From out of the fog of the deep sea, the prow of a viking longship appeared, heading inland towards the coast. At the front of the ship was the wooden carving of a mermaid in battle dress, hand over her brows, her gaze scanning everything before her. The sail was black, and there was a white raven banner flying above it. Along both narrow sides of the low decked vessel was a row of cross-colorful round shields, painted with the colors of Nordic flags. Blue and yellow, red and white, blue and white, green and black, green and white, blue and red, etc. There were 200 interlocking shields in all, 100 on each side of the ship. Each shield also had the full body of an animal painted on it. There were black ravens, white rabbits, black wolves, bown stags, brown bears, yellow leopards, red foxes, white deer, green tortoises, black boars, white owls and red eagles. 75 thin long oars aligned both sides of the longship for a total of 150 rowers altogether. Sitting on the raised platform at the front of this ship was the crippled viking prince, Ivar the Boneless, paralyzed from the waist down and unable to swim, yet still dressed in full body armor with a helmet and chestplate, hugging the wooden mermaid's waist from behind while peering out over the open waves. Standing on the low deck behind him was his older brother, Bjorn Ironside, who held a different, larger non-painted bronze colored shield in his hand and was lightly armored with no helmet, instead having his face painted with claw marks.
On the back of the ship was a woman in a black featered cloak wearing a blue catskin dress with bright reddish orange hair and bright blue eyes. This was Queen Aslaug, who wore no armor at all but instead held a 33-inch Nordic bugle made from the horn of a large bovine. Leaning against the mast of the ship in the center of the deck was King Harald, wearing light chain-mail and padded leather armor with half of his face tattooed with blue tribal vine-knots, casually picking his teeth, using a small thin fish bone as a toothpick. Standing beside him was Queen Lagertha, the legendary shield-maiden and widow of Ragnar Lothbrok, wearing similar armor with her silvery blonde hair flowing freely in the wind. She held her spear in one hand, a blue and white shield in the other. Sitting against the mast on the other side of King Harald was Ivar's brother, Ubbe Ragnarsson, and the shipbuilder Hrafn-Floki who was wearing a bulky black hooded cloak with black coal eyeliner and a rune painted on his forehead. The name of this massive viking vessel was the Seamaiden, and it was the largest most flexible boat that Floki had ever designed. All around them were several others, dozens of vikings who were already dressed and battle ready, all of them looking quite similar in fashion, but very different in their individual styles, haircuts, tattoos, armor and choices of weaponry.
But they were not alone in Ellaria's deep oceans, for as the Seamaiden drew closer, more viking longships appeared out of the mist behind it. 49 other ships to be exact, an entire fleet of viking ships, each one carrying 200 vikings ready for war. The entire fleet was heading inland together in a triangular wedge formation with the Seamaiden in the lead. Each ship kept rowing at a steady speed, kept in unison by the sound of beating leather battle drums, the low bass rumbling with each smack of 50 large padded drumsticks hitting the open air like an approaching thunderstorm. The fleet was spread out over the waves, but still close enough for each ship to view its neighbors and communicate with the echoing sound of horns and drums if necessary. This was the Great Heathen Army, led by Ivar the Boneless himself, with the help of his brothers. Ivar had somehow found a way to teleport his fleet to Gaia, following the instructions given to him by the spirit of his dead uncle Rollo the Walker, who revealed to him the secrets of the Atlantic Ocean and the whereabouts of the Bermuda Triangle, but nature is unpredictable and ghosts are demanding. Rollo left him riddles and clues, but it was Ivar himself who used his clever wit to discover the time window and enter the portal at the right spot, during the precise moment for such an event to transpire. Prince Ivar was indeed clever, for unlike his predecessors before him, Ivar's fleet had brought an extra ship with them, setting it adrift with nobody on it. As the Great Heathen Army's fleet suddenly teleported into Gaia's ocean, a single vessel would be left behind. By watching the ghost ship suddenly vanish right before their very eyes, Ivar's fleet would be aware that they had transversed space-time and had crossed into Gaia's waters. No other viking leader had ever done this before, and the success of such a tact only boosted Ivar's morale, and his growing reputation as the son of a god.
On the back of the ship was a woman in a black featered cloak wearing a blue catskin dress with bright reddish orange hair and bright blue eyes. This was Queen Aslaug, who wore no armor at all but instead held a 33-inch Nordic bugle made from the horn of a large bovine. Leaning against the mast of the ship in the center of the deck was King Harald, wearing light chain-mail and padded leather armor with half of his face tattooed with blue tribal vine-knots, casually picking his teeth, using a small thin fish bone as a toothpick. Standing beside him was Queen Lagertha, the legendary shield-maiden and widow of Ragnar Lothbrok, wearing similar armor with her silvery blonde hair flowing freely in the wind. She held her spear in one hand, a blue and white shield in the other. Sitting against the mast on the other side of King Harald was Ivar's brother, Ubbe Ragnarsson, and the shipbuilder Hrafn-Floki who was wearing a bulky black hooded cloak with black coal eyeliner and a rune painted on his forehead. The name of this massive viking vessel was the Seamaiden, and it was the largest most flexible boat that Floki had ever designed. All around them were several others, dozens of vikings who were already dressed and battle ready, all of them looking quite similar in fashion, but very different in their individual styles, haircuts, tattoos, armor and choices of weaponry.
But they were not alone in Ellaria's deep oceans, for as the Seamaiden drew closer, more viking longships appeared out of the mist behind it. 49 other ships to be exact, an entire fleet of viking ships, each one carrying 200 vikings ready for war. The entire fleet was heading inland together in a triangular wedge formation with the Seamaiden in the lead. Each ship kept rowing at a steady speed, kept in unison by the sound of beating leather battle drums, the low bass rumbling with each smack of 50 large padded drumsticks hitting the open air like an approaching thunderstorm. The fleet was spread out over the waves, but still close enough for each ship to view its neighbors and communicate with the echoing sound of horns and drums if necessary. This was the Great Heathen Army, led by Ivar the Boneless himself, with the help of his brothers. Ivar had somehow found a way to teleport his fleet to Gaia, following the instructions given to him by the spirit of his dead uncle Rollo the Walker, who revealed to him the secrets of the Atlantic Ocean and the whereabouts of the Bermuda Triangle, but nature is unpredictable and ghosts are demanding. Rollo left him riddles and clues, but it was Ivar himself who used his clever wit to discover the time window and enter the portal at the right spot, during the precise moment for such an event to transpire. Prince Ivar was indeed clever, for unlike his predecessors before him, Ivar's fleet had brought an extra ship with them, setting it adrift with nobody on it. As the Great Heathen Army's fleet suddenly teleported into Gaia's ocean, a single vessel would be left behind. By watching the ghost ship suddenly vanish right before their very eyes, Ivar's fleet would be aware that they had transversed space-time and had crossed into Gaia's waters. No other viking leader had ever done this before, and the success of such a tact only boosted Ivar's morale, and his growing reputation as the son of a god.