am sure you know, there are Nephilim that were the offspring of angels and humans, so not all angels are innocent either. The debate though, is, did the Allfather allow the creation of the non-humans or did the fallen do this without him ''knowing''... anyway, all of the non-humans were offspring of fallen angels and humans. When angels fell and became demons, their nature changed therefore changing the nature of the offspring ¨C they were NOT ''normal'' Nephilim.


    Anyway, yes ¨C all of the ''supernatural'' beings you have heard of do exist. Through the years these creatures roamed freely causing much harm to people, often using their strength and power to enslave them, feed on them, or use them like humans used animals. Humans always rose up and took down their harsh masters. Many millennia of confrontation have set fear into the human psyche, making it almost instinctual to destroy anything they don''t understand. This is why we don''t see the supernatural''s in the open today, they have been hunted to near extinction."


    Magnus rubbed his head with both hands, "Deep in my mind I thought that would be your answer, but I really hoped it wouldn''t be true. Obviously, we don''t have any problems around here ¨C I have never heard any stories of shape shifters or blood suckers. On a rare occasion, a hunter has come home talking about faeries or gnomes, but the village is apt to blame them for eating strange mushrooms or other foods that caused them to hallucinate.  I will have to consult the counsel and see when the last time a story was told about them.


    Well, it looks like you will get to tell me why you are really here another time ¨C here come our first guests." Magnus stood up and moved to the large barn doors, currently sealing off the longhouse. He grabbed them both, tugging backwards and letting them move outwards. His massive strength heaving them away from the opening, silently, to have the snap into the ingenious steel brackets that would hold them open until they needed to be closed. Magnus turned around, his solid arms opened wide and a huge grin on his face, "Welcome friends" he boomed, "come and be seated, the Allfather and I welcome you with open arms and the peace of Christ to the home and hearth of the place you helped to create!"


    Summer Feast


    It did not take that long for the villagers to arrive and fill the longhouse ¨C it was like church; everyone has their seats; they just have to plant their butts in the right spot. In order to avoid overcrowding the walkways, each family had one or two people to assist in getting horns of mead and water, while everyone else moved through the food line - in typical Elg Hjem fashion...engineered ''eating'' just like everything in the village. They loved efficiency, especially when it meant they could eat sooner than later. Along with eating, there was much banter, back slapping, and hugging as the people gathered from all corners of the village to drink and celebrate.


    Jarl Magnus, by tradition, was the first one to receive his horn of mead, but the last one to get his food. It was the Jarl''s traditional responsibility to ensure all the families were fed ¨C even though there was clearly enough food on this day, this was not always the case, therefore the tradition is always observed.


    Magnus''s large chair sat on a slightly elevated platform, positioned at the halfway point of the long banquet tables. Some Jarls proclaimed they sat upon a throne in their longhouses, but these people refused to use that term. The Jarl of Elg Hjem was one of the people, he or she was not the king, or the ruler; their Jarl was one of the people who worked, bled, and sometimes died along them in order to protect them. The platform and chair only elevated the Jarl because it was easier to speak to all the people.


    Is?lde sat on a padded chair to Magnus''s left, observing the activity. In turn, quite a bit of the commotion was the folk, observing Is?lde. She sat quietly with her own horn of mead and a good natured, friendly smile adorning her face. The smells of the kitchen mixed with the smells of the hard-working family of villagers, made her appreciate the type of loving and respectful nature of these people. Jarl Magnus was jovially bantering with anyone who would listen to his words, everyone was listening - he was a highly respected and beloved leader of these people.


    In much less time than Is?lde would have guessed, Hilde had brought a wooden plate of food to her and instructed Magnus to "get your ass over there and get some food so we can eat". He stepped down from the platform and gently spun Hilde to face him, reached under her armpits, held up and out just a bit from himself, then dropped her into bear hug and spun with her ¨C legs swinging out by the force ¨C and screaming for dear life. Magnus stopped after two revolutions and set her down facing the village. He placed his arm across her small but strong shoulders, "Listen up people" Magnus shouted over the din of conversation, "Let us shout Skald to the flawless engineer of feasting and revelry...skald to Hilde. One ¨C two ¨C three -Skald to Hilde!" He raised her left hand in his right, along with his left in a show of triumph. He looked over the crowd, and nearly the entire village shared the same pose. He dropped his hands, still holding Hilde''s, he turned to her seeing her flushed cheeks, dropped her hand and pulled her into a gentle embrace. He whispered into her ear, "Thank you Auntie, all silliness aside ¨C I miss father too. He will come back one day, until then, thank you for blessing us with your gifts. You make all of us feel like we are home."


    Magnus turned back toward the tables, and gently pushed Hilde in front of him, toward food, "You know I eat last, and I know you haven''t eaten yet." The pair walked toward the food as Is?lde lightly grazed over her own, impressed at the feeling of family camaraderie the was thick in the air. In most other villages, the warriors would have come to the feast drunk and started to fight almost as soon as they entered the doors. The Odinsson village was happy without the compromise of copious amounts of alcohol.


    Magnus ate his food quickly ¨C he was in a hurry for some reason that Is?lde could not quite understand... yet. He set his ceramic plate down on the dais and stepped off of it. Just to his right she noticed a beautiful brass gong she hadn''t seen before. Magnus grabbed the mallet hanging off of the stand ¨C it was covered in the same blue, black, and white cloth as the rest of the interior. He pulled his hand back and gently but forcefully struck the gong one time directly in the center. Less than two heartbeats later the entire longhouse was as silent as a graveyard on a Sunday night. All eyes were on Magnus as he stepped up on the dais of his chair, but he did not sit down.


    His eyes passed back and forth over villagers. His hands were clasped in front of him, fingers intertwined just below his leather belt. The look on his face did not betray anything ¨C no joy, anger, or sadness ¨C he was the perfect visage of absolute impassivity. His voice boomed powerfully throughout the longhouse, "I know that by now, you have all heard of my ¨C our... run in with Jarl Sigurd''s men early this afternoon. Sigurd''s men were trying to force us into making his boat out of turn...first by trying to convince me that Sigurd is somehow better than everyone else, then for the second insult ¨C those men thought to threaten my family - you. Well, in order to keep Airica Leifsdotter from outright killing them for that trespass, I immediately knocked them unconscious." As Magnus finished his sentence, he was looking across the aisle at a well-built brunet who looked, on one hand, irritated to be in her skirt ¨C and, on the other hand, a large grin on her face. He continued, "Sigurds three men were doused in salt water and either dragged or stumbled to the edge of village, then given a boot to the arse. Some of Tor''s scouts watched them leave from the treetops, making sure they actually left our land, no double cross. They even dropped their weapons in the spot where their boat had been ¨C knowing if they return to the same spot, their clan mates will probably find the discarded weapons. Should be fairly uncomfortable for somebody.


    What say you family ¨C how is this for fortune?" The village erupted in a cheer...completely not what Is?lde thought should be going on. She looked up at Magnus who noticed her and shot her a wink. "Sigurd Halfdan and Leif''s sons are here...did you know that?" He shouted over the dull cheer that turned into a big cheer. Is?lde was obviously missing something, just like Magnus said she was. "We have two days to prepare, and one more day before Sigurd, more than likely, show up with his men. I have the feeling that he will bring all of his warriors, but he won''t have enough time to pull in his vassals from the outlying villages. He will probably have one hundred, maybe ¨C maybe, one hundred and fifty seasoned fighters. I think this will be easier than we originally thought.


    Tor, have your scouts set up the archery warning system and have the archers in place by the morning of day three. I think we should prep oil and lard to torch half of his boats while they are fighting us. Teach them to mess with their betters...especially when they know they should leave us alone." The crowd was still shouting jovially and talking excitedly among themselves.


    Magnus continued, "Aivar, the eve of day two after most go to bed, uncover the pit and post guards to nobody sleepwalks into it. Also, that eve ¨C Airica, make sure the blunt shooters are set up. If for some reason Sigurd gets here early day three, or for some reason they don''t beach at the same spot, we don''t want to be surprised." The room began to chatter with some excitement, "HEY!!" Magnus bellowed, and the revelers quieted down, "The rest of you, dust off your hammers and prep your bows. We don''t want to kill anyone ¨C we are just going to give them all incredible headaches...and a ship load of broken bones ¨C woop!! Okay, serious talk is done, we are taking tomorrow off from work ¨C finish the feast, let''s dance!"

 Chapter 6 - The Last Battle - or One of Them

    Day three, sunrise ¨C Magnus was out, down by the shipyard appraising the defenses, making sure the pits were camouflaged well; checking on the archers with blunt rounds, ensuring they are clear of each other, and that ship components have been moved so they do not interfere with the shooting lanes. Lastly, ensuring the archer warning pits are prepped and loaded for torching when the time is ripe.


    Is?lde has come down to watch Magnus prepare for the upcoming battle. She notices his eyes looking and darting from one spot on the shore, up toward the village road, back to the shipyard proper, back, and forth...like he is walking through different outcomes, covering all of the possibilities in his head. She sidles up next to him, arms crossed and nestled across her ribs. "What are you thinking, Magnus?"


    "Oh" he drawls out, "just looking around to make sure we will have coverage for defense, in the rare instance any one from Sigurds gaggle of fools make it past me and the shipyard team. Unlikely, but plan for the best, prepare for the worst. That''s one of grandfather Bj?rn''s tenets. Sound advice. How are you ¨C what are your thoughts?"


    "Well, one question ¨C how do you know when the Jarls'' and his men will arrive?"


    Magnus grinned, "See the large pit at the edge of the shipyard, the one nobody is standing around?"


    "Yes"


    "We have a series of archers set up in the treetops, lined along the coast, that are watching the likely landing spots for any good, bad, or indifferent people. The archers are the best in the village, and when someone lands, the first archer to notice shoots an arrow to the next archer, who shoots an arrow to the next archer, and so on ¨C the last archer shoots a fiery arrow into that pit there, to light the wood dowsed in oil. Once that is alight, we know that something is coming. If Sigurd lands where we think he will, the archer warning will give us over an hour to be ready for his arrival. How is that for genius?"


    At that moment, a fire arrow landed in the pit igniting the wood...shortly followed by one more fiery projectile. "30 minutes folks, Sigurd will be here in a half hour!" Magnus moved toward the shore to stand on the scaffold, next to one of the boats under construction, so he could get a better view of the shoreline. The rest of the village dropped whatever tasks they were performing and moved into position. All of the tools of the war trade had already been put into position. The blunt archers strung their bows and double checked their arrow stock. The blunts were arrows weighted with small, metal, flat plates instead of broadheads. The plates had just enough surface area that they would not normally pierce the skin; and the bows were set up with a lower draw weight, but they could still kill if they hit you right. They definitely deterred most people, as the enemy could not tell that the 35 archers looking at you, did not have broadheads loaded in the weapon.


    The pit markers were moved...under normal circumstances, the pits were covered with stout wooden lids...so you couldn''t fall in. When they were to be used for defending the village, they were marked with some small stakes, just as a reminder that the pits were primed. These were not anything except empty holes, about eight feet deep ¨C not sharpened stakes dipped in feces or anything like that. They were just used to keep people out of a fight after they fall in, to be released after the invaders get their asses kicked.


    The final piece of the force du jour (look it up...) were the trained warriors. Bo staffs, mallets, and shields all prepped to break bones in case the archers did not scare the attackers off ¨C which was normally the case, some Vikings are not very bright. The highly skilled operators were the last line of defense, but of course, in the nearly impossible chance that anyone made it past them, the veterans and the trainee warriors were more than likely to dispatch any of those perpetrators.


    "Gunther" Magnus shouted, "get my heavy Bo staff and tell everyone else...we'' going for blood. Sigurd and many of his men are possessed. This has escalated, get the children and non-combat trained out of the village, we are initializing plan B."


    Is?lde ran over to Magnus, "What in the seven levels of heaven is going on Magnus?"


    "I can see the smokey auras, Is?lde. Sigurd is the darkest, and a lot of his men have the lighter fire...at least twelve or fifteen of them.  Uh, it seems like I am going to have to instigate single combat as soon as I can. I am sure our best warriors can take out all of the lesser demon''s, no problem...but I can''t take any chances, and I don''t want the demon to use his demon powers to hurt any of my family."


    "How do you know Sigurd''s demon will accept single combat, Magnus?"


    "Through the ages, the tales speak of demons, requesting single combat, because they presumably aren''t patient...they like to fight one on one. The demon requests single combat of the Odinsson leader ¨C but in the end, they clearly didn''t know who they are fighting with, the demon gets killed and the minions turn to smoke...or something ¨C it always seemed to work out. The caveat here, Odinssons'' have always been the attacker, never the attacked. The demons seem to have a strict code, that if single combat is proclaimed, there are rules that must be followed, otherwise they will probably be destroyed by the All Father. I gotta'' feeling, this is what I need to do."


    "Okay Magnus, if you do have that feeling, you need to call off the evacuation. If you have that feeling in your guts, and it''s the All Father talking, if you evacuate, it is like you are not trusting in Him...call off the evacuation and fight Sigurd ¨C that is what you need to do."


    "Oh, Is?lde I know what you are saying, but it hurts my spirit to know I am not being cautious...Gunther" Manus shouted, "call off plan B but hurry the hell up an get me my heavy Bo staff!"


    Magnus was keeping his eye on the coast, watching the western side of the shipyard ¨C slowly edging toward the village, angling toward a large open spot between the ship scaffolds and his little hut. It was flat and mostly compact sand, a great spot for a fight. Gunther came running down to the shipyard with Magnus'' heavy Bo staff as the first of the enemy heads were peaking up over the sand dunes. This mammoth Bo staff was a seven-foot piece of Ash hardwood with veins of iron running up the shaft, every 90 degrees. The ends were set with heavy iron spikes, perfect for stabbing.


    Magnus turned and looked at his family, a scowl running across his brow, he gave the family a head nod, saying ''I got this''. "Is?lde, please make sure my auntie is kept calm ¨C she tends to get a bit agitated. I''ll be back shortly." Magnus moved away from Isolde and Isolde moved toward auntie Hilde. The electric tension was about ready to blow.


    Magnus could now see fully the forces that Sigurd had brought to bear. It was clear that Oskar had gone, and full blown sold his soul. Magnus witnessed Oskar next to Sigurd, the two demons bickering under whispered breath, he could see the smokey aura and the creepy eyes that now peered from Oscar''s brutish brow. The force was fifty yards away and closing, the demon''s bickering coming to an end - and Oskar''s impatience was clear as he broke away from the formation, charging Magnus with his short sword and shield, poised for bloodletting.


    Sigurd pursed his lips and shook his head in dismay at the apparent defiance of one of his minions ¨C but he also did not stay the possessed man either. Oskar moved across the ground at speeds much greater than a human could attain, with his short sword raised in his right hand and shield bound to his left arm, his intent clear. The moment Oskar was within reach of Magnus'' heavy Bo staff - he simply swept the staff to his left, pushing aside the sword, spinning counter clock-wise and moving slightly to his right, and as he drew back for a swing, letting the staff slide up his grip so he had the force of the entire seven feet of hard wood, and swung the staff so the iron tip hit Oskar right at the base of the skull, severing the spine, and dropping him dead, d ¨C e ¨C d dead. The look on the demon''s face, Sigurds face ¨C confused and priceless.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    Magnus finished with a short spinning flourish ending with the staff in his right hand, running parallel to his forearm, behind his back. "Sigurd" Magnus bellowed, "this ends here...you and me, quie est homo ¨C single combat."


    "Oh, ho Magnus" Sigurd mused, "so, you think you are going to call me out? I really have no idea what you are talking about. Your village must learn it''s place ¨C you are nothing Magnus, you are here to serve your betters, and we are going to use your family as an example to the rest of the villages."


    "I know the rules Sigurd, or whoever you are. This isn''t my family''s first "ship build", we''ve been fighting your kind for generations demon. I call on the right to single combat. Your ass hattery will end here, today."


    Demon Sigurd''s face twisted into a rictus of confusion and anger, he was now twice as befuddled and confused as before. "So, you can ''see'' me?" the demon asked, his eyes squinting, like he was asking a painful question that he already knew the answer to. "And ass hattery...what in the devil, literally, is that?"


    "Yes, you goat loving shat sack, I can ¨C don''t'' worry about being an ass hat, it''s in your makeup, it''s what makes you, you. Besides, you should have asked around before you started this garbage, even Oskar knows you don''t mess with Odinsson''s. We''ve a reputation beyond these shores, for being able to build boats and the kick ass, folks don''t mess with us ¨C I would have thought you''d figured that out...although something has recently seemed a bit off about you and your village, now I know why. So, don''t give me any shit about not knowing single combat, and bring your sorry, sadistic ass up here for a beating."


    Now, Sigurd was fully annoyed ¨C with himself. Magnus was correct, he, the demon, did not really know anything about his chosen enemy. His mind began churning up some long-lost memories of a northern family that had been wreaking havoc on his brethren...for several generations. Sigurd unslung his claymore from his back as he stalked to meet with Magnus, shrugged off the sheath and his fur''s. As soon as he stepped into the proverbial ring ¨C Sigurd struck with the speed of a puma, and the strength of a bear.


    Magnus was chanting under his breath, praying to the All Father to give him strength, speed, and resolve ¨C as Sigurd moved to strike, Magnus could feel a tingling in his body, urging him to move at just the right time, Magnus pivoted left and swung his staff up to deflect the strike. Sigurd was deflected off and turned to see that Magnus had already reset his position, prepared for the next strike. Sigurd was utterly confused, this demon form had never missed a strike, never, and here was Magnus ready for round two. This was not processing in Sigurd''s mind ¨C he kept waiting for the slo-mo of Magnus'' torso to slide off of the waist...Sigurd had never missed.


    Now enraged, Sigurd was stalking, circling slowly to his left. His claymore was poised low, off of his left hip...circling. Magnus, chanting never ceasing his battle hymn, began to spin his staff. Practiced movements that were as natural to him now as breathing. Even Is?lde had never seen a person with such perfected movements. Sigurd struck again, his telegraphed strike easily blocked by Magnus'' practiced swing, but Sigurd struck again, and again, and again. Magnus watching and feeling the attack angles and speed from his opponent, little nuances giving Magnus feedback of what Sigurd would do next. Another flurry of strikes from Sigurd and Magnus had worked him to where he wanted, Magnus spun his staff across his back and ducked the next strike from Sigurd and turned the tables.


    Spinning to his right, Magnus gave a full swing of his staff across Sigurd''s shoulders followed by a battery of strikes, and a stab to Sigurds throat. Sigurd dropped to his knees and limply grabbed the staff in a futile effort to pull it out. Magnus stepped close, and put his left foot on Sigurds chest, and pushed ¨C Sigurd fell limply to the ground, across his dropped sword ¨C the crowd erupted in a cheer...all except Is?lde, she looked at Magnus, like, ''what are you doing stupid''?


    Magnus turned to see Sigurd pushing himself up off of the ground, picking up his sword, "One" Sigurd croaked out, "I will give you one, now it''s my turn..."


    The brutality of the next set of strikes was nothing short of cataclysmic. Sigurd pounded on Magnus and his staff, strike after powerful strike ¨C Magnus could not gain any ground to build a defensive position, let alone attack, he was in survival mode. Magnus could still feel that tingling ¨C a sixth sense in his body, little impulses to his hands and feet guiding him to avoid or block the oncoming strikes, it was time to let them be his guide.


    Magnus rolled backward after Sigurds next powerful overhand strike and prepared himself to defend. Sigurd, seeing his enemy standing tall, began chopping at him like a lumberjack ¨C chop, chop, chop...but Magnus timed his blocks perfectly, and positioned his staff to take the blows ¨C chop, chop, chop...Magnus'' staff was cut in half! Sigurd chopped again but missed. He raised his claymore, putting all of his strength into one final blow, as he paused at the peak of his strike, Magnus had already flipped the staff pieces around in his hands and staking Sigurds right foot to the ground and planting the other half into his left thigh. Incredulously, Sigurd looked Magnus in the eye, as Magnus stepped around the back of Sigurd, his left arm wrapping around his throat while disarming him with his right.


    Magnus brutally shucked Sigurd to the ground ¨C that was awkward since his right foot had been pinned ¨C Magnus was now holding the claymore in his hands. "No, no!" Sigurd shouted, "this isn''t how this happens..."


    Magnus, eyeing the crowd, he pursed his lips in a ponderance, "I guess you have to cut off the head...who knew? Well, we should probably clear that up with the next generation." Magnus stepped forward and finished the single combat.


    The crowd was not as eager to voice their praise this time ¨C the village felt like they had won, but ya'' know, Sigurd stood up last time he got a pointy thing in his throat - now the tortured sounds of Sigurds demonic minions began to fill the stunned silence. The possessed humans were going through various episodes of writhing as their bodies began to dissipate into smoke. Each one, leaving a greasy spot on the ground where they had just been standing.


    Aunt Hilde was the first one to break the second round of stunned silence ¨C "Magnus, watch those worthless home wreckers...they aren''t all demons, but that doesn''t mean they aren''t moronic brutes."


    Magnus turned to look down the beach to survey the mob. The remaining men and women were all armed, but they were also just as stunned as everyone else. Magnus beckoned over his shoulder, reaching out like he was pulling his lieutenants up close to him. "Spread out guys" he told them, "Take it easy, we are all a bit confused, Sigurds people that are left, more so. Calm them, back pats or whatever ¨C gently sheath or holster their weapons."


    Magnus pointed and shouted out to the big man closest to him, several yards back from the edge of the fight, "Hey there big man, look at me please..." the big man shaking his head like he was clearing a sleepy stupor, "oh, there ya'' go ¨C yeah, what you just saw was real, and it was all real for your friends there." Magnus paused, the big man from Sigurds crew stopped and turned around, his back to Magnus. The crew were in turn just simply looking at each other, not quite believing what actually happened, even though there were more than just a few witnesses.


    "Uh, okay now guys, not really sure what to tell you ¨C but Sigurd, this Sigurd was a man that sold his soul to the devil, you know Helheim, devils, and all that?" Magnus was trying to explain, and yet still not instigate additional violence. "What''s your name big man, turn back around, let''s have a chat, okay?" The big man sheathed his sword, "I am Jonas. Magnus, what was that?  Sigurd had changed some time back, getting all weird and crazy over the smallest things. Then, when we heard he wanted to raid your village, we...apparently the ones not possessed, were too afraid to say anything to him, for fear of death. Sigurd had already killed many of our friends, brutally. We are sorry to come here, but we were all so afraid of that brutal man ¨C thing, whatever, we just went along with the madness hoping to survive."


    The big man, and his companions looked both relieved and afraid, not sure what to do next. Magnus signaled his people to stand down and eased his way over to Jonas, facing him, put one hand on each shoulder. Magnus looked up to the others, and signaled for them to circle around, and proceeded to explain to them the truth ¨C demon''s, the All Father, all of it.


    Meanwhile, Aunt Hilde began to bring the village back together. The pits covered, weapons stowed, food prepared ¨C all the important things that needed to happen when people have just found out the world, they thought they knew, was really not. The people of Elg Hjem would do what they could to ease the burden of these other villagers, their brothers, and sisters, as they welcomed them to the truth.


    Magnus briefly explained to the people of Deep Wood what they had witnessed. He did not have time to personally explain everything to them, so he sent a contingent of lightly armed warriors and some warrior priests with the small fleet, back to their home. It would not be easy explaining a lifetime of belief and culture was not what it really seemed.

 Chapter 7 - Lessons

    Is?lde had disappeared over the days that it took to smooth everything out. She was excited to know she had found the person she was looking for. She began to mentally prepare the regimen she would use to make Magnus the best fighter on earth - ever. She was also glad that she would be able to fulfill her oath to Michael ¨C the angel of butt kickin''.


    In her mind, she could see morning wakeups, long runs up the mountains, chasing chickens, all the "fun" activities for making a person stronger and faster. She knew he was good, but she was excited to make him better, to hone and polish his unrefined edges. Is?lde had literal eons of experience and time to hone her skills ¨C skill and experience beats brute strength every time. She had dispatched more demons than she cared to count; experience was her business. She had realized some time ago, fighting was really just a dance, albeit a brutal one ¨C there are just so many ways one can move their feet and hands...and she could dance better than any being ¨C except for the Arch Angel Michael, well, and some or most of the other archangels ¨C but who''s counting?


    Today was her day, preparations were complete ¨C time to move. At dawn, she dropped down to Magnus'' humble little hut, and began to bang on the door and shout, "Magnus. Magnus. Hey, get up sleepy head, I have something to tell you. Rise and shine."


    Is?lde was completely taken aback that Magnus was not opening the door ¨C with a mallet in his hand, looking to see what the racket was about and dispatch it with reckless abandon. She knocked three more times...four more times ¨C no answer. She slid the bolt back that held the door closed, and slowly pushed it open for a glimpse inside. A small table and two chairs, cold fire pit, and a rustic end table next to his bed ¨C the furs covering the down stuffed mattress were smooth, just like Magnus had either not gone to bed, or he was already up and had moved on to the shipyard. She entered the abode taking stock of the well-kept leader''s home. All of the other villagers lived in communal long houses for protection and warmth, but the leader of Elg Hjem always opted for their single dwelling, they felt it kept them unbiased from the happenings among the tribe - maintaining equality and fairness.


    As Is?lde was pondering what to do next, she heard a bit of commotion outside, coming from the northwest. She quickly ducked back out to investigate. Turning the corner of the path that led up to the church, came Magnus leading a crew of people. The group was moving down the path at a brisk pace, two columns led by Magnus in front middle, there were men and women, late teens to late 50''s, running in step to a chant that sounded a lot like a prayer.


    The closer they got to Magnus'' home Is?lde could see the joyful look on his face. Magnus glanced over his should and quickly barked out an order...as the column closed in on Is?lde, Magnus stepped out of the line and yelled, "I will see you after we break fast ¨C good job today, the Allfather bless you!" and he came to stop next to the waiting angel.


    "Well, hello there, smiley" Is?lde quipped, "What has you grinning from ear to ear?"


    "Happy? Seeing your smiling face makes me happy. I did not see you the day after the fight, I was stunned when I couldn''t find you. Oh, and working out makes me happy, too." Magnus stretched his hands out in front of him, flexed and raised the straight out, stretching out to keep acid from building up in his muscles. "My number one team, we get up early, sometimes before daybreak, depending on the time of year, and run up to the training grounds, and do weapons practice and some sparring. It is very invigorating, especially in the winter. So, what about you, we never really did finish our conversation...about that boat?"


    The pair stood staring at each other, both with a bit of a smirk on their faces. Is?lde broke the silence, she reached out as to grasp Magnus in a left handed "shake", but as he went to accept her hand, she snatched his wrist, pivoted her hips to him, posted her free hand under his elbow, and proceeded to snap and flip Magnus on to his back...she gazed on Magnus'' stunned face, "How about we go inside your home, and I will tell you why I am here, and how I will pay for a boat." Is?lde reversed her grip, and with unseen strength pulled Magnus to his feet, turned, and headed through the front door of his home.


    Inside, Is?lde sat in a chair as Magnus used his wash basin and towel. The lovely angel, albeit dangerous, sitting in Magnus'' home, smirking at him ¨C while he wondered, just exactly, what in the name of the Allfather had just happened to him, by this woman.


    "Come and sit Magnus, let me tell you the reason I am here", her voice taking on a bit of a serious tone. As he was finishing and moving to the other side of the table, Is?lde continued, "We talked quite a bit earlier, but I knew you had some things to take care of after the fight and I didn''t want to distract you, that was very important."


    She continued as he took a chair, "You had obviously known about demons prior to us meeting, right, very solid proof ¨C and now I am assuming my presence will also solidify the proof of good that also exists, but you hadn''t seen before. I know you believe in your Allfather, my Grandfather, but I think you will have a new appreciation for his existence and how the world truly works. Are you following me, Magnus?"


    Magnus nodded and smiled skittishly, but still smiled "Oh, I most certainly am. You, your presence is like uh, like a new invention that you thought would work ¨C in your mind you could see it, but then, when you build it, and it works better than expected ¨C that is how I feel right now. You are confirming all of the things my people already knew."


    Is?lde smiled, too, and reached for Magnus'' hand...which he snapped back ¨C she laughed lightly, "I will not pull any more tricks...at least not today. Give me your hand." Magnus gingerly reached across the table, and she picked it up, gently but firmly in her left, her right she rested on the top of both of them, "Magnus, I want to reassure you I am real, I am physical, I am here to help you understand the full depths of the world you live in." She looked confidently into his eyes, waiting for a sign that let her know, he understood what she was talking about, a small nod of his head -


    "You asked me about other ''things'' living in our world, do you remember?"


    "Yes, I remember" Magnus noted, some question in his tone.


    "The Allfather, El Elyon, he doesn''t have just one story, like I said, Magnus, he is much bigger than that, he is the ''story'' that people need, when they need it. The Assyrians, the Israelites, the Greeks, the Romans, and even those beings that remain unseen, because that is how Grandfather makes the world go ''round. Before I go on, do you know what I mean?"


    "So, you are saying that the Allfather, at one time, really would have been Odin, or Wodin, because that is what my ancestors needed ¨C yes?"


    "Yes", she responded optimistically, "What else?"


    "Okay, now as we, the villagers, are maturing, it is time to see the real meaning behind the veil, time to grow up...kind of like the same way we stop telling fairy tales to children?"


    "Yes" she smiled, "that is exactly how to look at it. So now I get to tell you, the fairy tales you tell the children, especially the ones to scare them ¨C there is some truth to all of those." Is?lde stopped, and looked down the bridge of her nose, in a very Aunt Hilde tone, "are you ready for this?"


    Magnus, under his breath prayed "Father, please prepare me for what I am about to hear" and nodded to the angel who knows stuff.


    Is?lde briefly closed her eyes, remembering some time past, before starting her history lesson, "Before the time of Adem and Eva, The Creator made the earth on which we stand. For angels, this was below the realm we called home, my Grandfather had to create something from nothing. Like many things, like ships or a longhouse, there is an underlying framework. For the land where humans live, that framework is known as the Fae. Like the framework of a ship or longhouse, you can''t really see it, it is in those places that people don''t pay attention to ¨C unless you look. Also like the frame of a ship, the Fae holds all of the natural world together - seasons, weather, land, sky ¨C all the parts of the earth you don''t see because you aren''t looking, but it''s there."


    Is?lde stopped, looking like Aunt Hilde once again, gazing deeply into Magnus'' eyes, "Okay, you get what I mean so far? I am going to add some mind twisting information as we go on..."


    "Yes, I see. No one sees the ribs of my boats, they are covered by the floor...and gear, and such. I know what you mean. Let''s keep going."


    "Unlike the frames of the things you know, the Fae framework has, uhh, not humans living in it, but...other types of people like...beings, maybe. Yeah, I like the term "being" because they do exist. The beings that live there look a lot like humans, one head ¨C two arms ¨C two legs, but that is where most of the similarities stop. These beings are of various sizes, shapes, skin color and texture. Some of these beings resemble animals you may recognize, but they act and speak at a completely human level."  Magnus'' face was twisting into a bit of a grimace with disbelief. "I am serious Magnus" she jibed, "I knew you wouldn''t believe me. Now remember, you believe in some creator nobody sees, and now you are having a conversation about strange beings, with an angel ¨C why can''t something else weird exist?"


    "Ughh" Magnus choked out, "you are so right. I shouldn''t be so...skeptical. I''ve beat down Demons and watched their corpses turn to smoke. This is a lot to take in ¨C I feel like I need to warm up, we even let the donkeys warm up before we stack the big loads on them, you know what I mean?" Magnus paused and took a deep breath, "Okay, go - again."


    "Fae is ruled primarily by the Winter and Summer queens, and their courts ¨C you would know them as D?kk¨¢lfar ("Dark Elves") and Lj¨®s¨¢lfar ("Light Elve") from your Norwegian folklore. So, summer and winter are the apex opposites, and the other seasons fall in the middle, which in turn give diversity to the lengths of the seasons. The kingdom courts and the beings that rule them, really in turn, take care of the natural order of things that people don''t see. The plants and animals, the flow of the waters, all of the natural movement you take for granted ¨C is because of the Fae. The different species of the Fae, make nature happen here."


    Is?lde needed a short break. She grabbed the drinking water and two wooden mugs, "Well, no mead, my friend, how would you like some water?"


    "Ah, of course, that would be nice."


    She served up some water, and the two sat in silence for a short time, "So, I know it''s lot to take in. I promise you, if you want me too, I will take you there ¨C there is a way. "


    "Oh, I don''t know. That is too far out of my control."


    Is?lde scoffed, "You kill demons with an over-sized stick ¨C you can handle the Fae...well they have magic, we will get you some tattoos to ward that off..."


    "No, no ¨C not...what are you talking about, now magic and tattoos?"


    "Noo...", Isolde used a soothing voice, "Magic is really not like the stories, the Fae are more sensitive to their surroundings, and they are mentally able to touch them and control them. Because of this, Grandfather created some written protections, it is the language of the angels. If the Fae wanted to come to this world, it would not be a fair fight without those protections. It is about balance; you just have to write on your skin", she smiled.


    "Okay, okay, okay" Magnus sighed, "That is a while out, you mentioned we can get to Fae, if we are looking, tell me what we are looking for."


    "Oh, fun times ¨C there are certain times of the day and some locations that make it easy to get between, what we call the veil. The ''frame'' Grandfather made, the individual pieces are called ley lines, and where those converge, they contain more power. When the night gets to what we call, the time between times, on those convergences, you can pass through the veil. The time between times is where darkness falls and keeps getting darker, it is that time when the night is done, and it starts changing into day ¨C the darkest right before dawn. During the spring and summer solstices, though, the veil is the thinnest. For Fae to come to this world, they don''t really care, but if they did want to come through, they would pass during a solstice."


    Is?lde stopped for more water, the Aunt Hilde look was now back ¨C looking down her nose. "Drink Magnus, we aren''t done yet. I still have to tell you about my brothers after the fall, that is gonna get deep, there is some real nasty creatures there."


    "Okay, this is getting to be too much, hang on." Magnus grabbed his massive longbow and a strange-looking arrow. He stepped out the door facing the village, lifted the bow, drew the arrow, and released. He came back in, unstrung, and put away his bow, "Okay, five minutes."This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "Enlighten me please?" she asked suspiciously.


    Incredulously he replied, "Gunther will bring mead, this shit is too much."


    "You haven''t even eaten breakfast yet,"


    "Oh yeah...you''re right." Magnus stood back up, got his bow, grabbed another strange-looking arrow, stepped out and fired. He came back in and sat, "Okay, some breakfast now too...so maybe wait five more minutes", the big smiled deviously, "It pays to be the Jarl, what can I say."


    The time passed quickly, and Gunther showed up with mead and breakfast, "Okay, keep going. I couldn''t do this on an empty stomach...especially after working out."


    Isolde gently shook her head in mock disbelief, winked at Gunther as left the pair, "So, don''t forget a few days back ¨C I mentioned the fallen angels taking advantage of human women...Fallen angels loved women and they had no issues with taking what they wanted. The result of these relationships was often more abominable than just giants ¨C blood suckers, werewolves, witches, satyrs, sirens...pretty much any story with a scary monster, the monster was a mix of angel male and human female. There now, let your imagination run wild."


    Magnus had to stop chewing his breakfast before he choked on it. He was not a bible scholar by any means, but he could definitely NOT remember any of the priests talking about mixed offspring of humans and angels...he was pretty well floored at this point.


    Is?lde reached out and gently slapped magnus on the cheek, attempting to get him out of his current stupor. Magnus lightly shook his head, and with a bit of trouble, swallowed his last bite of food followed by a large pull of mead, "You mean to tell me, all of the things that go bump in the night are real, and they are either creations of the All father to keep our world working right, or offspring of angels and humans ¨C you gotta be kidding?"


    "Not necessarily all of the things that go bump in the night are those things...the yeti is real; he just hides well. Not to mention, the Fae don''t really bump anywhere ¨C you just have to know how to bargain if you go to the Fae lands...but yes, the other mixed-up things, those go bump ¨C and sometimes hurt normal people, or sometimes frequently. I had to wipe out a city of vamps that got too big a few millennia ago. The Allfather has plans for all of the creatures ¨C there are no accidents, but free will gets in the way, especially when Lucifer is stoking the fire, so I had to step in before humanity was too damaged."


    "Wow...do I gotta start looking under my bed again, I stopped doing that decades ago...but I also stopped believing back then too?" Magnus'' look was truly puzzled, and Is?lde laughed lightly, "No mister, you don''t...but I am sure if something sneaks up on you, you are more than enough to take whatever it is down."


    The two sat in silence for a time, Magnus processing the huge amount of information that was dropped on him. He took a deep breath, "Alright...yep, that is a lot of stuff to deal with. Hmmm ¨C when you first got here, you were talking about buying a boat ¨C basically trading me something for a boat...please tell me it''s NOT just this punch to the gut of information you gave me, is there something else that is part of our ¨C no, your one-sided deal?"


    "Well, yes...yes there is. Now that you are aware of the true nature of the world at large" the beautiful angel paused, "you will need to be able to take care things, especially since I will not be able to stay around forever. It is my duty ¨C I actually lost a bet to the angel Michael ¨C to teach you how to subdue these things that go bump in the night, as well as, dealing with the Fae." She finished her sentence with a bit of a snap, sat back in her chair and clapped her hands ¨C looking Magnus square in the eye.


    "Wait..." Magnus pipe in, "You are here because you lost a bet to the angel Michael?"


    "Yes, you may know him as Tyr, Mars, or Aries. He, uhh, he really knows how to fight. I lost a bet to him, so now it is my job to come and teach the Allfather''s greatest champion ¨C how to be a better fighter."


    Magnus face palmed himself, "Okay ¨C this whole thing is sooo weird ¨C crazy even; you, Jarl Sigurd, finding out about monsters...Okay Is?lde, I need to go get some people working on boats, and I need to think about all of the things that you just told me...''Allfather''s greatest champion'', is that what you just said?" Magnus asked incredulously, his eyes nearly going crossed.


    She smiled, "Yes Magnus, believe it or not, you are my Grandfather''s greatest champion. He doesn''t look at just your combat prowess, but he has considered your heart and spirit ¨C you love Him, and you love your people and always serve the greater good. Don''t let this go you your head Magnus, but you are the best man I have ever met or even heard of, and I am going to make you better."


    Magnus shook his head, like he was shaking off a blow between the eyes, "You can stay here, but I am sure you get around just fine, or you can visit with Aunt Hilde, she was asking about you. Just do NOT tell her anything you told me; you hear? I am going to go get some birch bark water, my head hurts."


    She stood up from the table, grinning, "Magnus, I am a lot of things ¨C but crazy is not one of them. I will see you later, then." And she headed out the door.


    Magnus took a deep breath and exhaled, looked up to the ceiling and closed his eyes, and offered a short and to the point prayer, "Allfather, please bring me guidance and peace." He then stood, changed into his work clothes, and headed to the shipyard.


    The walk to the village was calm and the cool air helped to settle his mind and sort out the "stuff'''' that he just learned. He had no trouble accepting the supernatural, he had heard the stories of demons growing up ¨C his own father and grandfather fighting more than one. If you accept demons, you will have to accept angels, and if you are going to go that far, you really have to accept all of the other things. Knowing and accepting these truths, he felt it was now his calling to be able to take care of these monsters, and if he had someone, an angel, to teach him how to do this ¨C lost bet or not, one might as well take advantage of it. The Allfather delivered on his prayer, it was a short walk to the village and Magnus felt good about his decision, knowing the peace of the Allfather is all the answer he needed.


    "Yo, Magnus, over here..." shouted a heavy-set man, partially covered in baking flour. Halvor''s bakery was one of the first buildings Magnus passed every day heading into the village, as it was close to the edge ¨C bread and pastries were easier to move than timber and iron, so it was set farther away from the shipyard.


    "Halvor, my favorite tradesman ¨C what can I do for you?" Magnus met the large man with a handshake just outside the front door of the bakery.


    "Little J?n just came back from Frostwood, we make a couple deliveries a week up to them ¨C they love our maple pastries ¨C anyway, he heard something from their elders, they have seen a giant white bear around the area, and from the sounds of it, it was an extremely large bear." Halvor scrunched his eyebrows together, looking almost longingly at Magnus ¨C waiting for his reply, knowing what he would say.


    "Halvor, we don''t have white bears here...sailors have seen them much further north, out in the sea by the Svalbard islands but not here. I know it is difficult to confuse white bears and brown bears, but are the elders sure?"


    "J?n kept listening, as he is his mother''s son ¨C just in case there was more we should know. One of the elder''s daughters works specialty leather, and she makes deliveries to Jula, which you know is further north, the weapon smith''s wife told her, one of the hunters had seen a giant white bear even further north. To top that off, this hunter had run across several moose carcasses, and...the carcasses were not stripped to the bone, like a normal kill; these moose were killed, and it seemed like it was for sport he said, the carcasses were not eaten, they were left alone by other animals, like the kills were tainted or so spoiled the wolves and big cats wouldn''t even touch them."


    Magnus crossed his beefy arms across his chest, lost in thought, "This is very mysterious Halvor. I will pray on this, please don''t let J?n travel alone to the north until we figure this out. I will alert the guard; they will send an escort with him the next time he goes. If you hear anything else, please let me know. Please tell Helga to take care of whom she tells ¨C we don''t want to spread panic if we don''t need to. Thanks for letting me know, I will get to the shipyard now." Magnus patted Halvor on the arm and proceeded to make his way to work.


    As Magnus made his way to the yard, he waved to his friends, to his family, happy to be passed the issues with Jarl Sigurd. The yard was not the bustle of activity it normally would be, Magnus was sure they were regaling the activity of the last few days. When he stopped in their midst the chatter died down. He pulled in next to Astrid, she was mast builder and one of his best foreman. "Astrid, what do you hear of the village Deep Wood?"


    "The priests and just a couple of Tor''s guys stayed with them ¨C quite a bit to come to grips with. All in all, I hear they are doing good. Tor says they are really open to the idea that Odin is actually our Allfather, so that is good to. Hmm...Magnus you can''t avoid talking about this with us, you were incredible. We have fought and trained with you for years, we have never seen you move the way you did."


    Magnus gripped his chin with his left hand, pondering his reply, "Well guys, that wasn''t me, I was literally channeling the Allfather. If it was not for me giving myself to my inside feelings, Sigurd would have cut me in two. Let this be a lesson to you, when in doubt, let the Allfather lead. Anyway, stop gobbling like a gaggle of geese, and let''s go to work. Do you have any work-related questions for me?" Magnus looked around the group to see if anyone needed a question answered ¨C as usual, they were on task and good to go. "Okay, then ¨C who it on security this today?" Almost as one, the crew replied "Broddi".


    "Broddi, of course it''s Broddi ¨C why wouldn''t it be...great." Magnus mumbled to himself as he turned to the heart of the village and moved off to see Broddi, the crankiest, oldest, and orneriest warrior left in the village.


    Villagers took turns performing security around the settlement, which mostly entailed making sure the youngsters did not get too far out of line and ensure some strange wild animals did not make their way to the off-beat areas where work was being done. On occasion small brown bears or pumas would find their way to the tannery of or the dye hut, since they used animal products to make their goods ¨C they sometimes think there is a meal to be taken. Village elders did not travel the security paths, but they managed those who did. The ensured schedules were kept or passed on special tasks and information to those walking the beat, like keeping an eye out for giant white bears or ensuring anyone who had a need to travel between villages, got an escort, in case they came across a giant white bear. Now, giving Broddi information and expecting him to keep that quiet ¨C he was worse than the entire women''s circle combined. Magnus had to admit though, Halvor the baker''s wife already knew something of the gossip ¨C so this wasn''t going to stay quiet much longer anyway.


    Magnus reached the front of the guard house, "Broddi" he shouted thru the front door, "you ol'' nag, get yourself out here where we can talk...I have news". The sun was shining in Magnus'' eyes, so he had a hard time seeing to the interior of the house, but he knew Broddi was in the back room, more than likely mixing his tea with some "medicinal" remedy made from rye or barley. Broddi did like to tip his meds just a bit, but he did not get carried away and as long as he was coherent, Magnus gave the old veteran his due. Broddi had more axe time than any three warriors currently in the village - he had more than earned the respect of the village ¨C Magnus just liked to harass him, so he stayed on his toes.


    Broddi came to the front door, acting like he did not know who was waiting for him, clay mug in his left, so he promptly slapped Magnus with his right hand ¨C Magnus let it land and played into the action, acting like it was more powerful than it was. "Don''t you get snappy with me you giant moose, Magnus, I was killing demons and Syrians before you were even thought of." Broddi stepped back with a big grin on his face, "What can I do you now, son? But I ain''t jokin'' about getting snappy though, you know I need my medicine."


    Magnus recovered, gently rubbing his cheek, giving Broddi some satisfaction. "Broddi, we have a giant white bear roaming the south ¨C we need to keep an eye out and beef up patrols." Magnus relayed the stories he had heard to date but could not even finish before Broddi cut him off ¨C abruptly, "Already done you smart aleck kid, Frieda ¨C the baker''s wife ¨C well she told Zuzanna, and you know Zuzanna, she can''t hold her tongue. She told Marna, who told Tor... and Tor is on duty, so he told me. The boys are now doubled up, walking routes in pairs. The dye pit and tannery have a sentry keeping eyes out from the trees. The women''s circle has already made it known, any women or young ''uns that have to travel to other villages, will come and get an escort from us before they go...so, is that what you were gonna tell me ¨C jackass?"


    Magnus looked down at Broddi, since he was shrinking, and shook his head in disbelief. He pointed at Broddi''s chest and smiled. Magnus then simply walked away, still shaking his head, "You still got it old timer...but I would be a cull chief if I didn''t check in ¨C thank you." Magnus proceeded to the longhouse; he had a feeling he would find Is?lde there.


    Magnus went to the side door, back by the kitchen. He could hear the ''clucking'' well before he got inside, the old hens from the women''s circle comprised the largest flock in the village ¨C he smiled to himself, just knowing what he was walking into.


    "There you are, you giant brute" Aunt Hilde scolded, "What are you doing about the big white bear?  We have reports from all over the north, Magnus, all manner of wild animal have been found killed and carcasses left to rot. When do you think a person will be next?" Hilde stood, hands on hips, lips pursed...waiting for his answer.


    "Hilde...auntie, the warriors all know what''s going on. We are manned up, setting up escorts; we don''t have any local reports, just what has come down from the north. Tor has archers set up keeping an eye out. If anything shows up, we will know right away. Let''s be cautious, but don''t be scaring folk ¨C worry wart." Magnus raised his eyebrows at her, trying to interject some glib humor into his conversation with his favorite family member. "Besides, much scarier than a giant white bear - what have you ladies been telling Is?lde?"


    That was Is?lde''s queue to step in and hook her arm into Magnus'', "Oh nothing, just the village news, that''s all. They were definitely NOT telling me stories about, especially embarrassing childhood ones. How about you and I take a walk?"


    Magnus looked down at Is?lde, then slowly craned his head around to gently scowl at the brood. They were a mixed bunch...you could gauge a woman''s age here by how they held their heads when Magnus looked at them ¨C younger ladies looked down, the younger the lower...the seasoned circle veterans, now those woman looked him straight in the eye, and the most experienced smiled and gave him eyebrows or a wink ¨C Magnus once again turned to walk away, shaking his head in wondrous disbelief, and prayed a little prayer this time, "Lord ¨C Allfather, give me strength." He took his friend, and they headed back out to the village central.


    At the center of the village were the cheese monger, the butcher, and various other shops and craftsman. It was a little spot with tables and chairs where folk could sit and relax for a short time. The duo sat in front of the butcher shop, J?n the butcher brought some sausage and bread ¨C the bakery was much larger than these shops, so it was on the edge of town, but the butcher sold some items in small amounts. "It''s good to be chief" Magnus noted, "when you give respect, you get respect...and sausage." He smiled and took a bite from the plate. "So, Is?lde, what is the reason you are here ¨C besides needing a boat?"

 Chapter 8 - The Real Reason

    After days of sparring, Magnus was regretting finding out why Is?lde was in his village...he was not sure if he wanted to be the ''balance'' in the world, the good to balance the bad, it seemed like a pretty important responsibility, but here he was ¨C it was his calling, and he knew it. The early morning training was not anything new, nor was sparring for hours on end. What was different ¨C getting his butt handed to him, repeatedly, by what appeared to be a beautiful woman - this he was not used to. Granted, she was a minion of heaven with eons of experience...but looks, looks were clearly deceiving.


    "Come on Magnus, get back in the ring ¨C I know you have more in you." Magnus was sprawled out, face down and Is?lde was a couple yards away, bouncing in her stance swinging her tonfa fighting sticks in a flurry...grinning at her student, again. It was nearing lunch; the pair had been at this since daybreak, "Ya know," Magnus grunted from the ground, his face still in the dirt, "you have an advantage ¨C you are immortal, you hardly tire, and you''ve been doing this centuries, or eons...anyway, a long time." Magnus rolled to his butt side down and sat up with his feet spread out in front of him, taking in some of the lovely mountain air. "So, what is the point of these weird sticks we have? I would prefer to go back to my bo staff, please."


    "The point is there, sir brute..." sounding just like Aunt Hilde, "I am attempting to teach you that there is much more to fighting than you know. You are good, I really don''t like to spar with the staff either, you need to get more proficient with closer quarters fighting. This, the tonfa, are excellent for being small spaces or in underground caves, like when you need to exterminate trolls or goblins. You can outfit them with iron or silver spikes, and since they can run down your arm, they are excellent for protection."


    Magnus picked himself up off the ground and began to spin his weapons in the same manner as Is?lde, mimicking her, trying to pick up some technique. She slowed down her movements just a bit so he could see them better ¨C then, just a bit slower, and started to pause in between movements. That was really all it took...she actually had not shown Magnus any type of form before they started, she just wanted to see how he would do with a new untested weapon, how he would adapt to the situation. "There you go, see how each movement flows into the next...it is really just like your staff, or any other weapon. The conservation of movement," Is?lde began to pick up speed as Magnus became more proficient with each movement, "there are not so many movements to do, they are the same over and over, you just need to put them in the correct sequence when fighting."


    Is?lde moved in front of Magnus, she could mirror the movements so he could see better what he was doing, "Now you are getting it, let''s add strikes," She began her movements again, and added ''punching'' in between movements, "see how with the conservation of movement here, when you strike here," she struck the air, "the energy saved is now transferred to the tonfa." The pair continued past lunch, spinning, punching, swinging. Gunther, in the meantime  had brought the pair some food and left them to their ''leisure''. "Okay, Magnus, one more round now that you have some practice, then we eat."


    "Okay" he replied, feeling much better about himself.


    The duo paired up, both swinging their weapons through the practiced motions, Is?lde struck first, swinging her right tonfa at the face. Magnus blocked it easily; he could tell she was testing him. Magnus countered with a left swing up to her chin, she had to bob back to avoid getting hit.  He started a little bob and weave thing, keeping his movements tight, swing out randomly trying to get Is?lde off balance, but she was having none of that, she swatted all his attempts away ¨C the last one, popped his tonfa wide and she rapped him in the forehead, making his eyes water.


    Magnus bobbed back, looking for room but she chased him. She began the same tactic as him, but she was faster, and Magnus could not keep up. He gained just a little bit of ground and let her come in, she came in high with a swing from his right, Magnus rolled with spinning out of the way but continued spinning as he dropped into a leg sweep that caught Is?lde off guard, completely up ending her, literally landing ass over tea kettle, her battle skirt flopped up showing off her battle undies.


    Magnus jumped up in the air ¨C "WHOOP" he shouted, celebrating a victory, finally! He was laughing so hard now, seeing the immortal angel untangle herself from her clothing and weapons, he knew exactly how she felt. "Uhh, okay there tiny lady," he gave her a single mocking clap, "I''ll meet ya'' over by the food, you just let me know if you need any help there, okay." Magnus made his way to the lunch, checking over his shoulder just to make sure she did not throw anything at his back, sat down, and waited patiently.


    Is?lde eyed Magnus, he was sitting down eating hard cheese and bread, as she dusted herself off and straightened her attire. On her way to join him, she first shook her head with a slight scowl, then nodded her head to him, acknowledging his win.


    "Okay, that was very good. I did not expect that, at all ¨C clearly. Good job on adapting. We do need to work on your speed, though. I know I will always be faster than you, but you can be faster, we will have to figure that out. Anyway, next on the agenda ¨C do you remember the monster weaknesses?"


    "Ughh...yes I do, Is?lde ¨C do we have to do this again?"


    "Yes, of course ¨C we''ll do this until we get to go out and put your skills to the test. Nothing is a better test than actually doing what you''ve been practicing, so let me hear it...oh, yeah, at some point this afternoon, too we need to discuss your payment to me for the training", she smiled big, "you probably thought I forgot, didn''t you? You owe me a boat mister."


    And that about cinched up the rest of Magnus'' day ¨C Monster talk and a boat, and no, he had not forgotten about the boat.


    The pair finished lunch, finished the monster quizzing, and headed back to the village. The aroma of food was carried on the light breeze from the village ¨C it was nearly dinner time; it had been that long the pair had been working on Magnus'' skills. He was now guiding her to the shipyard, he wanted to see if she was really up for a boat.


    "Is?lde, my angelic dealer of doom, here are our boats." Magnus put on his best used wagon salesman persona and proceeded to walk her through the shipyard to look at the many boats that were currently being built, "We have small boats, or ''canoes''; medium boats, or ''boats''; and large boats, ''ships''. Then of course, we have in between each of those, because we build what the buyer wants ¨C so, what is it that you want?"


    Like everything else in the village, the activity was a wonder of precision and efficiency. "Well, I like the big one with two sails...I think it fits my personality ¨C it looks dangerous, with all the shields and murder holes build into the sides." She appeared to be pondering, her right hand across her midriff, holding her left elbow, left hand rubbing her chin, seemingly deep in thought ¨C a smirk and a twinkle of mischief in her eye, though, she had to keep Magnus from catching that.


    "Uhh, I''ve heard of the host of heaven, angels and stuff, but you would surely need the host to man this ship Is?lde, can you do that?" Magnus was really not sure what she would do with the big ship, how she would pilot it.


    "Well sir, I am not human, we know that...and yes I do know some angels that would love to work this beautiful piece of craftsmanship ¨C but did I mention I am an angel, I am pretty sure I could handle the whole thing." She was still rubbing her chin, "Yeah, I have some skills you haven''t seen yet. It would be unfair if I broke those out on you...so yeah, I pick this one."


    Magnus was stunned now ¨C so not only did she want the big ship...he was going to have to cover the cost. He could not fathom this at the moment, maybe he could put it off for a bit and convince the counsel to help with the price...Magnus'' wheels were turning, the look on his face priceless as Is?lde began to giggle...and then she began to laugh ¨C Magnus knew he had just been played.


    "You are quite a bit of devil, for an angel" he smirked.


    "See, I knew I''d get you back the same way you got me...some way you would not expect. So, I definitely do not want one of those big boats...but how about something sleek and fast?"


    Magnus showed Is?lde his favorite boat for speed, it was a medium length hull, deeper than a canoe for stability, but longer, for speed. One large sail, and only six oars, but could be manned by two. He explained how the hull worked to keep it stable for traveling perpendicular to the waves, and the length also helped with getting out of the break water faster and more safely. It was perfect for an angel who did not need a crew, since she had some hidden powers or some such thing, as yet to be explained.


    Two weeks later with the boat build moving forward and Magnus''s training was also in full swing, Magnus was improving daily, weapons and skills with his body and mind. Monster training which included world history, chemistry, biology, and psychology. Is?lde taught him everything he would need to know to get inside of his opponent''s heads. Magnus immersed himself in the training, as he knew he must learn all of these skills to defeat his opponents ¨C and to stay alive. The information that Is?lde imparted to him, besides being informational...was also scary ¨C he was learning the nuances of the creatures that went bump in the night, how to protect himself as well as dispatch them. The boat was secondary...Magnus could build one of these models in his sleep, but his best crew was on it with minimal oversight from the boss. There were some minor changes he put into the build, slight touches to make the boat uniquely Is?lde''s.


    At the end of September, Magnus could take Is?lde one out of five rounds, depending on the weapon ¨C except for the bo staff, Is?lde had to resort to cheating when they fought with the staff ¨C Magnus was proud of himself for that. The duo had also gone on several of monster hunts by now, there were some vampyr and goblins up north that were causing panic ¨C they were dispatched, but that is a story for another time. The goblins though, like to hoard treasure ¨C Magnus was able to monetarily help out the village that had been traumatized by said goblins, while being able to pay for Is?lde''s boat plus some for his village. The real reason for the monster hunt though, they were looking for the giant white bear. Stories were coming down from the north of the carnage left from mauled animals and even one village that moved out of their ancestral lands because they were afraid of what might happen to them. They were farmers, not warriors.


    By the first of October, Is?lde had had enough of the giant white bear. Overnight, some news had come to the village, news of another warrior that had fallen victim to the bear...she was done. This morning, when the pair met, she laid it out for Magnus'', "I won''t stand by any longer Magnus, I must go look for the bear. I know your guys have been out looking, but how could they possibly miss it, that is just weird. Not to mention, all of the carcasses are spoiled and even the carrion eaters don''t clean up the mess...I don''t even think I saw flies on the last one we found, it''s too much to think this creature is normal ¨C I must find it and kill it." Is?lde was pacing in the hut, and mildly ranting, she was clearly upset at what was going on, and she was 100% correct, this beast was not normal.


    Magnus pleaded with her, "Please be reasonable my friend, we can''t go off half drawn, we need to assemble a war party, get the right gear, and plan this out. We will go, I promise, but please wait for us."


    "Magnus, you know when I cheat to beat you, when we spar with the staff?" she asked, questioning him with her eyes as well, Magnus nodded in agreement. "Well, that is only me cheating a tiny bit, I have capabilities far beyond what you''ve have seen. I have the skills and abilities to take on multiple full demons and win...repeatedly. So, no offense, you can get your war party together with your gear and things, but I am going to go now, I don''t think this can wait any longer...I have a bad feeling, like this is the calm before the storm, I''m sorry but I must go." And just like that, Is?lde was out the door. Magnus stepped out to watch her go, he could see her full armor set manifest as her wings appeared, and she flew up into the sky, headed north presumably toward the training grounds.


    Magnus turned back to his hut to prepare for battle. He had a plain helmet, a cuirass of scales, like a dragon, very expensive but it did not limit his mobility like a solid piece. There were also his scale gauntlets and solid thigh guards...and that was it, he believed his mobility to be his biggest asset. Along with the armor he grabbed is two handed axe to strap to his back, and his new battle staff that he could wield like the devil himself...maybe arch angel is better, anyway...he checked for anything else he thought he may need and headed out the door, but paused just for a moment to triple check, he did not want to go into battle missing something critical. He turned to check once more, behind the door, he noticed a large Roman style spear ¨C something he was sure he had not seen before, but something that felt familiar to him, like he should know what it is. He grabbed the spear, all seven feet of it, and set his staff in its place. The spear gave off a warmth, like kind words said by your father or grandfather, it gave him a feeling of encouragement and certainty ¨C this was a unique weapon to say the least.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    As Magnus closed the door to his hut, Gunther was coming up the path, Magnus waited for him to get close enough to talk. "Gunther, I need you to go back to the village and get the top twenty of our warriors and all the archers, tell them to prepare for the most epic battle of their lives ¨C we are going to war with the giant white bear."


    Gunther was sharp, he knew from looking at Magnus, what was going on. He was already prepped to deliver the news, but he did have to ask, "Magnus, where is Is?lde?" Magnus noted the slight bit of fear his friend had for his mentor, "she is already on her way Gunther, you get the men and follow me up to the training grounds, I''m pretty sure that is where we need to start looking." The two turned apart and started jogging their own direction.


    Is?lde made the training grounds in five minutes, she expected Magnus in the next fifteen or twenty, he could move fast for a big man, but not nearly as fast as her. Something in her gut made her want to start here. It was a larger circular area, sixty yards across, one way in ¨C one way out ¨C it sat in a bowl with nearly shear walls except where the narrow road cut a path. Not really any other way out except to fly. She took in the area, some tables, chairs, and benches lined around the perimeter. Several empty racks for holding all of the various weapons that would be used here. On the west side, away from the entry, stood a dozen archery targets. Nothing out of the ordinary. She sauntered over to the archery targets to browse for a moment before she took off...that is when she felt it.


    A greasy malevolence like she had never felt before. It was almost physically tangible, she could literally feel it moving across her body and getting stronger, slowly but surely. Whatever this was, in all of her battles for heaven, she had never felt anything like it. Her stomach turned, she was feeling sad...and afraid...and scared all at the same time ¨C this was probably not a good thing. Is?lde turned to face the entry and conjured her shield and sword, preparing for the fight of her life, but it is hard when your insides seem like they are trying to get on the outside.


    Is?lde could see the head of a giant white bear appear, as it sauntered slowly into the training area, followed by its gigantic white body. She knew a polar bear when she saw one, but this one was larger by half than anything she has ever seen or heard of. It was also not white per se...it was a dirty and bloody mess. The beast''s once stark white coat was now coated in filth and gore, it did not look right. It was as though malevolence had destroyed the physical vessel, and whatever demon that now possessed the poor animal, was showing through. The evil pulsing off of this beast had her trembling ¨C she did not know what to do, she had never had to fight something like this before, all she could do was stare.


    The monster stopped and stared at her, forty yards off, and she could see solid black of its eyes absorbing light like black holes, not letting anything escape the evil gaze. "Hello granddaughter of the almighty", the voice was in her head ¨C nothing audible. "Yes, you will hear me. This form is not meant for speech...it''s not like I need it anyway." The voice in her head sounded... "normal" not smooth like a regular demon, and not grumbly like a lesser demon.


    "What do you want here, you can''t be here..." she shouted, attempting to sound unafraid. "I will stop you; I''ve killed hundreds of your ilk"


    Amazingly, the bear smirked "You have not killed any of ''my'' kind girl. I was an arch angel at one time ¨C it was Michael himself that had to strike me from heaven, none of you second-class angels could handle it. So, what do you think you''re going to do now?"


    Is?lde''s mind was spinning, she thought to herself ''if I can just keep him monologuing, may I can come up with something before Magnus gets here'', she asked, "why are you here? If you are soo powerful, why are you wasting your time in this backwoods hill country, aren''t there some giant cities like Rome or someplace in old Sumeria you would want to be?"


    "Someone killed one of my minions. As I reached out to feel what was going on, I felt you, and I can feel something else, another presence ¨C something...good" he spat out the last word like it was dirty. "I know better than to think the Almighty isn''t up to something when there is an angel, and whatever that other power source is...so when I lost a demon, I figured I''d better come myself and see what is going on. Once I am done with you, I will just keep killing humans until that power goes away; that''s what I am doing. Since we are playing question and answer -what is it that you are doing here?"


    "Same as you, looking for that power ¨C there is some kind of monster around here, I''m just looking for it..." as she was talking, she was slowly raising her wings, preparing to launch ¨C strait at the greater demon. She snapped her wings down and kicked off the ground, shooting faster than an arrow straight at the bear ¨C and subsequently go her ass swatted out of the air like she was no more than a sparrow.


    Is?lde flew like a line drive off to the demon''s left smashing through a table and into the wall of the natural bowl. She pulled herself out of a heap and noticed right away her shield had torn...like it was paper. Her shield was covered in Enochian runes and blessed...and it had been torn. "Hmm..." she thought, "that''s not good either."


    She dispelled her shield and shook off the blow. Her mind began to cycle through her ''dance'' book, she needed another tactic for this enemy. Number one though, do NOT take a direct hit from it. This will have to be death from a thousand cuts. She decides she can dart in under wing power, stay wide and just keep cutting the monster with her sword until it finally bleeds out.


    The monster is moving in on her slowly, locked in like a bear on a seal. Is?lde likewise, begins to stalk. Completely unforeseen, the bear launches itself at her faster than physics would actually allow ¨C but apparently demon power does not care about that. She barely rolls to her right and launches away with a powerful sweep of her wings...one more thing to keep an eye on.


    The pair keep slowly stalking, slowly moving forward ¨C Is?lde launches straight at the greater demon, and as it pulls back its right paw for the swat, she swings wide and around the strike and stabs the bear in the back leg ¨C and barely makes a mark ¨C "Oh shit" is the only thing she can think to say. She pivots to face it but sweeps her wings back to pull her away from it, so she has time to think. The demon spins quickly and shows off that weird bear smirk ¨C this is not good.


    She begins to stalk, but circling to her left now, trying to keep the bear out further and gain more momentum for her attack. She begins to flex her wings, attempting to throw off the demon''s attention. She bolts in again, but this time the bear does not raise a paw to defend, so she veers off to her right in an attempt to run her sword down one whole side of the demon ¨C who apparently will have none of that ¨C he reaches out and grabs the sword before it lands...and shatters it in his paw. He spins holding on the broken blade, and Is?lde is still hanging on to the hilt, proceeds to throw her into the wall ¨C again. The wall is much closer this time and with no loss of momentum, it really hurts ¨C a lot. The demon bear is close, he grabs her by the wings and tosses her up in the air like a tennis ball; she is dazed and does not have the frame of mind to fly away, and the demon bear swats her again to the far side of the training grounds, like a fifty yard field goal attempt, she arcs up and drops back down on to the ground and tumbles into the wall...once more.


    Is?lde is stunned, tired, confused, and...scared ¨C she cannot think of a time in her life when she was scared. Not just afraid, some fear is good...but she is scared now, hyperventilating type of scared. She can only think of one thing to do now, fly away. She pulls herself off of the ground and furls out her wings to launch into the sky, but something happens, something else she has never experienced, her wings go away but she is not the one who dispelled them. She looks at the greater demon now, with even greater fear gnawing away at her spirit.


    "You didn''t know we could do that did you?" It was a rhetorical question, but he did pause for effect. "Ya'' know ¨C I think I heard about you...I still have some sources in the high kingdom, but anyway, I think I heard about some run of the mill angel that lost a bet to Michael over a fight...that must have been comical. You must be some kind of arrogant angel to think you could even touch an arch angel, let alone Michael. I will give him credit, he knocked me out of the high kingdom and look at what I am doing to you. You may have some fights under your armor, but you are not arch angel material...no regular angels are." The giant beast, still moving toward her, slowly and methodically. "Well, I''m done here, it''s time for you to die."


    The demon bear picked up its pace, stalks closer and closer...Is?lde gathered herself, she was a trained warrior. She gathered the fear and dismissed her circumstances, she decided to kill this bastard regardless of what it thinks. As the bear gets closer, she does the opposite of what it thinks she will do, she begins to run toward it ¨C unarmed and no wings ¨C at the last moment, she jukes right and dives at the monstrosity, going into a summersault underneath is chest, and diving one more time out between its back legs ¨C oh blessed Savior, thank God that worked. As she clears the bear, she sprints toward the exit of the grounds.


    The bear spins, he is as confused as the angel, but he launches himself again. Even though Is?lde has gained t thirty yards on the bear, it covers the ground against all physical odds and catches her foot in his massive mouth puncturing armor, skin, and muscle like it is cold porridge. The demon beast stands on its back legs to its full height, tilts his head down and jerks it up, tossing Is?lde again, up into the air. As she falls toward earth, the demon pulls an arm back and hits the angel into the far wall of the training area like a discarded doll from an angry child.


    The warrior angel is nearly unconscious. She tries to stand but falls as her mangled leg touches the ground. Between the pain and beating she has become incoherent; she can only lie there and wait for what is to come. The greater demon is slow to move toward her, savoring the fear and pain pouring off the angel. The monster is reveling in its victory, it does not want the elation to end...but, alas it knows it must. Slowly, ever so slowly Is?lde is now contemplating her end. She will not die still, she fights through the pain and rolls herself up and into a sitting position, watching the bear approach, still planning and scheming something she can pull off to kill this seething evil.


    Ten yards, seven, five...two ¨C and the demon stops. It cocks it head as if it is listening for something and slowly begins to turn around. Sixty-five yards away, entering the clearing of the training grounds, Magnus spies a giant, dirty white bear, facing his friend ¨C who appears to be a beaten mess ¨C Magnus spins the Roman spear that is in his hand, otherwise known as a javelin, cocks back and releases the spear just before the bear fully turns around.


    As the bear finishes his turn, it stands to its full height ¨C it can feel the power of that bull of a man, staring at him, empty handed with a giant axe strapped to his back. The power is strong, pulsing away from him...as the bear is examining this new enemy, it catches a glint of something immediately followed by an explosion of pain from its chest. It looks down to see the three remaining feet, of the seven feet, of steel and wood protruding from his chest. The power emanating from the spear is actually what the demon sensed...Magnus is a force of good, but he is not the same force as the Roman spear that had pierced the side of the Christ during the crucifixion - the Spear of Destiny.


    Magnus unsheathes his massive axe and sprints toward the falling bear. The bear falls forward pushing the spear through its chest and out the back. Magnus closes in, mumbling a prayer under his breath, and leaps to cover the last ten feet, sinking his axe through the spinal cord and neck of the greater demon, nearly taking the head in one blow. The body is so massive, regretfully Magnus must finish the job with two more standing blows. As the head leaves the body, nasty greasy smoke begins to seep out of the carcass and pool up next to the body. The smoke tries to take shape, stretching up attempting to form...form something. Magus watches the foggy mess, seeing it try to form, he calls out to the Allfather, "By the power of the one God, I banish you to the pits of Hel ¨C be gone demon!" The Allfather gladly answers the call and banishes the greater demon to where it belongs.


    Magnus immediately turns and runs to his friend, "Is?lde, oh God in heaven, what can I do for you?" He gently begins to grab her hand and look over her wounds, heart broke at what he sees. "I''ll be okay, you slow ass brute...what took you so long ¨C and where did you get that spear, even I thought that was a myth." She sighed and relaxed against the wall that had become so familiar to her, letting the coolness of the stone seep into her, soothing her soreness if just a little bit. "Don''t worry about me, now the demon is dead I''ll start to heal. That monster could do something to keep me from touching heaven or something. He even made my wings disappear; I can feel my connection again ¨C I will be okay." Is?lde was gathering her faculties again, "Seriously, where did you get Christ''s spear, Magnus?"


    He brushed some of her golden locks lout of her face, "I don''t know. When I was leaving my house, I just wanted to check one more time to make sure I didn''t forget something, I found it behind the door. I could feel it, it just felt right, so I grabbed it. You''re telling me that is the spear the Roman legionnaire stabbed Jesus with, that Spear of Destiny?"


    "Yep...I can feel it" she breathed out as a sigh, her recuperation beginning. "You probably don''t want to let that out of your sight. I gotta feeling like I know who put it in your house...he can be sneaky when he wants to."


    Magnus slowly tucked himself in beside Is?lde, letting her rest on his powerful form...armor and all. They sat in silence as time slowly ticked by, she was healing ¨C the bleeding on her leg had stopped and it did not look crushed any longer ¨C and the village warriors with Gunther finally arrived.


    The clansmen and women were stunned ¨C none of them had seen any beast this size before, some of them had travelled to the northern sea where they are recognized. Gunther trotted past the bear to talk with Magnus and the angel, "Holy Father in heaven Magnus, how did a bear hurt Is?lde?"


    "That my dear man, was not just a bear but a greater demon ¨C a fallen arch angel, that is what happened to Is?lde." Gunther was genuinely speechless. "Gunther, have the team gather as much wood as they can... I cast the demon out, but I think we need to burn this carcass up to be rid of it. Definitely no way we want to harvest anything, and I am sure no forest beasts will eat it...so let''s burn it. I feel bad for the beast, it must have been something to behold at one time, but it is spoiled by the demon stench." Gunther agreed and the team set a funeral pyre.

 Chapter 9 - The Real, Real Reason Is?lde is here

    The weeks were slowly passing, post monster demon bear, but normal was returning. Magnus and Is?lde took a couple of weeks off ¨C not that Is?lde needed it, she was good to go in a few days ¨C but as the news went out to the surrounding villages of the demon''s demise, chiefs and Jarl''s were sending emissaries with tribute to the village of Elg Hjem and she was helping answer questions. The other villages were not only eternally grateful for the pair that dispatched the demon, but there were also many questions surrounding demons in general, holy relic spears, and Allfather''s. There was some ''splainin'' to do ¨C and Magnus and Is?lde did it all.


    Magnus and Is?lde met at the training grounds a few times since the tributes stopped...but their work outs just felt trivial to them ¨C like something was missing. Magnus could easily destroy a regular demon, and even swaths of lesser demons at this point. His monster hunting knowledge was exactly what it needed to be ¨C and he had the Spear of Destiny for anything else. It seemed like the day-to-day training was done ¨C Is?lde had done what she came to do.


    The last day they officially trained, Is?lde called a stop early, "Magnus, I think we''re done here ¨C you''ve gotten everything you need from me...what do you think?"


    "I think we should go look at your boat, that''s what I think."


    The pair stowed their weapons and headed to the shipyard via Magnus'' hut. The small ship was about 80% finished. Magnus spent the rest of the day showing her the beautiful ship. Teaching her about some of the specialty craftsmanship that makes these boat builders so sought after. They spent dinner together and just a bit of time at Magnus'' hut in the early hours of the night, and Is?lde left ¨C like she had every other night since they met.


    Magnus lay down and prepared himself for sleep, meditation and prayer, reflection on the day past. He was feeling a bit lost now that he and Is?lde were no longer training...he was wondering if he really was ready to be on his own, if he could do what he needed to do. "Hmmm..." he thought to himself, "is that really why I want to keep training with her..."This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    There was a soft rap on his front door...he knew who that was, he could feel her strong spirit ¨C he quickly rolled out of bed to answer the door. Is?lde stood outside in her "typical" Norwegian homespun get up. As the door fully opened, Magnus reached out for her hand and gently pulled her into an embrace. They stood for a couple of moments, "I couldn''t leave Magnus" she spoke softly, "I think you broke me ¨C I love you." Tears began to slowly descend from her beautiful blue eyes. She had experienced fear like no other, now she felt love like she never had before. Magnus pulled her in even closer, leaned his head down and gently kissed her under her ear ¨C "I love you too, Is?lde...if that is your real name." He leaned backed, just a touch, to gaze into her limitless eyes, and smiled.


    They stood embraced for several more, now awkward moments, but Magnus'' mind was racing as he poured over the ramifications of what his options could be in the next few moments..."My love, uhhh, the priests teach us that the connection between a man and a woman are holy, and that one should not simply act upon, umm...''urges'', but know that the love between us is sacred, and should be blessed by the Allfather ¨C in marriage..."


    It was Is?lde''s turn to pull back from their embrace and chuckle. She grabbed a cheek (face cheek) in each hand and gazed into his forest green eyes, "You silly wonderful man ¨C do you think I am some fallen angel who would just mess around with anything...I will promise myself to you, literally in front of the Holy Father, if you would do the same for me?"


    Holding the warrior angel by the waist he said, "In front of the Allfather most high, I promise myself to you, Is?lde."


    Is?lde looked to the heavens, "Do you hear that Grandfather?" she shouted, "we have pledged ourselves to each other, in your name, will you give us your blessing?"


    A flash of golden light caught Magnus'' attention outside the front door. The pair stepped outside, arm in arm, and were struck breathless at the sight before their eyes. The northern lights apparently turn gold and silver when you get your union personally blessed by the Allfather. They stood there for some time...as long as they could possibly stand it, but soon retired in order to spend the first night, of the rest of their life together, or rather truth be told, the rest of Magnus'' life...but who''s counting?

 Chapter 10 - Learning to Dance...and Other Updates

    And that brings the story to me...the real ''someone'' Is?lde, my mother, is, ''er was...whatever, supposed to teach how to fight. My name is Tore ¨C you can pronounce it like ''tore, tore a page from a book'', or like the English political party ''Tory'', I''m fine with either. In my home language of Norway, it sounds more like TU-rah, but regardless of how it''s pronounced, it means Thunder Warrior. Ah, say hello to my horse too, if you like ¨C the giant Shire, his name is Tiny. He is not only my main mode of transportation, but also the ''carrier of all my things''. We are currently waiting under this oak tree for the sun to set ¨C I gotta nest of vampyr to clean out, but it gives me a bit of time to tell you a little about who I am, and how I got here.


    I was born shortly after the end of that story there...my mother is definitely not human, so there was no ''pregnant for nine-months'' thing going on. It was apparently a bit difficult explaining to the village what and why things were not happening in the normal ''female'' way. Mom actually had to break down and ''angel out'' for those zealous folks, otherwise, there may have been some attempted burning at the stake action happening.


    My birth date November 5, the year of our Lord 741 to one Magnus and Is?lde Godsson, my name is Tore Magnus Godsson ¨C and I was taught to ''dance'', ergo - fight monsters and demons by my warrior angel mother ¨C and, even I still don''t know her real name; apparently, it can''t be pronounced by human, or half human mouth''s...maybe it takes a dolphin or whale, but I don''t know, she''s my mom, and I love her.


    Anyway - I got my dad''s looks on the outside and my mom''s strength and angelness on the inside ¨C eyes the color of evergreen trees, long light brown, or dark blonde hair I keep in a loose Vikingr style braid ¨C but I can''t grow a beard, or any facial hair for that matter. Mom says boy angels don''t shave, so maybe it''s genetics.  My dad was not the tallest guy in the room...but I didn''t even get a little of his height,I''m only about 5'' 10. I have even been called a ''little guy'', but that fella regretted that. I''ve not really any neck to speak of...but a sharp jaw, broad at the shoulders and a massive chestal region. Not built like model for Roman statues, more like a black smith...or shipbuilder, go figure. Oddly enough, even with arms like oak trees I am extremely flexible ¨C I can do the splits or a reverse round house without breaking a sweat. My appearance is one of my greatest assets ¨C I look a bit unassuming, but I am not.


    My mom''s genetic bits keep me from getting sick and I heal superfast. I haven''t tried to regrow anything...like a finger ¨C but the first ogre I took down, nearly bit through my femur, it took me about a week to fully recover. I got bitten by a fanger once, she thought it''d be cute to see me as a vampyr ¨C I had a high fever for about day, so I got that healing factor going for me. I am freakishly strong and fast for a human, as an angel I guess I would be considered freakishly slow and weak...I haven''t found person yet, including my dad, that can outpower me. Jager from the brewery likes to have me around ''cause I can load full kegs into the delivery wagon pretty easily. The downside to being so powerful...I really ''gotta be careful when fighting someone I don''t intend snuff out, one slip of focus could be bad. Mom really worked that into me, self-control wins fights ¨C physical and psychological.


    Mom is still around, dad ¨C he lived to be over 100 years old. Mom took care of him until the day he went home. She even made herself look old too, so he didn''t feel weird. Anyway, she still doesn''t look a day past 28 human years. I don''t see her much now that I am trained, great grandfather wants me to operate by myself...mostly.


    After I was born, did I mention I''m a Nephilim ¨C and not one of the psycho ones... the spawn angels and daughters of man, no I am half daughter of heaven and half son of man...apparently, we are way cooler than the mutant offspring ¨C sorry, I digress...it only took a few months after I was born, I was walking, and mom was teaching me how to ''dance''. We started small, just literally dancing and went from there ¨C it''s like I didn''t even know I was being taught how to kick ass. She taught me empty handed fighting, stick fighting, sword, two swords, axes, rope dart, tonfa...everything you can think of ¨C except for the bo staff, dad taught me the bo. Not even mom could beat dad without cheating when he used a bo staff. I still practice today, more so for meditation. Hunting monsters and demons takes me to the far reaches of the known world, and as such, I get to seek out masters of their martial crafts and spiritual techniques. Many proclaimed Christians say that all other belief systems are blasphemous, but I would tell you the Allfather has more than one story, and I have a learned a lot of good stuff from other cultures that are neither good nor evil. Meditation and focusing techniques to clear my mind and give me a better means to heed the guidance of my Great Grandfather.


    Of course, I also learned about monsters and fae, along with angel alchemy ¨C it is different than human alchemy ''cause  humans don''t know about angels, or the fae, or heaven, or hell...and there is some really weird stuff that goes on behind the veil. One of the last things to mention about my angel heritage - their language. I can''t speak it completely, but I can read and write. There is a lot of power to be had in the runes of angels, hence the reason for the tattoos across my body. Mom inked me up when I stopped growing to protect me mostly from demonic influences. I have some basic protection from spells and witchcraft, possession, and demon fire balls ¨C did I mention there is some weird shit out there. My weapons and armor are also engraved with runes. Angelic runes aren''t picky meaning you don''t have to be angelic to use them, some of the guys I work with, their weapons and armor are engraved too, they need all the edge they can get when working with me, otherwise they wouldn''t stand a chance.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    My dad, he taught me how to build boats...and by building boats, I learned how to build everything else to. He is my hero, and I miss him so bad; he was my cornerstone, he made me...me. Besides being a master ship builder, he had more black smith inventions than grandpa Bj?rn; after a trip to Syria where he came across a new ore, he came up with a Damascus steel that is better than any other in the world. He says it also has something to do with the iron we pull out of the town''s mine, extra silica or something.


    He came up with the loom and weave that our sail makers use today. He could make glass and porcelain, and beer and bread ¨C there wasn''t anything that dad couldn''t do, and he did it better than anyone else, and he  never took any credit, he always gave credit to the Allfather. He and I smithed the hammer and axe I carry today from a meteorite, he is pretty sure that the Allfather sent it to us, specifically for my work for Him. The iron effect they have on the fae is amazing, they don''t rust, and the axe rarely needs to be sharpened. I named them Sirius and Arcturus after the bright stars we see in the night sky.


    The village has had so many great craftsman as far back as grandpa Bj?rn who are making things that can''t be found anywhere else in the world, the clan trade routes are still solid and prosperous, and because of those connections, I was able to attend the best schools of philosophy, science, trade, and warfare of the times, regardless of where they were, anywhere in the world. Our people are respected and honored, I was able to get educated in Byzantium, India, Europe, the Caliphates ¨C no school was too good or too advanced for me. My angelic DNA enabled me to meet all challenges head on and come out on top. Learning was easy, so I actually had to mess some things up so I didn''t come out on top of all my studies...that may have eventually looked suspicious. I also moved to a lot of schools, since I also didn''t age as normal humans. But it has all worked out in the end ¨C I kinda, or a lotta...understand how things work, and with my dad''s influence, I just like to make things better.


    The village now, well it''s more of a town, slash small city...has prospered. We changed the name to T?nsberg, it means the "fenced" town. We had to isolate ourselves from other villages ¨C our ''sordid'' past is hard to explain to outsiders. We still trade and help our neighbors, we simply find ways to keep those outsiders from wanting to settle in the area... so, it just fits. That, and some big ass bear killed all of the elk in the area...so that didn''t work anymore. The village is run by a group of elders with me as the head, at least when I am there. I make any final decisions in a tie vote or overrule plain stupidity - since I am the oldest member...I just don''t look it. The village is extremely wealthy ¨C we still make the best ships in the north, Brittania, Asia, and Africa. We trade timber, gems, and ore to Africa and the middle east for items coveted by the rich folk of Europe. The greatest investment we made though, was getting vested into the Silk Road between Rome and Beijing ¨C the Chinese like good timber and the Europeans love silk. We like to play the role of wealthy merchants when we deal with the robber barons of Europe, and fleece them for what we can - their vanity is simply amazing. We have created industries to help our neighbors proser as well as ourselves...I can say nobody in our town or surrounding villages is worried about food or clothing. We also use our prosperity to further the mission of the Allfather, as he sees fit. We support and maintain many ministries that care for orphans, widows, and older folk. The year 841 is not an easy one to survive in ¨C wars, cold, and sickness never seem to end, so we fill that gap. We support institutes of higher learning and trade guilds behind the scenes. We do what we can to maintain some modicum of honesty. Greed runs rampant at the moment, not just greed for wealth, but at times greed for the basic requirements to live - like bread, water, and some clothing ¨C we do what we can and where we can.


    So, the famous, or infamous, depending on your perspective, raid on Lindisfarne in 793 has already taken place now, many years ago, Vikingr occupation of the Britain''s is in full swing ¨C I have been fighting demons...and fae...and shifters for over 70 years, and they don''t hold a candle to the world''s most terrifying monster ¨C humans. Although mom was training me to fight monsters, what she did not realize at the time was that the most vile and evil monsters are mankind - humans. At least demon''s, shifters, and the fae types, at their heart, are acting within their nature and just do what it is, that they do, because of cold, hunger, or whatever to survive...humans are for the most part, just benign beings that go on about their lives, but when one of them gets greedy, even without selling their soul, greed will take a person to a whole new  level of evil.  The bulk of the monsters I have had to put down are not demons, not shifters (some of them are good folk when you get to know them), and especially not fae...but people, just downright greedy people. It makes me sad and angry, but when a human begins to enjoy hurting others for the sake of amusement  ¨C they gotta go, we gotta keep some balance.


    That about sums everything up this point, especially about me...I am sure you''ll get to know me better as we go on ¨C uhh...oh, I should tell you about my dogs Wu and Fu, short for Wu Zixu and Lady Fu Hao, they are a pair...oh, and my friend and Kung Fu master, Master Kai and his master, Grand Master Bao...but I think I will let the narrator do that, he''s very good.

 Chapter 11 - The Chinese Connection

    804 A.D. Dengfeng Shaolin Mountain Temple, Songshan Mountains, Henan Province China


    "Sifu!" Kai shouted, "the Xiao are back again." Kai was bounding down the steps from the forty foot tall parapet tower as fast as he could. One of the older students, who were now standing daily watch due to demon activity, had alerted Master Kai to the flying monkeys return...again.


    Closed and iron banded, the giant twin oak doors were the only ground access through the thirty foot high walls that enclosed the expansive Shaolin courtyard, but...there was not a roof that covered the actual courtyard so that was not about to stop the little flying bastard monkeys. "If you are younger than 15, go now to the main hall and close the doors." Grand Master Sifu Bao shouted, taking charge, and getting the children to safety. "Older boys, take charge of the smalls, and you old farts that can''t fight, at least grab a child and help get the doors closed." The Xiao had a thing for small children. This was the third time in fourteen days they had come to the school. The first time was so unexpected ¨Cstudents and teachers alike thought the Xiao were a myth, there was not even the smallest thought that flying monkeys with man faces, dog tails, and crow wings were even something to worry about. Fifteen children snatched from their drills while gathered in the outside court, nearly one entire class. Larger students and teachers saved the last five that could have been taken...it was devastating.


    The school was on edge from that point forward. Sifu Bao sent teams of seasoned students and teachers to scour the hills for traces of the Xiao...and the children. The second time, five days later, only (yes, regrettably ''only'') four children were taken. Some students posted as guards were able to give some advance warning, but not enough.


    This time, nine days later, Xiao appeared in force. It would seem that they would not be deterred in grabbing more victims this time around. Being previously denied, it seems they bolstered their numbers and effort, there were a couple of hundred of the little monsters. In kind though, the Sifu saw fit to take extra measures for their security. Many guards on the walls and fifty of the school''s best students and teachers would make a stand. The smalls had made it to safety, now Sifu Bao and Master Kai would see what they could do to destroy the invaders. The wall sentries were the only ones with bows and arrows, not enough to go around. Some of the students had scrounged up slings and stockpiled rocks, the rest of the troop were armed with swords and bo staves. There were a lot of targets to choose from, but the monkeys were like sparrows and never stopped moving for long, it is very difficult to hit a moving target with an arrow or stone, this would be a challenge until the demons landed...Sifu Bao was really not sure how this battle was going to go.


    The Xiao were small and fierce with teeth and claws and an occasional small knife. They stayed high above the initial reach of the ground troops; the archers began to let loose as soon as the demons were in range. As they closed in, the demons moved so erratically it was very difficult to hit anything, but not impossible. The Xiao quickly retreated after seeing several of their kin fall with arrow shafts sticking out of them. The archers were still firing, albeit slowly, not wanting to waste their limited ammo supply, when en masse the Xiao swarmed up and over the wall knocking six archers from their perches. Other flying demons began to throw rocks, hurling with great velocity, but luckily, little accuracy.


    One key reason to build anything into the side of a mountain ¨C it limits the attack surface available to the enemy. The monks easily took cover back inside the mountain nooks that were carved out, avoiding the missiles. Xiao began to land on the top of the parapet walls and just mill about. Most were still flying overhead presumably looking for prey. Many began to land in the courtyard; it was beginning to look like a Xiao dance hall, Xiao moving around but not really doing anything productive. Sifu Bao and Master Kai could just look at each other with wonder, like wondering what in the nine hells was going to happen next. The little monkey bastards were crawling around and over the different areas of the courtyard ¨C toying with doors and looking in baskets and such, apparently not really knowing what to do since they could not see small children with their own eyes.


    One Xiao seemed to garner some bravery, began to move toward Shaolin monks and the closed doors. The creature was testing the air with his nose like hound after a fox when something on the breeze made him excited - he started hopping toward the defenders on his little squat legs flapping his wings to boost his movement, moving his arms up and own, shaking his hands...like he found something. The entryway into the temple proper was covered by a roof, extending out many feet toward the open air of the courtyard. This did not allow the Xiao t room enough fly, so they were reduced to walking, and essentially channeled into a kill box. This gave the monks the opening they were looking for. Some of the advanced students moved out and clubbed the little demons with their staves ¨C there was a shriek, and all hell broke loose.


    The flock of Xiao broke, many flew back out the way they came, but those that moved forward were concentrated into one small spot easily clubbed and stabbed by defenders. Hands, mouths, and wings were a blur. Sifu Bao and Master Kai moved back to defend the doors, this was pure mayhem. The defenders were able to easily guard the doors, but they were getting tired. There were so many targets, and they did not appear to be ceasing. The Xiao were not strong...there were just a lot of them and at this rate, there were many more waves of attack then there were defenders that could keep fighting. Sifu felt that their best option would be to push them back out into the courtyard. First off, that would give the defenders more room to maneuver, and second, Sifu hoped with the limited mental capacity of the demon''s, they would get scared and take the flock off.


    "Kai" the Sifu shouted, "to my right." Sifu shouted again, "Wang! To my left. The rest of you line up on me, and we are going to start pushing out to the courtyard. Do not separate from each, we don''t all move up until each man is clear. Hold your line, only the men directly to your left or right will help you. We must stay solid and keep pushing ¨C Ready! Move!"


    The Shaolin are known for their discipline ¨C the warriors moved precisely as the Sifu required and they began to push out into the courtyard. Many Xiao were in the air again, their numbers had not really been affected by the casualties, and more were in the courtyard on the ground, wanting to get through the hall doors. "Hold at where the roof stops. We don''t want them to gain ground by flying over our heads. We need to figure out how to get them to engage us on the ground. Lin, I want you to go out and see if you can bash one in the...what in the name of sanity is that...?"


    The madness of Xiao was so focused on the Shaolin defenders they did not notice their own comrades being systematically dismantled from their rear position. The Sifu noted some white man, next to the north tower on the parapet wall, had secured some space to work from. The man long light brown hair, braids running down his back. He wore a black leather jerkin covered in odd looking scales that ran across his shoulders, stopping at the elbow, and wicked looking scaled gauntlet on each hand. The scales met in the middle of his back and ran a narrow band down to cover his spine. His heavy-duty trousers were not armored, but they were tucked into his boots that had the same type of scales as his jerkin. The Sifu thought, if he just had black patches on his eyes...he''d look like a warrior panda...and had to shake his head to get the vision from his mind. The man was dispensing Xiao with an axe and hammer at close proximity, pushing the monsters back to the middle of the defensive wall as well as sending them back to the air. As the opportunity opened, he grabbed a dropped bow and began to skewer the beasts with cold efficiency.


    "Go!" Sifu shouted, "get in and start taking those demons out. Wang, keep five men back for any that may fly overhead. Kai, make your way south ¨C the rest of you, with me up the middle and spread north." Sifu Bao got his monks fighting as he held back to watch and fill in the gaps as necessary, he was completely enamored at the pale warrior. The man had switched back and forth between the hammer and axe to a chain dart as the Xiao were dropping by the droves ¨C this man was a literal killing machine, but he was so sloppy Sifu though, how was he not dead.


    The Xiao did not fight much longer. The monks initial push had caught many of them off guard and were dispatched with cold efficiency of the monks training and discipline. The pale white panda man, he was surprisingly accurate with his chain dart. He was shredding wings allowing the monks to dispatch the wounded.


    At last, all of the Xiao had fled or were dead. Sifu sent men up on to the walls and out into the valley to make sure they were not gathering for another push into the temple. The panda man was walking around the fallen, inspecting them, like he was looking for something. Sifu was in the middle of the courtyard, "Kai" and Kai bowed in response, "please go get master Qin, I think he speaks a white man''s language."


    "Unnecessary, Sifu" Tore responded without being asked, "I speak Mandarin", still poking through the remains of the Xiao, as he looked up to gauge Sifu''s response.


    If Sifu was surprised, he did not show it. He crossed his arms in the sleeves of his mantle, "Thank you pale warrior, for your timely arrival. You assisted in saving us time in dispatching the Xiao."


    Tore stopped his snooping and slowly made his way toward Sifu. He stopped a respectful distance away and bowed properly to the master of this temple. "My name is Tore and I am pleased to be of service to you, I wish we had met under other circumstances." Tore paused for a moment, "Might we find time to talk about these creatures, Sifu?"


    "You are very far away from the silk road Tore, we may talk about the Xiao, I would first appreciate it, if you can tell me how you came to be at Dengfeng Temple." A light scowl of unbelief rolled across his face, "Shall we settle for tea? Kai, please join me. Wang!" Sifu shouted, "find the men who were guarding the walls and make sure the dead are taken far away and burned, thoroughly. Tore, please follow me and Master Kai."


    The doors were now open to the inner temple, the children had been sequestered off deeper into the mountain and they were waiting until this issue could be fully resolved before coming back, even close to the front doors. The trio made their way to Sifu''s sitting room and called for tea. "Tore, we do not get many foreign travelers to our doors, especially ones who kill as efficiently as you do." Tore was surprised at the Sifu''s comment, impressed at himself that he would impress a grandmaster of Shaolin Kung Fu. "I was originally on my way to your temple, to inquire if I might become a student of the Dengfeng temple, when lo and behold, Sifu, it appeared that you needed a bit of assistance. Clearly, my application as a student needs to wait." Tore kept talking, "I do have a lot of experience tracking and putting down demons ¨C if you would allow me, I can help you find the root of this demon problem. What did you call them, Xiao?"


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Sifu was quite surprised by all of the things Tore said, especially for a man to intentionally wade into a battle with demon''s ¨C Sifu felt he would have to approach this carefully. "So, stranger" Sifu ensuring that Tore understood his position here, "you have seen demon''s before, ones like these?"


    "I initially thought they were some sort of fae...but then when I saw so many gathered in one place, fae don''t do that. The next logical assumption is some other world creature, like dwarves or jotuns, and knowing where I am geographically, I assumed you would call them demons, but yes ¨C I know about creatures that seem like they should be myth, but they are real."


    "This must be fate, Tore. I would tell you that we do not, under any circumstances, welcome pale visitors to learn at our school...but we have been looking for the source of the Xiao for many days, and we cannot find them. If you can help to rid us of the Xiao, I will be happy to repay you, by letting you study at the school. Not only is that obviously a needed boon for us, but you can definitely use some help." Sifu''s face scrunched up a little and he nodded, assuming that Tore was here because of a lack of refinement.


    "Uhh..." Tore was stunned, "Sifu ¨C I don''t think I need help" he stammered a bit, "my fighting where I come from, there is no one better than me. I hunt monsters and demons and don''t have an issue there. I would like to expand my style and knowledge, I know I can always get better, but I don''t think I am really visibly lacking..."


    "Oh, Tore", Sifu''s tone soothing, "I did not mean that you aren''t capable, I just mean ¨C anyone can always learn more. How about I have someone show you to a room you can use for now, and we will meet for dinner later this evening after everyone is recovered, and we can talk about tracking the Xiao down and solving this issue with them."


    Sifu stood with Tore, and gently put his hand on his shoulder, "Kai, please show Tore where dinner will be served and then to the guest quarters, he can use for his stay with us." And like that, Sifu was ready to move on.


    The two moved off down the hall. Tore was visibly offended at Sifu''s appraisal of his skill, mumbling in hushed tones. "Please, let me introduce myself officially, Tore", Kai began with an upbeat tone, "I am Master Kai, I am second in charge next to Sifu Bao with managing the school. I am ranked fourth in the school for fighting behind Sifu and two other grand masters." Kai let his information settle into Tore and waited to see if he had any questions, so far. "Do not let Sifu''s judgment of your fighting offend you, he can find fault in anything ¨C he is ranked number three in China among all of the masters...and there is never a decisive victory when he fights his peers ¨C we are all lesser than Sifu Bao."


    Tore was both relieved and awed at finding out where Sifu was ranked among the masters. Tore had spent many years in China on the silk road for the village, literally traveling across the country. His travels took him to some of the more shady spots among traders, silk was not the only thing that came out of China to go to the west, although Tore and his clan would not trade in humans or organic substances. Tore was well versed in the fighting system of China and who rates what and how, hence his reason to seek out Dengfeng for learning Kung Fu.


    "Kai," Tore asked, "where do you rank in the total ratings, I am just curious? I know quite a bit about the fighting circles."


    "I am not sure if I am in the top 100 yet, there are many of us among my peers. Sifu has taken me on to train specially. He says he can see the promise in my soul."


    "How old are, if I may ask?"


    "I am thirty four, I came to Dengfeng when I was four years old. Grandmaster Bao was Sifu then, as well. He has been here for a very long time ¨C this is the first Shaolin temple you know?"


    "I did know that; another reason I was hoping to learn here. How old is Sifu, do you know? "


    "No one knows exactly, but I would guess he is in his late 60''s. From what little I do know, he was or is, some type of prodigy. He excels in combat, philosophy, and all other learning. Emperors from all over the world have come to seek Sifu''s wisdom."


    Tore nodded in awe, "He must be something, I hear his name whispered in awe along the fighting circuit."


    "Here we are", the pair stepped through a large open threshold and into an open seating area, "the dining hall. The table to the back wall there, meet us there for dinner. Please let me show you to your room."


    The pair ducked back out, and a short jaunt down the hall, Kai showed Tore to an easy to find room. "Food will be served at five bells. Please make yourself comfortable here", Kai indicated the sparsely appointed room. It had a cot and some covers for the bed, one stool for sitting, and an empty set of open-faced shelves, and a pitcher on top. "If you require water, use the pitcher there, and the well is in the courtyard just outside the door to the right. Feel free to wander and explore, there are no secrets here...unless of course you find a locked door ¨C there are not many doors in Dengfeng, please do not enter those. I will see you in a bit."


    Master Kai left Tore to his own devices. Tore did not feel like currently exploring. He had been riding his giant Shire...oh, no ¨C his horse, "Well shit...I guess I''m not gonna take a nap now, I better go get Tiny. I can''t have him mauling any of these tiny monks..."


    Five bells finally came, and Tore was ready to eat. He did get a short nap after taking Tiny to the stables. Tore met Master Lin, the stable master ¨C he was very good with horses, Tiny took to Lin right away. Tore washed off the road dust and grime and changed into a lighter set of clothing. Ditching his riding armor for something more casual, comfy black home spun pants, a gray silk shirt, and sheepskin house shoes. Albeit, homespun from T?nsberg was a far cry better quality than the early days of homespun wool he made himself. Tore met Sifu Bao and Master Kai and the prescribed table, bowed to Sifu and Kai, "Please be welcome Tore and sit with us."


    "Thank you, Sifu, I accept your invitation. You are most kind." There was one open seat on Sifu''s left, as Kai sat to his right. There were several other men at the table, some older and far older than Sifu, but none younger than Kai. Tore sat with his new friends to enjoy a meal of lamb, oats, and berries.


    After several moments, and Sifu had eaten most of the food on his plate, Sifu brooched the subject of the Xiao. "Fourteen days ago, Tore, the Xiao first showed up and took fifteen of our students they flew off east. That was a haunting day, we have not stopped looking for our children. I have dozens of our school, out looking for them as we speak. I would like to find our children, alive preferably, and bring our men home. I cannot stop searching in good conscience until I know if the children are alive or not. With my reputation, I was even able to call in favors from local township mayors to help us search. I cannot tell you how many square miles we have searched across, but we haven''t'' missed a square foot within 10 miles of the school. I feel as though we are missing something crucial, but we don''t deal with devils, Tore, maybe the same way you can. What can you tell me about demons?"


    Tore did not need to scour the annals of his mind for information on these demons, although in this case, these were not demons of the heaven and hell sense, but demons of Chinese lore. These were going to be very similar to ogres, dwarves, and other secret earth dwellers. Not fae mind you, not behind the veil monsters, just the secret ones that live in the quiet and dark, and come out at night to steal your undies off of the clothesline...


    "Sifu, are there any caves or tunnels around the temple? Someplace dark and cool all the time, even in the daytime?"


    "There are, to the east, but we have searched them up and down. We used enough torches in that darkness to make it appear daylight. I can assure you, there is nothing there."


    "I am sure you did your best, a superb job for mundane folk that don''t know the secrets of the demons you search for. These creatures probably have ways of either making hidden doorways or camouflaging even to the most seasoned of trackers...but you don''t know what you don''t know ¨C but I do know. I would like to take you up on your offer, I will locate the demons, and you will allow me to study at your temple. Is that correct?"


    The Sifu nodded, "Yes Tore that is correct, it is my offer still. Please know, if we don''t find our children alive, but we find them, we will put off any training for some a long time. My heart aches right now Tore, I am afraid for our children, but I must know whether or not they live."


    "Please, Sifu, I do not mean any disrespect. Even if that had not been your offer, I would still find the children ¨C this is what I do ¨C this is why I was put on earth, to right the wrongs of innocents. I will not only find the children, but I will also fight for them either way. I know you are critical of my combat skills, but I can assure you, I know more about demons and their ilk, than just how to knock the crap out of them, this is what makes me the best and most lethal at what I do."


    "Thank you Tore, how should we proceed then?"


    "First off, I think the children are alive. Since we are not into summer yet, the summer solstice is a popular time for supernatural creatures to do nasty things. The summer solstice has many properties that thin the veils to the "other side, I feel like our children..."


    "My children Tore ¨C you do not know them..."


    "Sifu, pardon please, again I mean no disrespect. Where I come from, we revere children, we look out for and take in any child in need, as is the reason I say ''my'' children. I will fight to the death for any child in need." Tore looked deep into Sifu''s eyes, Tore''s timeless green eyes conveying his truthful conviction of what he just said.


    "Accepted, and of course Tore, no disrespect take. I am impressed by your conviction; thank you and I am glad you are here. Please go on."


    "I think whoever took the children are planning something for the summer solstice. The solstice is far enough away that they need to start kidnapping now, in order to have enough kids to do, whatever it is they are doing...it just makes sense. Can we set out tomorrow, or should be plan a little further out?"


    "No, tomorrow. We have stores of what we need already. The caves are a half day walk to the east, we can begin at daybreak, what else do we need?"


    "We need to take fifteen to twenty of your best fighters, but who can travel quickly. I will take my horse, Tiny, with all of my demon hunting paraphernalia. We should bring two or three other horses, mostly for carrying supplies, and maybe send them back here for reinforcements if necessary. Maybe load up some mules with additional food and sleeping gear, torches, etc. to follow as well, I can''t guarantee what we will run in to once I find the door to the labyrinth."


    "Thank you again, Tore. We will have meditations after dinner, I will think over this and arrange for the men and things we need to be ready by morning. I will send a runner for you at daybreak, peace be with you my new pale friend."

 Chapter 12 - Travel Time

    Daybreak is always early...do not let anyone tell you different. As promised, Sifu had all of the items, men, animals, and equipment ready to move out of the temple at daybreak. Thirty plus individuals were lined up in a column, Sifu on a small Asian horse that was dwarfed by the massive Shire, Tiny, waiting for Tore to mount up. The column was arranged with the faster travelers in front, back to the slower mules and pack animals in the rear ¨C all Tore needed to do is mount up and they would be off.


    Tore was armored for riding at the moment, he was wearing the same gear that he had met Sifu and Kai in. Never being caught without something he may need though, his heavier demon hunting gear was stowed and packed on to the back of Tiny. Easily within reach as well, Tore''s bow was hanging from the saddle. The bow was not lost to Sifu, as he took stock of the mammoth yew and bone recurve composite, it was nearly as tall as a long bow...but recurved. Sifu guessed, the draw weight on the beast must be over 100 pounds, and the arrows ¨C longer than normal by a quarter, black walnut shafts with raven feather fletching and wicked iron barbed tips...this bow was not for hunting food, this much Sifu was sure of. The monks were outfitted in their classic garb of varying colors...grey, orange, yellow, or white. Few were armored other than tough leather bracers, although some of the older students and teachers wore small pieces of leather or bamboo on their chest. All in all, they were dressed for speed.


    The eastern road out of the monastery was well traveled and surprisingly well kempt. Those on horseback could make good time if they so desired, at least up to the half way point where they would leave the road and travel single file on the well-worn goat paths to their final destination. Spring in the high mountain desert was  chilly at daybreak, but at least they would avoid getting baked in the sun come mid-day. Tore mounted up and Sifu signaled for the column to move out.


    The pace was easy on horseback as they did not want to become too far separated from those on foot, this gave Tore and Sifu some one-on-one time, and who doesn''t need some time with a world class warrior monk to make you feel like you are 5 years old, not 65. "Tore" Sifu asked quizzically, "may I ask you a question?"


    Tore chuckled lightly, "Sifu, if I said no, would that make a difference?"


    Sifu looked up, into Tore''s eyes with a knowing grin on his face, "No son, no it would not. So, may I ask who taught you to fight?"


    "Oh Sifu, I knew we would get to this, so I want you to know I will be completely honest with you, but some things are going to get weird, like the way ''you guys didn''t know Xiao existed'' weird...just to be clear." Sifu nodded, giving him his lead, "So, here we go, my mother taught me to fight." Tore''s face lit up with pride and good memories, "As soon as I could walk my mother began teaching me. The basics seemed like dancing to me, and as I got older, we moved into hands and fists, eventually to weapons. In my formative years ¨C mother made it fun, so even as I got more serious it was fun. Along with fighting she taught me many things of hunting demons and monsters, like the ones we are chasing today."


    Sifu nodded, his brow slightly scrunched up in thought, "I started boxing as soon as I could walk as well." He mused, "My father was a renowned martial arts teacher in Xi''an for the king''s guard, and I was a natural, a prodigy I am told. I was not the oldest of my siblings, but I was the best martial artist, and my father invested much in me. He was called to war when I was ten ¨C he never came home, he was killed in push that won the war for us...but, who wins in war. Now, without a father to care for us, and I was not the eldest, I was taken to Dongfeng and offered to the monks who took me in ¨C but only after I beat several students older and bigger than myself. From there I not only studied combat but philosophy, mathematics etcetera, blah blah ¨C you get the story." Sifu looked up at Tore to see if he was paying attention, Tore was actually fascinated by the tale. "Please Sifu, go on."


    "Did you know, it is a misconception that Shaolin monks are ''warrior'' monks. We actually practice combat second to philosophy and morality...medicine, some other things. Our Kung Fu was really developed primarily as a way to exercise and meditate; it has evolved over hundreds of years to what it is now. As Sifu, it is my duty to keep that tradition alive, but to also live in alignment with the modern practices; hence the reason I let some of our more advanced masters participate in the fighting circuit. We do not make it a focus for them and do our best to maintain humility...even though our school is undefeated." His eyes perking up and a small grin on his face.


    "But Sifu" Tore piped up, "you are ranked number three in rankings, how can you not take pride in that?" Sifu scowled a bit, as he answered, "There are a number of us elite masters that have reputations. I am number three, because I am the third oldest...and the rankings give us the benefit of the doubt, that the oldest elite grandmaster is best, followed by the second, and so on. We have all fought at one time or another, but do not fight now, the ranking is for courtesy and respect of the eldest elites."


    "Hmmm" Tore mumble under his breath, "so, the master''s don''t fight any more, at all?"


    "No Tore, we don''t..."


    "But what if you did, who would win?"


    "I would Tore. I can, hands down, guarantee that. Remember, I am the third oldest, those farts older than me, are both over 100 years old...so let that sink in. How old do I look, ask yourself that, and no ¨C I am not going to tell you, either."


    Tore looked down at Sifu, scrunching his face in light hearted thought, "I think I can take you Sifu...yeah, I''d go easy on you, but I think I can take you."


    Sifu grabbed his belly, looked up to the clouds, and began laughing ¨C a hard guffawing belly laugh, "That is the funniest thing I have heard in twenty years, Tore." Sifu let the laugh play out, "Oh wow, son, your mother must have been a great teacher that you haven''t gotten yourself killed yet. As young as you are and the over-the-top self-confidence...self-confidence is good, but it''s gotten men killed, be careful my boy" Sifu''s laughter easing.


    "I am a lot older than I look Sifu, not as old as you ¨C but older than I look..." the look on Tore''s face was incredulous - a bit offended, but also in awe of what Sifu could help him improve on.


    "So, how old are you young man, twenty-five, twenty-nine?"


    " I am sixty five..."


    "No, you can''t be sixty-five..."


    "I told you this was going to get weird; my mother is an angel...and my father is a Viking"


    Sifu''s eyes opened wide, "A what Tore...an angel? One of the heavenly messengers?"


    "That may be what you call them, but my mother is the granddaughter of the Jehovah, the All Father of Christianity, Lord to mankind."


    Sifu had to shake this off and think it through, "Well, we thought Xiao were storybook creatures ¨C why not heavenly messengers, that would also explain why you aren''t dead, you''re half angel..." The pair rode in silence for the next many minutes, both pondering things they just learned about each other.


    "Sifu", Tore started the conversation back up, "I can tell you that I am stronger, faster, smarter, and heal faster, than any man I have yet to meet. But that puts me on even ground with demon''s and monsters, otherwise yes, I would be dead. I have been training and fighting for over sixty years, how is it that you think I am so bad?" Tore looked down at Sifu with curiosity in his eyes, not anger, just curiosity.


    "My boy, I don''t think you are bad. I think maybe I have used certain words for so long, they have a different meaning now, what I think about you, is that you are unrefined. You are like a blade that is not fully complete ¨C the blade and handle are there, but to finish it completely, it must be sharpened and honed to a razor''s edge, and finally hardened and quenched. You are the sharpened blade in need of honing and hardening."


    Tore nodded, not necessarily in agreement, but in understanding, "What is it that I need to ''sharpen'' Sifu? I pride myself on making myself better, learning and applying new skills and knowledge ¨C what is it that you see?"


    "It is the little things Tore. I was watching you fight Xiao, and you are effective, but you waste energy. You are not focusing your Chi ¨C you are just hitting. If you focus your Chi and push the power and energy of your strike into your opponent, you use less physical power but create more impact when releasing Chi at the pinnacle of the strike. The Xiao are minor beasts that are easily beaten, if and when you were to fight me, or even Kai, we will focus the strike properly and release our Chi, and you would pay for your unrefined attacks."The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Tore was slowly nodding his head, replaying the battle in his head, focusing on those strikes, all strikes, now in question. "Thank you for that Sifu. Being who I am, there really isn''t anyone that can help me get better...it''s not like there are a lot of angels hanging around to help me out. My mother left me some time ago, told me I was ready, I just assumed she was right."


    "It could be, since she is an eternal being, she took for granted what she taught you. She may not be aware of your capabilities, so she just got you to a point that she thought was the best you could be, not knowing there was room for improvement. Don''t blame her, when we have dealt with Xiao and the students are home, I will be happy to work with you Tore, I will hone and temper you. I can tell you are a man of honor and have an honest heart ¨C I would like to be a part of your story." Sifu looked up to Tore and bowed respectfully, Tore bowed in kind. "This is where the travel will get difficult, we must leave the road now. Let''s get to the caves and get our kids back."


    The trail took off to the left, the slope slowly becoming steeper the higher up it rose, but not unmanageable. The light brown desert landscape was full of scrub brush and rocky outcroppings, the trail often seemed to get lost if you were looking too far ahead as the colors and textures just blended into that desert brown. Tore took the lead of the now single file column, "Sifu" he shouted back over his shoulder, "pass it down the line to keep an eye out...and up for Xiao ¨C they may not take kindly to us in their territory." Sifu nodded and in turn, passed the warning down the column. Tore kept his mammoth bow at the ready and let Tiny have his head...he was a smart horse, not to mention he had also been trained, with Tore, by Turkish horse master''s to take commands from his riders'' leg movement. The pair could move as a single entity leaving Tore''s hands free for anything else.


    Two hours later, and not seeing anything out of the ordinary, the column turned one final bend in the single-track trail that opened into a decent sized bowl set against the side of the mountain, with openings into the earth, at the back of the bowl. The open area was large for the entire column to pour into and have room to stage before going in. The cave openings were more like alcoves that had been carved out, with solid rock columns looking like a support structure, keeping the roof up. There were three archways in the mountain. The center one was six feet tall, wide enough for six or eight people to walk through side by side, the ones on either side were lower by a head, but just as wide. Tore led Tiny right up the edge of the center opening and dismounted. Unsheathing Sirius and Arcturus and looking at Sifu, "I am going to check this out before we get too settled in...in case we need to haul as outta here."


    "Wait" Sifu scowled abruptly, at least get a torch, and take Kai with you ¨C Kai, get a torch and come here!"


    Tore lightly shook his head ''no'', "Sifu, I can see in all but pure darkness. Let me get a look, Kai can back me up, just in case, but I am best suited for this." Tore gave Kai a minute to catch up, and he entered the arched cave. Under his breath, Tore prayed, ''Father guide my eyes and my steps, give me what I need to find out missing children ¨C Jesus loved the little ones, guide me to them. Sharpen my wits and open my ears ¨C Amen''. Tore could feel a subtle but palpable shift to his person, his senses became just a bit sharper. As Tore''s senses settled, he heard Kai a couple of steps behind, take a sharp breath, "What''s the matter Kai?" Tore kept slowly moving into the cave as Kai followed, "My body just tingled, I thought it was my ass waking up from the long ride, then all of a sudden I can see in the dark and I am pretty sure I can hear mice or moles burrowing in the ground under us ¨C what the hell?" Kai scrunching his eyes at the sudden shift in vision. Tore quietly responded, "Hmm, I will explain later" and mentally thanked the Allfather for gifts unassumed.


    The pair quietly skulked around the back of the cave their night vision piercing the shadows. They noticed several openings, large and small, delving further into mountain side. It was not until Tore looked at them all and came back to a particular one that was on the furthest to the left of the cavern as you looked in, he got the feeling like this was the way they needed to go ¨C and he gave a mental thanks to his Allfather above. "Kai, do you feel anything in your bones when we stand over here?" not that he needed confirmation, but Kai did respond, "yes, I definitely feel like that is the tunnel we should go down ¨C you?"


    "Absolutely, let''s get Sifu ready."


    The pair stepped back into the cool mountain sunlight and made their way to Sifu, who was choreographing the setup of camp. "There you two are ¨C I didn''t hear any screams or howls after a few minutes, I figured I was safe to have our camp set up. What did you find?" Tore quickly explained what they found but did overlook the new found night vision that Kai acquired, not necessarily on purpose. "Kai" Sifu scowled, "look at me", and of course Kai did. "what in the nine hells is wrong with your eyes?"


    "Why Sifu...what''s wrong with them?"


    "I can barely see your pupil, it''s not normal."


    Kai turned to Tore, "You mentioned you were going to tell me something, do you remember?"


    "Oh, oh yeah, that''s my fault." Tore grinned, "Sifu, I didn''t get the chance to tell Kai, but remember who my mom is?" Sifu slowly nodded his head in recognition as he replied, "I would expect something from you, but what of Kai?" Kai quickly interrupted, confused "What the devil is going on here ¨C what do I need to know?" Tore was smirking, "My friend, it''s definitely not the devil, I am half angel ¨C my Great Grandfather is the Christian God, and uh, I asked him for a little boost to find the kids ¨C it seems as if he feels like you could benefit as well. Your night vision kicked in right after I finished praying." Kai scrunched his eyes closed and grabbed the bridge of his nose, "Your moms a what, and your great grandfather is who...?"


    Tore gave Kai a minute to recover, "Come my friend, let us pull up a rock over there and I''ll explain. Sifu, let''s do a good lunch and head into the cave when you''re ready ¨C it''s always a good idea to eat well before demon hunting ''cause you never know if that meal will be your last, or, when you''re going to eat again." Sifu nodded, "I agree. We can eat in fifteen or so ¨C you take care of Kai."


    Tore was able to give Kai the short version, since he was already experiencing a gift from the Allfather, it was easy. "...and so", Tore finished up, "your pupils are now tiny because your eyes adapted, and we don''t want you going blind while out in the light." Kai sat in stunned silence for a few moments longer, "That is incredible Tore...the implications here are endless. The Xiao are real, so what other myths are real. You are clearly not human with an angel mother, so what other myths are real...?" Kai was in a deep ponderance, "Yes, what other myths are real?" He looked up to Tore''s face, "I have met some Christians and have heard of their God, you are not like them." Kai ran his left hand over his mouth and hairless chin, looking into Tore''s face, "I am ready to get retrieve our children, we will talk of this later ¨C but as you say, I don''t know if this will be my last meal, so let''s eat." The pair walked over to the chuck wagon, manned  by the master of the kitchen, grabbed some jerky and dried fruit, pulled up a piece of ground next to Sifu, and quickly finished their meals.


    Sifu stood and walked to the front of the large cave opening, "Here Here!" he  bellowed, grabbing the attention of all. "You know your places and the jobs you need to do. Get your things and line up here, torches, weapons, armor, medicine, and so on ¨C we aren''t sure what we''re getting into so we must all be prepared to die...or run. Karma says we will get our children back and the evil will be repaid, but we all know that karma is brat, and karma will do as karma does. Tore and Kai will lead ¨C this is Tore''s realm; he has done this kind of thing before, believe it or not. You will listen to his guidance as you would mine. Tore do you have anything you would say or warn us about before we enter?"


    Tore was talking as he moved his way through the crowd to Sifu''s side, "Watch your friends back. It is hard to see in the caves, the shadows can cover burrows or hidey holes ¨C trust nothing. Xiao may not be the only thing down there ¨C you thought the Xiao were a myth...now think to yourself, what else is NOT a myth, and keep an eye open for that. I do specialize in demon hunting, Sifu knows this, as does Kai. I don''t have time down there to answer questions, so if I say to do something, don''t ask why, just do it. I will do all I can to bring us all back, ALL of us. Having children abducted by monsters is not what the Allfather has planned for innocent children, that is why I am here, I am a tool of balance and vengeance. Have faith in me as I have faith in the Allfather, and we will triumph. If you have any pertinent questions about this mission, ask now, otherwise, I will answer questions later." Tore paused for a few moments, "Okay, get your gear and let''s go".


    The camp broke into a hustle, each person knowing their role, they were anxious to move out. Sifu would follow directly behind Tore and Kai, he had donned his light bamboo armor and studded leather bracers, armed with studded tonfa for close quarter fighting. Kai only wore studded bracers for armor and was armed with a long knife in each hand and nunchaku tucked on his belt. Sifu and Kai watched as Tore donned his heavier scale armor. His massive arms looked like alligators, with silvery scales instead of green, that ended in studded fingerless gauntlets. A large 3 scaled piece covered his torso ¨C it was heavier but did not hinder his movement like solid western style plate armor. His trousers were actually made to accept externally mounted thigh  and shin guards, while his helmet, in the likeness of a bear, sat on top of his head, not covering his face, and blending into the armor scales on his back, protecting his exposed neck. Finally, Tore grabbed his massive bow and began to disassemble it ¨C the yew limbs could be removed, and now instead of being almost as tall as a man, it was a short bone recurve that could be more easily handled in tight spaces. Tore also grabbed a different quiver of arrows, not the extra-long ones Sifu had noticed earlier. And as always, Sirius and Arcturus, the star metal axe and hammer hung in his belt. The technology Tore used was more incredible than anything Sifu had seen, even that of the Chinese royal armory in Beijing.


    Tore walked over to check in with Sifu and Kai before they entered into the subterranean shaft that presumably led to demon central, Sifu looked him up and down, "Tore, if I saw you in the night and did not know you, I might think you were the demon." Tore nodded respectfully, "Sifu, I don''t know how kids do it in China, but in Norway, children look under their beds before sleeping to make sure there are no monsters there...also in Norway, monsters look under their beds to see if I am there", and Tore smiled a large devious smile, "Let''s go get our kids back, shall we?" and the team began the trek into the mountain.

 Chapter 13 - Demon Central

    This tunnel was slightly steeper than the previous, still no tool marks or other man-made indications, and just tall enough Tore only had to stoop a little bit to fit. The group had not gone far into the tunnel when he could hear some serious commotion from up ahead. The sound of Xiao was clear, the shrieks and yells; but also, noise of hammers and picks ¨C probably some type of excavation...someone, or, something was digging, not that Tore cared, but he was curious ¨C humans, fae, mythical critters, demon''s and dark gnomes was an odd combination. Someone was up to something, and it was not good.


    This tunnel never went full dark, light carried from the first cavern and something from the next one was allowing just enough reflected light the monks did not need torches. Tore noticed flecks of mineral mica, or something similar, allowing the light to ''bend'' around the corners and gently illuminate the way. The group did not have to travel long, three or four bends later Tore could see the tunnel make its way into another cavern, and by all accounts, this one was much ginormousor than the first.


    Tore signaled the group to hold while he snuck up to take a look, keeping low and out of sight to get a good glimpse. As he peeked in, he was mildly stunned ¨C not the biggest underground cavern he had seen, but he was not expecting this. The roof flew thirty-foot overhead, and you could fit three hundred people in the cavern with enough room for food servers and a music troupe.  Xiao were immediately noticeable, there were hundreds of them flying with buckets full of dirt in their hands, out another lava tube, dumping that dirt somewhere, and returning for more, like a bucket brigade for dirt. They were landing close to the middle of the room to fill the buckets from piles of dirt the dark gnomes were making. Those little bastard were carving some type of large symbol in the floor. They were digging and chipping stone to make it flat, and inlaying gold with their dark magic to form a symbol. Overseeing the dozen dark gnomes was the taotie, the gluttony demon ¨C that was one ugly son of a motherless goat. It must have been seven or eight feet tall, short legs and long arms like a gorilla but not as thick. The fingers ended in claws longer than a grizzly''s. It was covered in nasty brown hair with a mane at the back of its giant head, and a face with a short snout and extremely wide set of jaws, not any resemblance to any animal Tore has seen. The coup de grace though, the wide mouth, which could open incredibly wide, was filled with teeth that would put a tiger to shame, and they were dripping with something nasty and foul...probably pixie.


    The taotie had its back to Tore''s tunnel, watching the dark gnomes work in the torch light, kicking dirt on to the creation, acting like the giant a-hole it was. Tore took stock of the scene, there was not a lot to this, a lot of open space, eight dark gnomes, and one ugly ass son of a bitch who were all going to die. Tore moved back to Kai and Sifu to lay out his plan. "The ugliest creature you have ever seen, is in that cavern ¨C do NOT try to engage it, any of you, understand?" Tore waited for a nod from each of the monks and continued, "this should be fairly straight forward, I am going to kill three of the eight dark gnomes as I enter the cavern, you will finish off the rest. Eight of you and five of them, dark gnomes are not tough, but they are much stronger than they appear so be wary. I will then engage the taotie, once you''re done you can help me, assuming I need it, only ranged attacks...do not get close to that thing. Any questions so far?" No one said a thing. "Xiao," she looked up to Tores eyes, "As soon as I give a signal, you call you''re your children. As soon as I see an opening, I''ll attack ¨C does anyone have anything else to add?" Little voices piped in to Tore''s head, "Help, help, help." Tore stepped past Xioa and knelt down to his new friends, "You two, please stay with Xiao where it is safe...I don''t want you to get hurt ¨C can you do that?" There was no response, Tore just shook his head and moved back to his spot, "Let''s go."


    Tore quietly move to the front of the lava tube, staying far enough back to avoid the eyes of the dark gnomes. He pulled two arrows out of the quiver, mumbling "Elf archers ain''t got nothin'' on me" and put them both to his bow string. He turned his head back to Xiao and nodded, she released the most intense caterwaul howl anyone in the lava tube had ever heard, making their ears ring. Literally all the creatures in the cavern looked to the rescuers tunnel and stopped ¨C the Xiao only paused for a split second, they had heard mama and threw down anything they held in their hands and beelined for the exit.


    The dark gnomes and the taotie covered their heads with their hands and arms as Xiao flocked like mad, not caring if they collided with any of their captors, while throwing buckets and dirt back to the ground. Tore and the monks had tucked as well as they could into the bottom of the tunnel, escaping the mass of those fleeing. It only took a moment for the bulk of Xiao to clear out and Tore took his first shot; stepping into the middle of the tunnel, just inside from the cavern, caught eye to eye contact of the closest two dark gnomes and let the arrows fly. Even before the first arrows killed their targets, a third arrow was nocked and flying to target number three, direct heart shot. Tore stepped further into the cavern so he could see the taotie better, and let a fourth arrow fly, finding its mark in the right shoulder of the beast, and a fifth arrow down range, sticking out of the taotie''s right leg. The monks barreled in and past Tore to finish off their assigned foes.


    The taotie, he was not having any of this ¨C let a screech rip that put the Xiao matron to shame. Tore could not tell if the taotie was angry or scared, or both. The look in its demonic face was definitely fear, but fear of what. The taotie grabbed the arrow in its shoulder and pulled, then the one lodged in its thigh was yanked out, both leaking thick viscous brown ooze. "Stop!" it screeched. "He will kill us all if we don''t finish." The taotie had the look of a toddler throwing a tantrum, its fists balled up shaking up and down while he hopped in place, stomping the ground.


    Tore quickly glance to see how the monks were fairing - they were holding their own, two gnomes down to one monk who did not look dead...okay for now. Tore focused back on the taotie who was now heaving its breath, giant mouth open as if hyperventilating, "No! No! No! I  am going to rip your arms off and beat you half to death, then you will watch me eat your arms, and then I am going to eat you ¨C starting at your feet I will bite you to pieces and you can watch!!" The taotie began to stalk toward Tore, leaning on his hands in a gorilla-esque manner, Tore raised his bow and fired again. The taotie was faster than it looked, it caught the arrowed headed for its sternum, tossed it away, and then jumped the remaining twenty feet to combat with its attacker.


    Tore tossed his bow to safety and drew Sirius and Arcturus to meet his foe. The taotie landed and swung a hammer fist at Tore''s head. Tore crossed his weapons in a two-handed block...the hit harkened back to a time when he got kicked by a young Tiny, the shire ¨C this was a powerful strike. Tore took the energy and pushed off to his left, pivoted 360 degrees and brought his hammer back around to the taoties head, just clipping one of the monster''s incisors, making it shorter. In a howling rage, the taotie raised both hands for another hammer strike, but missing as Tore rolled backwards out of the way. A quick glance at Kai, Tore could see the monks had pretty well finished off the gnomes now, just cleaning up. Tore circled away from the taotie, getting it to expose its back to the monks, hoping they could help out a little bit.


    The taotie was pure rage, it kept swinging at Tore wildly telegraphing its massive hammer strikes ¨C easy for Tore to avoid. Tore slid his hammer from his left hand into its belt holster and drew his twelve-inch seax (a.k.a. long knife), death by a thousand cuts would be easier than getting inside the monsters reach for an attack. Tore did not have to wait long, as the taotie swung in with a massive right hand, Tore used his seax to score a deep gash into its forearm, eliciting another howl of rage. Left hand, swing, and slice; right hand, swing, and a slice, again and again, the raging beast was getting cut to ribbons. The monster could not focus, it started spinning and randomly swinging at Tore who dodged easily even with its erratic behavior. The taotie was its worst enemy, all Tore had to do was keep cutting its arms as it missed ¨C this would take a bit of time, but the monster was going to beat itself, all Tore had to do was stay out of the way.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    In a sudden changed direction, the beast was now heading toward the monks who were not prepared for this. Tore bellowed a warning, but too late. As the monster closed in, Kai moved to intercept, with a feeble attempt to ward it off from his fellow monks, he was caught across the chest by a massive monster back hand and thrown across the cave, his movement abruptly halted by contact with the cavern wall. That short and unassuming interruption allowed Sifu and the other monks enough of a window to move out of the monster''s destructive path. As the monks escaped, Sifu went to Kai while other monks began throwing whatever they could at the taotie.


    Tore snapped; he could not let the taotie hurt anyone else. He focused his resolve and zeroed in on the taotie''s weakness, its rage. Tore closed in and began to dance with his axe and seax, bobbing and ducking Tore began to deliver quick and precise cuts to exposed tendons, hands, elbows, ribs ¨C whatever the monster let him hit, he hit. The rage was building in the beast, it suddenly stopped and put both knuckled hands to the ground like a gorilla and roared ¨C focusing its dark chi into the rage roar, all aimed at Tore. Whatever the taotie was doing, the effecte brought Tore brought to his knees ¨C the massive roar blinded and deafened the Viking. Tore dropped his weapons to grab his head, that pounding was worse than the time he caught a full, bull ogre fist to the chest. The sonic induced stupor gave the taotie the opening it needed, it backhanded Tore across the cavern, back to the lava tube entrance, landing and sliding into the tube.


    Two little voices broke through the din of pain, "No. No. Help" The little fur balls started to purr...not really a purr, maybe a small growl in their throats, but whatever is was, cleared the fugue from Tores head and body. The Viking stood up ready for another round and stepped out of the tunnel followed by the foo dogs. The taotie was stalking toward the downed Kai and Sifu, Tore shouted to get its attention, "Hey asshole, I''m not done yet." The taotie turned, venom in its piercing gaze, as it noticed the furry foo dogs, "Those are mine! You ruin everything" it screeched, voice tinged with madness, and the beast began smashing his bloody hands on the floor and stalking toward Tore, "I will kill you!" and he leaped again.


    As the taotie cleared the cavern floor and began its descent, like a big hairy rock slung from a catapult, the foo dogs barked as one. The audible sound from this bark was not like a dog, not like the Xiao, and not like the scream from the taotie...this was a pleasant tone like the gonging resound from a giant well-tuned bell, which caught the taotie mid-air and flung him back across the cavern away from Sifu and Kai, smashing into the cavern wall with immense force. Not to be one who looks a gift foo dog in the mouth, Tore was on the move. He drew his hammer as he sprinted across the cavern floor followed by two fuzzy foo dogs.


    The taotie gained its feet as Tore arrived; it was too stunned to focus on anything - the foo dogs barked again. The demon was launched against cavern wall, the immense force knocking the beast nearly unconscious ¨C Tore caught the monster straight through the foul mouth with his hammer, turning its teeth to bits. Swinging an uppercut, straight into the bottom of its jaw snapping the massive head back, driving the monster into unconsciousness...that should give Tore enough time to grab his axe so he could remove the head and burn the body.


    Tore turned to look for his weapon, he noticed Sifu sitting next to Kai ¨C Kai lying motionless on the ground. Tore''s heart broke, but he needed to finish this before the taotie woke up. Looking around where he thought the weapon would be, Tore heard a massive commotion coming from the upper tunnel, the one the Xiao escaped from ¨C the Xiao burst back through into the cavern, mama Xiao in the lead, the mass of little demons swarmed the taotie. A discord of screeches was drowning out any noise the taotie may have been making whilst getting ravaged...the Xiao made the body of the nasty monster disappear.


    It took less than a minute, like piranha on a goat, and the taotie was gone. The small Xiao were flying back out of the cavern the same way the entered. Xiao, the Xiao, stopped to talk with Tore, "I could not in good conscience leave our rescuer. We were up with the fae, they were so hurt and damaged and my children have been hurt and spiritually damaged..." the sadness and anger apparent in Xiao''s face, "the taotie caused too much pain and suffering. That monster hurt innocents and turned my children against their nature, we had to help any way we could ¨C it is somewhat comforting to know that we could put an end to the monster that hurt us so badly. Thank you Tore, I will not forget you. Your name will be spoken in our heaven." Xiao turned and followed her children out of the cavern.


    Tore had no time to dwell on what just happened, Kai was down, and it did not look good. Moving to Sifu Bao''s side Tore took stock of the man...not breathing, no pulse, and blood pooled under Kai''s head. "No, no, no..." Tore pleaded under his breath, Kai''s hand in his. Tore had not known Kai but for a few days ¨C they were kindred spirits ¨C Tore knew he and Kai had connected on a level deeper than the physical, their spirits clicked. The foo dogs settled down on either side of Kai, nuzzling with their big heads as close as they could, and Tore did the only thing he could think of, he prayed to the Almighty; "Grandfather, this is all you ¨C there is nothing we can do. All things are possible through you...please restore Kai. I know he and I are kindred souls..."


    Tore continued his meditation for a few more minutes when he noticed Kai''s hand becoming warm, the man''s chest began to rise and fall ¨C "Oh shit...that hurt" Kai mumbled under his breath. Tore and monks looking at each other in turn ¨C stunned and grateful for the miracle they just witnessed. Sifu helped Kai sit up while the others did what they could to assist or moved back out of the way. Kai opened his eyes and looked from face to face at his friends, a mysterious twinkle now gleaming from him. "Did you know" he asked Tore "that Jesus guy is middle eastern...not a western white guy?" Tore laughed "I did know that."


    They let the moment sink in before Sifu asked Kai, "What happened ¨C you were gone for some time and just came back. I am afraid I know dead, and you were dead, you are not possessed, are you?"


    "No Sifu, I am not possessed ¨C but I am changed. After the taotie hit me, I was in so much pain, I couldn''t move, and all was black. After a few moments even sounds stopped ¨C and I opened my eyes. I was in this misty expanse of...nothing. I could feel a floor at my feet, but that was the only indication of direction, there was nothing else to see except white mists. As I was looking around, turning to see if I could find anything, I turned to find a middle eastern man in a pristine white robe smiling at me. His perfect brown hair and smooth beard, his eyes sparkled so bright I couldn''t tell what color they were ¨C they were endless...and I knew him, I knew he was Jesus. He walked up to me and hugged me. When he stepped back, the foo dogs were both beside licking and nuzzling my hands. I knelt down to pet them both, and as I looked up to see Jesus, an infinite conversation took place between us ¨C and I said yes. I accept him and believe, and he sent me back...I get to make sure Tore doesn''t do anything else stupid." Kai grinned at Tore ¨C Tore sidled in, and side hugged Kai, little tears running down his cheeks. Sifu and the monks moved back and stood up. Tore took a minute more, and slipped back as well, standing with his hand out to assist kai in gaining his feet, "My brother."


    The men took a few minutes to revel in their victory, looking at the destruction that was wrought, grateful they all made it through the battle. The gluttony demon was known to devour people whole in stories told from Chinese lore...the fact they fought and won was a miracle, but the fact the creature exists, again, making the monks think about what is  fiction and what is truth. The monastery will never be the same. Sifu moved toward the tunnel out, "Come friends, let us leave this cursed place."


    Sifu and the men walked out of the cave about an hour before dusk ¨C those awaiting their return were ecstatic to see the exhausted faces. Water skins and food was passed around to refresh the warriors. The fae and the Xiao were gone, camp already broke down, the cook master knowing Sifu would not want to spend the night here, had everyone packed up already. The cook approached Sifu, "Master, we are ready to move, camp will be set up back down the road, warm food will be prepared ¨C let us leave here."


    "I agree Qing, let us go, it has been a good day."

 Chapter 14 - Enter the Den

    The trek into the deep unknown was not without its reservations ¨C the monks were completely out of their element. Tore and Kai could see ''pretty'' good - not perfect, but they could easily see with their Heavenly imbued temporary eyesight. Tore got the feeling, not that it mattered, these tunnels were lava tubes from millennia ago. There were no tool marks or any indication that someone, or something, had dug these tunnels out, they were smooth, nearly fluid. Lava tubes could  be notoriously hard to navigate if there were no tracks or trails to follow, good thing he was being led by the Almighty. Even being the great-grandson of the Almighty did not mean things were going to be easy. Tore and Kai stayed far enough in front of Sifu that the monks could use torches to navigate the darkness and not give away their presence.


    Tore used his supernatural hearing as a way to ''peer'' down the tunnel. The nature of sound underground would give him plenty of warning if something was approaching. His troupe moved forward on the silent feet of monks, bereft of all sound except for the occasional pop of a burning torch. Time seemed to creep by like a glacier and the tension would have been paralyzing to normal folk. Tore could read Kai''s face; the tension was taking a toll. Being under ground and purposely looking for demons, not your everyday spelunking adventure. Being in the bowels of the earth was not new to Tore, he was somewhat used to it. The worst part of any spelunking were the times you had to crawl on your belly, or force your way through an opening, in which you had to force out all of your breath, so you would fit through the space...sometimes running out of breath ¨C terrifying ¨C they had not run into that yet, hopefully not at all. Tore''s ears perked up, he thought he could hear one, or maybe two, small voices squeaking out through the tunnel. He stopped and let Kai catch up, he asked, "Can you hear anything?" Kai closed his eyes and focused, listening just a bit harder, "No...what is it?" Tore focused harder, "I''m not sure. I can hear one, maybe two voices, sounds like they are saying ''help'' over and over." Tore''s brows scrunched together, "Let''s keep going, we''re gonna get some kids back", and he headed off again.


    Thirty or so minutes later as the tiny voices Tore could hear were getting louder, he spied a cavern at the end of the lava tube. He had Kai head back to Sifu to have the torch bearers snuff their lights, so they did not give their presence away. Tore focused his hearing and quietly crept his way to the edge of the cavern, drawing his hammer with his left hand, sneaking into the cavern as silently as he could...there were no Xiao ¨C there were children though, they were there in several cages, all alive and safe, relatively. In addition to the children, there were many small fae, there had to be at least twice as many pixies and brownies as children. On the other side of the cave were ten cages, each cage held a Chinese mythological creature...but scaled down and ethereal, like small wispy lap creatures. There were qilin, dragons, nine tailed foxes, turtle bears and some others Tore did not recognize...maybe Kai did, but it does not matter now. There was one cage tucked behind some dragons, next to a tunnel leading further into the mount, it held the biggest Xioa Tore had seen to date...which to date, was not too long ago. This Xiao was different, definitely not as mindless as the others, Tore could see the eyes and the body language, evaluating the situation. Tore had to ignore it for now, he wanted to find the source of the voices, not to mention there were children and fae to rescue.


    Tore whispered loudly as he approached the inlet tunnel, "Come on Kai, get Sifu and do what you can to quietly get the children out ¨C quietly" with an emphasis on quiet, "Do what you can, I know the kids are scared, but ¨C you know what I mean." Tore knew he was preaching to the proverbial choir. "I will personally deal with anything that has terrorized the kids...just do what you can." Kai moved and the monks began moving the children out of the cave. Each monk grabbing one or two and quickly but quietly moving back out. The children were weak and dehydrated, needless to say, they did not make that much noise - this part of the rescue was going smoothly.


    Tore moved to the nearest tiny cage full of fae, it housed at least ten pixies. All of the fae citizens, brownies and pixies, appeared bleak and exhausted. The pixies did not have room to fly...they just scootched back in the cage, away from Tore, scared. "High friends" Tore whispered in Gaelic. The demeanor of the fae changed immediately, one pixie in the cage piped up, "You know of us, you know our language?" Tore smiled, attempting to ease the small innocent beings, "I know Tatiana, she and I have had tea. I am going to set you free ¨C you don''t belong here." Tore began to force the lock open on the cage...they were not dwarf built, it easily pulled open.


    As Tore began breaking open the fae cages, he noticed all of the children were out. Sifu, Kai, and some other masters were still with him. "Help me break these cages open, I want to talk to someone and see if I can figure out what the hell is going on." The other monks used weapons to pry open cages and encourage the fae captives to leave. Some of the small creatures were in bad shape and needed the assistance of friends. Sifu helped one brownie, sharing water, tipping his small head back, "Here friend, drink" and he slowly poured water across the little guy''s lips. Sifu turned and garnered help from a more hale brownie, "Let''s get you guys up to the surface, we will share what we have and see if we can''t get you back on your feet." The brownie had no idea what Sifu said, but the peace and sincerity is his words did enough; the strong helped the weak and they began to file out. The monks that were left assisted or carried the weakest of the refugees back to the surface.


    Tore found the pixie he had talked to; she was helping others. Tore waited until she was done and grabbed her attention, "Hi, my name is Tore, what is yours?" He put his hand out, letting her rest on his palm, all 4 or 5 inches of her, "My name is Sara, thank you for helping us. I will tell Tatiana of your great deed here. Many of us here were traveling to the summer court when we were kidnapped from under her protection ¨C she will be grateful, I am sure." That little tidbit made Tore wonder, what in THEE hell had happened. Who has the guts, or stupidity, and the skills to kidnap from under Tatiana''s nose...? "Sara, can you tell me what is going on here, why you and the children are with creatures of myth down here?" Sara began her tale with pixie-like gusto, Tore was actually glad she was exhausted, otherwise he may not be able to follow the story, as they normally talk three times the speed of people, "I can''t tell you who actually pixie napped us, they were fast and stuffed us into burlap sacks, it was very smelly and not roomy at all. They unceremoniously then dumped us into the cages you see. What little we saw of them, they were too short for humans, but they wore dark clothes and masks...but they did smell like the Unseelie, bad." She took a breath and started in again, "The mythos creatures were already here, and the big monkey in the back, she was here too" Tore put another piece of the puzzle on the board...a female Xiao, "then after some time, the little monkeys brought the children, and then some brownies and more pixies came too. We''ve been so tired; we still did not see who stole my fae family." Sara''s demeanor changed dramatically for the worse, "There were more of, but a very ugly monster came out of the other tunnel, his eyes were pure evil, and he grinned as he looked at all of us in the cages ¨C he went to one and put his hand into it, like it was a sack of grain, and literally ate a handful of pixies...it was disgusting...and evil...and..." Sara began to sob, Tore consoling her, "Sara, it''s okay. You don''t have to say any more, it doesn''t matter why you are here, I am going to end whatever vile creature brought you here." He knelt on one knee and set her down with some of her friends that had stayed behind, "Please take her to the surface, you will be safe there. Sifu and the monks will help you with whatever you need. I am going to kill something, or things." The pixies looked into Tore''s eyes, nodded in approval, and moved off.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    The angry Viking stood and walked past the mythos creatures, still not finding the small voices calling out for help, to the big Xiao stopping just short of her being able to reach out and grab him through the bars...just in case. She was sitting down in the back of the cage, her hands folded in her lap, head down, looking at her own hands.


    The Xioa spoke quietly, with a very human and very female voice, "I see you Ti¨¡nsh¨«", and that made Tore do a double take..."Kai" Tore whisper yelled, "Kai, get over here" Tore turned away from the large Xiao to meet Kai, "This Xiao speaks, perfect Mandarin..." Kai''s brows scrunched up and he took a few seconds to process what Tore just said, and he stepped around him to the cage, "What is your name Xioa?" The Xiao looked up solemnly, "My name is Xiao, there is only one of me and I know you to Kai ¨C and I know Ti¨¡nsh¨«, the angel ."


    Tore and Kai looked at each other, stunned, and she continued, "I am Xiao, so my name is Xiao, and I am one of low magic." She began to explain, "I am not powerful in magic, but I have many children. Normally we maintain nature...help it to grow or adapt, we are peaceful ¨C it is not on our hearts to hurt humans, but we were captured, and my children forced to work for the Taotie, a gluttony demon. My children can work without stopping and will do whatever I tell them to do...even if I don''t mean it. When some were forced to kidnap children, others were further down the caverns moving rock and dirt. Now, for many days, hundreds and hundreds of my children have been moving dirt. I am not sure what for, but I did notice who kidnapped the fae, they are dark gnomes, heartless creatures who work for gold and pixie dust." Tore put his hands on the bars of the metal cage, close to the lock ¨C and pulled it open. Kai was stunned, "Tore, what are you doing? You can''t trust a demon..." Tore looked Kai in the eye and lightly shook his head ''no'', "She is telling the truth Kai, she is not evil, someone is using her." Tore could feel the truth in her, she was not lying. "Xiao, do you know why the mythos creatures are here?" She pulled herself up from the floor, she was large for a Xiao, but still only four feet tall, "I don''t know what is planned for them, I can tell you that these", Xiao gestured to the spirits in cages, "are not full demons. These are the spirits of something past. Their magic is so weak, you can barely see them." She hobbled over to the nearest cage with a nine tailed fox, reached through the bars and ran her hand through the mist that was the creature. "Thank you, Tore. I will go attempt to save my children, I do not think I will succeed, but I would rather be dead than forced to serve the evil of the Taotie." And she turned to head down the deeper tunnel.


    Tore reached out and stopped her, putting his hand on her shoulder, "I will save your children ¨C this is what I do. If you know me as you say you do, then you know that I am the balance to that which is wrong." She turned back, her soft brown eyes meeting his forest green, "Thank you Tore, and thank you Kai ¨C and you Bao, I see you too." Sifu had tucked himself away behind some empty cages. He stepped out of the shadow and waved to her, an uncertain smile on his face. Tore waved Sifu to him, "get your guys, we are going to put the hurt on a glutton demon...and some dark gnomes it would seem."


    "Hold on, Tore" Sifu whispered, "you need to come and look at this before we go. I think there are some more mythical animals here...just not with those others, these are more ¨C solid" Sifu stepped away from the cage behind him to allow Tore room to get closer. As Tore moved that way...the small voices he heard changed, "Yes, yes, yes..." they whispered. "Guys" Tore questioned, "can you not hear that?" Tore stopped and surveyed the room; the occupants all shook their heads ''no.'' Tore scowled and moved to the cage next to Sifu and kneeled down.


    There were two large fluffy looking ''balls'' inside the cage; Tore could not make out what type of creature they were. One was a bronze color, and the other was a silvery gray. The voices changed, "hi, hi, hi...." Tore slowly reached his hand to the bronze one that was closest, and gently pushed his fingers into its luscious thick fur, and slowly pet the small creature. A head rose from the fluff ball, from the side furthest away, and as it turned to look, a head arose from the gray ball, next to the head of the bronze...a pair of something had been cuddling head-to-head. As Tore got a good look at them, he could not tell what he was looking at. Each had a mane, like a lion. The snout and jaws were short, like a bulldog or a boxer, and as they fully rose to their feet on short legs, their bodies were compact like a cross between a leopard and bulldog. "Help, help, help..." Tore could hear them, now he knew the voices were in his head. He grabbed the cage door next to the lock and snapped it open. The two small ¨C ish critters barreled out of the cage into Tore and began licking his face. "Mine, mine, mine..." the words in his head changed again and he was not sure what he should do next. He did defend himself as well as he could without hurting them.


    Sifu was stunned, "Tore" he asked incredulously, "do you know what these are?"


    "No" Tore gasped in between licks, "please help me up so I can take a look."


    Sifu and Kai swooped in on either side and helped Tore into a sitting position while the grateful animals were still tongue lashing the poor Nephilim.


    Sifu kneeled down with Tore and began petting the animals, "For the love of heaven, Tore, these are foo dogs, guardian lions, any other number of names. I should have known, they are as mythical or more so than Xioa...I guess we found the Xiao, so why not foo dogs?"


    Tore pulled himself out of the tongues of death and was petting each dog in turn. "Okay, you two need to stay here ¨C we are going to go kill something bad, and I don''t want you getting hurt." The duo voices in his head replied with a simple "Help." Tore was now more confused than ever, the pups could clearly communicate, just in his head, and they wanted to go snuff a demon ¨C this was something he would have to work out later, he did not want them to get hurt though. "I think you guys understand me, so how about you stay with Xiao and get out when she gets here children. I don''t know if you understand me, but I gotta go ¨C you stay with Xiao" with that, as Tore backed away from the foo dogs, they did not move.


    Tore turned to Sifu and asked, "This is not my thing, do you think they will be okay?" Sifu replied, "Foo dogs, guardian lions ¨C whatever, are mythical, but in the mythos, they are smart, loyal, and protective. I am really not sure ¨C but I don''t think you can do or say anything that will convince them to do anything except what they want. I would say, since you''re the only one that can hear them talk, there is a better chance they may do as you ask, but we will have to see."


    Tore nodded his head and turned to the tunnel that led deeper into the mountain; as he moved forward, he turned to look at the foo dogs, they had moved to be with Xiao. "Xiao, you follow us down, stay back and call your children away as soon as it''s safe, and we will do the rest of the work." Xiao nodded and the would-be rescuers made their way down the tunnel.