As winter ends, my brother’s and my own child are born only a few days apart. He had a daughter and me, a son.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Holding my son for the first time, it felt like everything was leading up to this point in my life. His eyes are a deep blue, just like that of Arni\u2019s. We decided to name him Hrut after Arni\u2019s father. My father approves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My brother and Asfrid named their daughter Thora, and she too has the same deep blue eyes as the sea. Asfrid was torn between the names Freyja, which also means Frida, the goddess she worships, and Thora. But ultimately, they chose Thora for a reason I wasn\u2019t clear about. I believe it\u2019s because of Thorkel’s obsession with Thunar, the name of his favorite god. The god also goes by a different name\u2026 Thor. I can\u2019t help but think about what Sigvor said upon our wedding day as I look at her. What did she mean?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My father wants me to join him and Thorkel in the Captain\u2019s meeting along with the crew meeting before they all leave for the All-Clan Meeting. Near the docks is a building with a long table within it. We follow farther inside as he takes his position at the end of the table while the nineteen captains file in and take their spots with their most trusted behind them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After everyone is here, my father takes his seat and everyone else sits down after him. My brother takes a seat to his left while I stay standing behind Thorkel with Rognvald, our ship\u2019s quartermaster and second in command. Since I\u2019m not a captain myself, I have to remain standing. My father begins the meeting. \u201cThe meeting of the captains is now in session. Let us discuss this raiding season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They all give their agreement. My father nods. \u201cShall we continue our raids on the merchant ships moving to and from Chillshore, or does anyone have any other suggestions?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe elves are getting more protective of their merchant ships. The normal routes are becoming more dangerous, especially with the small numbers we raid in,\u201d Koll says as he sits to the right of my father, a seat of the utmost respect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd what do you suppose we do about that?\u201d Thrain Haklangsson asks with none other than Gorm standing behind him with a sneer. His eyes seem to fixate on Thorkel and me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe either need to raid in larger numbers which will decrease the profits we make individually, or find other routes,\u201d Koll says. Another uproar rumbles through the captains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere in the name of the gods would we sail?\u201d Thrain Haklangsson asks. He is a man of pure greed. His face is covered in tattoos of his journeys and his hair is done in the traditional Viking way, with the sides shaved and the top in a long braid. He has a long goatee with a mustache. \u201cThere are no more profitable routes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMay I make a suggestion?\u201d Thorkel asks and all eyes fall upon him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEarl Beorcol, I mean no disrespect, but you need to keep a muzzle on your son. This is a discussion between Captains,\u201d Thrain spits out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, seeing how I will be giving the captain\u2019s seat over to Thorkel this raiding season, I see no problem with him interjecting. He is a captain as of now. Now, Captain Thorkel, what is your suggestion?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thrain has murder in his eyes as he glares at Thorkel, but my brother gives him no more attention than he would give a bug beneath his feet. \u201cWhy do we not head west beyond the forest of the elves, and then south to the islands where Pirates sail? I hear there are shipping routes to many lands. I am sure there is more treasure to be plundered there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Father smiles as he looks out at his men. \u201cThat is a good suggestion, Captain. Does anyone have anything to say?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat is absurd. We will find ourselves surrounded by enemies in seas we know nothing about,\u201d Thrain says. Spit flies out as he speaks. \u201cI say we bring an army down and raid the Southerner’s main port of Riverhall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot all pirates are enemies. I\u2019ve met an elven woman pirate with fiery red hair named Azariah who flew a red dragon flag. She was an honorable pirate and gave aid,\u201d Father says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou want to attack one of their more fortified positions? We might as well take Chillshore back while we\u2019re at it,\u201d Koll says, slapping the table. My aunt, Ingithora, my mother\u2019s youngest sister, stands behind him and puts her hand on his shoulder. My cousin, Veleif, Koll\u2019s oldest son, stands on his other shoulder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt least we know what we\u2019re in for. Sailing west, we might as well sail into the Merrow waters,\u201d Kodran, a close friend of Thrain, says. He has no respect for anyone. His nose is so far up Thrain\u2019s arse that it\u2019s covered in shit. That\u2019s why his beard is so brown. Behind him stands a man named Sigemaer Tjorvisson, a man who is not so bad, but will never prosper under such terrible leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRiverhall has a far bigger fleet of warships than we do. They would annihilate us unless we ally with the other clans. Even then, the only ones who have any ships are the Valkyrie, the Builders, and the Ice Tribe. But the Builders aren\u2019t warriors. The Eagle Clan will never agree to go to war. Do you intend to ask the Wolf Clan for aid? That will certainly go over well,\u201d Throst says. He supports and is a friend of my father. He\u2019s a man of few words, but when he speaks, he speaks sense. His long, bright red hair is always done in a braid and he keeps his beard braided as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI would sooner befriend a Merrow than a scum of the Wolf Clan,\u201d Kodran says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe should just raid the Wolves. They deserve death,\u201d Thrain says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sadly, many people in our town believe this, and I once was one of them. But since the wedding, I\u2019ve been questioning my own hate of the Wolves. Baldric and Siv don\u2019t seem all that different from us. They are two I can respect. However, Vidkunn and Bjarni seem quick to anger and know how to get under my father\u2019s skin. Of course, he also lights a fire under their arses, so it goes both ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf you attack them unprovoked, you\u2019d give the other clans a reason to fight us out of fear we\u2019d attack them too. Besides, we do not have enough men to fight them in their own woods. Their wolves alone would pick us apart. Even if we sail into the lake through the river, we\u2019d be hard pressed to get past their defenses without losing many of our own,\u201d Beorcol says with a bit of fire in his eyes. \u201cToo many of our people have died fighting the Wolves. Besides, we have enough enemies outside of the North. We do not need to open old wounds and reburn bridges that were weakly rebuilt. Trust me, I have more reason than any to want the Wolves dead, but it is not worth the lives of our people. And provoking the Southerners might invoke their wrath, or did you forget what happened the last time we went to war with the south?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That shut them up. At least on attacking either the Wolf Clan or the Southern ports. It surprises me my father would be against the war since it seems like it\u2019s all he\u2019s talked about ever since the last war with the south.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI still think we shouldn\u2019t risk going out west,\u201d Thrain mutters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat is because you are a coward,\u201d Einar Alriksson, my uncle Koll\u2019s brother, says. He\u2019s always been blunt with words and lets his thoughts be clear. I respect him for that, but it can get him into a lot of heat with others. Behind him stands his oldest son, Vog, and a woman named Brynhild Svartkollrdottir, the virgin woman who gave birth to a fatherless son. She is a true beauty and a warrior at that. I remember when Thorkel convinced the orphan boy Gudrod, my great uncle\u2019s ward, to sneak into her tent and try to snag her undergarments\u2026 That did not work out so well. Her fatherless son, Thorvir, tossed him out on his arse. Thorvir Stormborn – which is what they call him since Brynhild gave birth to him on Einar\u2019s ship in the middle of a storm only days after she found out she was even pregnant – is a fighter, to say the least. A bit of a temper, but he can rumble with the best of them. That is why I am surprised he is such a good friend to Thormar. Thormar may get into tussles with Bodvar when he\u2019s pushed too far, but he generally avoids conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet\u2019s put it to a vote. Bring out the sticks,\u201d father says. A slave brings out two cups of short sticks and another empty cup, placing them on a table to the side. The sticks in one cup are painted blue and the ones in the other are painted red. \u201cRed is to go west and blue is to continue to raid the same shipping routes to Chillshore. Vote now or be silent.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The captains all get up and get in line to vote, taking a stick from one cup and placing it into the empty one. From what I can see, the voting is close. My father\u2019s loyal supporters, Einar Alriksson, Throst Thorhallson, and Koll Alricksson along with Thorkel, all vote to go west while all of Thrain Haklangsson\u2019s friends, Sibbi Hreitharrsson, Kodran Steinmodsson, and Vebrand Haraldsson, vote to continue raiding the ships that head into Chillshore. The vast majority of the captains are mostly neutral and seem to be split down the middle. When the voting stops, the votes are counted out loud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unfortunately, raiding the Chillshore route won by one vote. Father\u2019s face remains neutral. \u201cIt is determined that we will continue to raid the merchant ships that sail to and from Chillshore. Thrain, you, Sibbi, Kodran, and Vebrand will take your ships north and spread out to catch any ships coming south. Sigeheah, Harald, and Hogni, you will also go north with Thrain. Make sure you all spread out; you can determine the position amongst yourselves. The rest will go south and sail the bay. We\u2019ll travel in three groups of four ships. Thorkel, Koll, Einar, and Throst will be in the group to the west. Bjalki, Stigandi, Arnfinn, and Ufi will sail along the coastline. And Athils, Steinunn, Kiogrim, and Geitirgest will cut the difference in between. Any questions?\u201d They all shake their heads. \u201cGood, let\u2019s prepare to set out so we can leave after we get back from the All-Clan Meeting. Meet with your groups and discuss your plans. The meeting of Captains is adjourned,\u201d father says as the men all file out, talking amongst themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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