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Stjornhestr

Stjörnhestr is one of three magically endowed space-faring Viking longships belonging to the Empyrean Norse Kingdom.

0 · 482 views · located in Dracos Valley

a character in “The Multiverse”, as played by Sigurd_Hring

Groups

The Empyrean Norsemen have a well established space-faring kingdom on an isolated island in the Empyrean High Seas, originating on planet Gaia in the Milky Way and waving a dragon banner.

So begins...

Stjornhestr's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Classis IV Sector Cosmora Character Portrait: Empyrean Norsemen Character Portrait: Goffre Alvisson Character Portrait: Synri Character Portrait: Wolfgang Yorisson Character Portrait: Folios
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The Commander of the Conflagration watched the displays silently as his ship lurched, and the superstructure groaned as the ship tried to put some distance between the convertiboat, and itself. It’s massive engines churning to life as the Hastati class cruiser began to slowly but surely pull away.

It continued to pitch upwards, simultaniously trying to escape the planet’s gravity, but also the Empyrean Norsemen. It seemed that for now, the ship was succeeding. Especially when the Convertiboat came to a stop, it was clear the Aschen vessel was slowly starting to pull away from them.

Watching the display, Agathon thumbed his chin in slight confusion for a moment, it seemed whoever these people were had opted not to give chase. The Aschen Commander breathed a brief sigh of relief, before he turned to his Tactical officer.

“Let me know the moment our FTL Drives are back online.” Agathon instructed.

The officer simply nodded.

“Aye, sir.” The officer immediately set to work.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Classis IV Sector Cosmora Character Portrait: Empyrean Norsemen Character Portrait: Goffre Alvisson Character Portrait: Wolfgang Yorisson Character Portrait: Stjornhestr Character Portrait: Irirani Syliala
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The Stjörnhestr's 8 shields were now activated, one by one, starting with the 2 larger frontal round shields and then the 6 smaller ones behind them as the thin outer rings around the large speaker-like shield plates started to glow in florescent neon blue, along with the two large eyes on the large protruding golden horse-headed prow towards the front of the space-faring 1000 ton longship as it hovered silently in space with its 6 rear fan-like solar powered oar-sails and keel descending just inside Bastion IV's exosphere. The 24 thinly visored slit-like rectangular mirror glass windows running along the sides of the Stjörnhestr also became illuminated with bright white lighting systems, but the white lights seemed to be coming from outside the ship rather than inside of it, allowing Jarl Goffre and his crew to see out, but still preventing outsiders from looking in.

Suddenly, the jarl and his pilots would notice another strange anomaly in their midst. As the Aschen Conflagration started to manuever slowly, swiveling upwards and to the right of the Karvi-2 convertiboat, the Hastiti Class cruiser's image and position started to change right before Goffre's eyes, reflecting a sort of transparent holographic double image. Unbeknownst to the Empyrean Norse pilots, the space above Bastion IV was full of invisible clouds made up of millions of tiny frozen ice particles. These ice clouds were literally riddled throughout the entire galaxy, and although they were non-threatening to such highly advanced ships, they sometimes reflected lights and images coming from planetary surfaces into outer space. This would pose a different sort of problem for the Empyrean Norsemen, for they had misjudged the military cruiser's position. The Conflagration wasn't in front of the Stjörnhestr, it was below it.

Jarl Goffre and his team were looking at the wrong ship, a mirage or holographic image, and by trying to sink below it, the Stjörnhestr was actually descending directly towards the actual vessel they had been trying to evade. Goffre Alvisson quickly picked up the telehorn again and yelled as loud as his voice could carry down to the pilots below.

"Pull back! Pull back! Go right! Go right! 60 degrees west, go right!" he barked loudly, causing Hansen and Rolegh to both scramble at their control panels simultaneously as they quickly set the Stjornhestr back in motion, causing the whole front end of the 300 foot long Nordic spaceship to swing to the right, away from the oncoming Aschen cruiser. Wolfgang Yorisson and his small band of rescuers watched with silent shock and disbelief as the Stjornhestr turned out of the way on the opposite side of the Conflagration, missing a front end collision course by merely a hundred feet as both ships grazed by each other, seemingly very slowly, but traveling much faster than either of them appeared to be moving.

It must have all seemed like slow motion to both crews onboard the multi-personnel space vessels as they evaded one another with tight precision, avoiding a catastrophe which would have likely been worsened at such slow rate of speed. The Conflagration absolutely dwarfed the tiny Stjörnhestr as it started to drift by like the Titanic when it grazed the iceberg. Of course, the Stjornhestr was a remarkably tough longship designed to withstand collisions with other ships. But the Conflagration was over 5200 feet long, while the Stjornhestr was only 300 feet long, a mere fraction of that size, and at this speed, the cruiser would have just plowed through on its voyage, pushing the smaller longship out of its way. The Stjornhestr wouldn't be phased, but the 485 passengers onboard would have likely been thrown about inside the hull of their ship, almost certainly sustaining heavy injuries and possibly even many casualties. Not to mention the livestock and other animals aboard the Stjornhestr, most of which having no way to strap down or be fastened in.

Hanson Forstein and Rolegh the Young would watch quietly as the Conflagration drifted by their cockpit windows before turning to one another in their seats with a sigh of relief. Jarl Goffre Alvisson was just standing up while gazing at the passing cruiser with a straight expression, nodding his head silently to congratulate himself on a job well done. Meanwhile, the Karvi-2 convertiboat had started to return back to the hanger from which it had descended as Wolfgang Yorisson and Kelsey the Healer hooted and laughed with excitement, having witnessed the whole daring feat by Jarl Goffre and his pilots from outside their windshield. This would make quite a story.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Classis IV Sector Cosmora Character Portrait: Empyrean Norsemen Character Portrait: Goffre Alvisson Character Portrait: Synri Character Portrait: Wolfgang Yorisson Character Portrait: Folios
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Everything seemed to be going smoothly for the crew of the Imperial Aschen Warship Conflagration, until the moment they weren't.

Two audible beeps signalled the new sensor readings for the Stjornhestr's position, and they seemed to be on a collision course for the Aschen warship. Alarms began to blare all throughout the ship as the Commander grabbed the console and called out. "Frak me!" He shouted. "Adjust angle, thirty degrees, yaw twenty nine degrees port repeat hard to port! Evasive maneuvers, full military thrust!"

The massive million ton warship was not nearly as nimble as the much smaller magical viking longship, but it gave it's efforts to evade the collision as armored doors retracted near the nose of the ship, brilliant plumes of flame shooting out hundreds of feet as the ship struggled to turn left, and away from the Stjornhestr. It's shields flickered, and shimmered, and at these distances, the Stjornhestr's hull would impact the Conflagration's shields, which was a sensation not unlike suddenly hitting a wall of water, which likely aided in the ship's deflection away from the Conflagration. Milky white eddies of shimmering light erupted all around the Stjornhester's hull, harmlessly moving about like curtains of light, almost like a milky white, faded aurora borealis, the ribbons of light danced, and shimmered around the Viking longship until it had cleared the field.

At these distances, the finer details of the Conflagration could be made out, massive gun batteries, along with smaller gun batteries riddled the interlocking armored plates. At these distances, the naked eye could see each weld, each rivet in the hull of the massive Aschen cruiser, and even some of the crew pressed against the ship's windows.

If one could get a glance inside the Aschen warship they would see humans, in dark grey, and blue uniforms, hands splayed on the glass as they watched the events unfold in front of them.

However, the Conflagration managed to successfully turn away, plotting a course away from the Stjornhestr, and deeper into the void of space.

The setting changes from Xamoyos to Dracos Valley

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
The hadrosaurs watched as these new, relatively small creatures came out of what appeared to be a weird-looking whale. Not knowing what to make of this new arrival they decide to leave, leaving behind their footprints in the semi-moist soil. Now that the Norsemen had arrived and finally made landfall they would notice the sheer humidity of this place. This was due in part to the frequent rainfall of the tropical climate.

More large herbivores came by, but not out of curiosity. These were a large species of ceratopsian known as styracoxamos. This big creature had a frill much like a shield adorned on its head and it had seven horns. On its face, it had one horn on its nose and a pair of horns each above its eyebrows, the other four were on its frill which had two on top and two on the sides curving forward. It easily reached 30 feet in length and weighed at a minimum of five tons. It came by with the intent to eat from the fern bushes that were scattered about on the grassland.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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The Norsemen ignored the large dinosaurs and other animals in their vicinity, for now, as they continued to look around at the surrounding landscape, blending in with the flock, barely noticeable to the large fern eating giants scattered all around them as they worked quickly and stealthily to secure the area as fast as possible, each one sticking together as a small team to accomplish a few basic tasks with precision and a timely plan. They had capsized their boat and set it on the top of a hill on the incline, so that the convertiboat would be concealed from view on the far side of the hill facing away from the lake.

The two lesser spoken karls in blue uniforms would immediately get to work on reinforcing the convertiboat by fashioning a wall, a small three foot tall crawl-in entrance way and a lean-to rooftop overhang using the buffalo skins and bear hides as tarps or curtains, staking the leather coverings down to the ground using some of the local sticks and twigs they found laying about on the nearby shore. They also dug a small fire pit directly in front of the entrance way, placing a ring of smooth lake stones around the pit, directly in the middle underneath the slanted overhang shelter they had created with leather, stakes and string. As one of them ran around collecting any sun-baked driftwood, fallen seed pods, sticks and twigs, the other karl would work on starting the fire using his knife and a tiny flint stone he kept in his tool pouch. He would also work on building a cone-shaped rain collector which doubled as a water purifier using sea salt, charcoal, small flat stones, and a small copper ring using a pigskin sack.

By placing the fire pit under the lean-to roofop and in front of the entrance, the fire would be smaller and the smoke easily directed and dispersed, concealing the Nordic camp even better by masking the billows of smoke and directing the direction of the smoke away from their camp while simultaneously providing an in-flow of heat and warmth to the interior of their boat shelter, protecting both the entrance and the fire from rain. Birger Torvesson continued to keep his eyes open and his ears peeled on everything around him as he stood on the slope of the hill, drawing the styracoxamos that roamed freely, standing with his back to the armored silver diagonal back side of the boat shelter, which formed both the rear wall and the slightly slanted rooftop, and was actually the boat's keel and underbelly.

Jonah Marksberg and Svegdir Staghelm had a more dangerous plan involving their own personal buddy system, as they quickly went about cutting their way through all the very tall high grass in a circle around the hill to create a sort of open yard for which to have a better visual of the immediate area around their tent-like small hut. He collected the long stalks and grass clippings, using them to make a primitive grass bed interior floor matting for the shelter, and for braiding rope or string from the hairs and splines. They also gathered any long broken bones or small fallen trees they could find from any of the nearby trampled foliage, allowing the terrestrial herbivore giants to do some of the hard work for them as Jonah used his longer handled hatchet-like Frankish axe to cut off the branches and start forming piles once the small trees had been dragged back to camp.

The entrance to the shelter on the hill incline would face the lake. Svegdir Staghelm would also make use of the hadrosaurid's footprints on the shore near the lake at the bottom of the hill, turning them into small mudhole fishing ponds for catching food and bait, digging narrow trenches which allowed some fish to swim in, but not out. He began studying the shoreline and the water, taking a mental note of the sand, the dirt, the rocks and pebbles, the driftwood, any shells and seaweed, kelp or whatever else his eyes could observe and his mind could digest. He kept one hand always rested on the hilt of his sword, even while he was working, knowing that the strange new land was likely full of hidden dangers, and that something else like the pliosaur could jump out at any moment. His band had to move quickly.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
As construction was underway a few small flying animals found themselves perching on the new roof. A few species of pterosaurs came to roost and preen their wings. A strange flying creature came as well, but this was no pterosaur. It was a creature that resembled a modern rabbit with winged arms and a marsupial pouch on its belly. It had come to prey on the resting pterosaurs, revealing a mouth full of sharp fangs. After a brief scuffle, the flyers went elsewhere.

Nearby, a lumbering herd of sauropods was making their way across the grassy field. They swept their long powerful necks side to side looking for shrubbery to feast from. They were foliage clearing machines, capable of tearing through the vegetation in minutes. They are the main reason so much open space was available as they uproot tall trees in their quest for food. Perched on the giants were tiny pterosaurs that feasted on insects that would make a meal from their blood.

All this peace would be briefly interrupted by a bizarre sound. In the bushes not too far from where the Norsemen were setting up shelter, an almost human-like sound came. It was a ragged and desperate voice. "H...eeeeelp meeeeeee" it sounded like, but there was something wrong with this. Do they dare see if someone needed help?

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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Aboard the Stjörnhestr...

In the Exosphere above Dracos Valley...


Wolfgang Yorisson and his band of four rescuers docked their convertiboat in Hanger II as the landing team used flags and hand signals to guide them in. For this task, they had to open the pod doors, meaning that Hanger II would be temporarily exposed to the exosphere of Bastion IV where there would be extremely low densities of oxygen. To prevent the landing team from suffocating or passing out in the very high altitudes, they would guide the Karvi-2 home from behind the thick air-tight pressurized transparent glass wall of the Landing Control Station, a separate room connected to Hanger II for this exact purpose. Once Karvi-2 had landed safely, the thick pod doors were sealed shut again, and oxygen was quickly released through the opening air vents into the hanger. Wolfgang and Kelsey waited patiently to lift back the bimini-like rooftop of their convertiboat until it was safe. One of the messengers in the control station would pull the plug out of the large curling sheep horn megaphone protruding through the wall and spoke into it, his voice amplified by the horn.

"Wolfgang Yorisson, report to the captain's chamber. Jarl Goffre would like to have a word with you, in private" the messenger said nonchalantly.

Once they were cleared to step out of the vehicle, Wolfgang Yorisson and his band left the escape pod's hanger and made their way to the bridge, passing up several other rooms and corridors including the engineering station, the green houses, the mess hall, med bay, weapon defense systems, gender-neutral restrooms and the workout station, as well as many personal lockers and living quarters, passing through one thick air-tight gate after another before reaching the bridge. There, the small band of rescuers would split up and go their separate ways as Wolfgang Yorisson stood at the foot of the guarded ramp leading to the captain's quarters, nodding to the two guards in black bear-hide covered purple uniforms whilst tucking his silver helmet under his arm. There was a great deal of commotion throughout the longship as everyone was excited and gossiping about their near-death experience and the Stjörnhestr's sudden last minute evasive maneuvers around the much larger Aschen Conflagration, with the jarl Goffre Alvisson and his leading pilots being the talk of the ship.

A few minutes later, another tall armed guardian in a black bear-hide covered purple uniform would walk down the ramp, and nod his head respectfully to Wolfgang Yorisson before addressing him. "The Jarl will see you now," he said before accompanying Wolfgang up the ramp to the open doorway of the captain's chamber. Once he stepped inside, the doors would seal shut behind him. Wolfgang gazed around the room, which was actually located inside the gold plated horse-bust prow of the space-faring longship, marvelling at the luxurious surroundings before looking at Jarl Goffre, who was still gazing out of his round mirror-glass silver horse-eye window with his back to Wolfgang and his arms folded behind him, staring at the Hastiti Class cruiser as it slowly drifted further and further away from his view.

"You wanted to see me My Lord?" Wolfgang inquired, a bit confused and curious as to why the jarl had summoned him. Goffre Alvisson continued to keep his eyes on the Aschen cruiser while addressing him. "Go ahead, have a seat. Make yourself comfortable," Jarl Goffre suggested, motioning to the bottle of mead on the table, sitting between two cow horn cups. Wolfgang cocked an eyebrow before slowly walking over to the expensive hand-crafted oakwood table. He picked up the bottle of mead and filled both cups before taking a seat in one of the wooden chairs with grey and white furry wolfskin coverings. "Isn't she magnificent?" the jarl asked, still gazing out of the window. "My Lord?" the karl asked, unsure exactly what the jarl was referring to. "You know what this means, Wolfgang? It means the sagas were right. The world tree is bigger than we could have ever imagined," Jarl Goffre said, still smiling with awe at the size of the much larger Aschen cruiser as it faded in the distance.

Wolfgang Yorisson picked up one of the cow horn cups and took a swig of mead. "That was a good call you made back there, Jarl, everyone on the ship is talking about it," he forwarded. Jarl Goffre gazed out at the stars and the Norse constellations, pointing to one tiny twinkling star in the heavens above and tapping his fingertip on the window, smiling at what he knew that dot to be, the entire Sirius System, the distant solar system of Gaia, their home planet. Goffre Alvisson turned around and walked over to the oakwood table, a look of absolute gladness in his eyes. "And what about the others? Who are they?" the jarl asked, almost as if testing Wolfgang's knowledge. Wolfgang just shook his head, unsure what to say. "Some say they are the Aesir, making their way back to Asgard, or the Angels of the Hvitkristr... others think they might be the Jotnar, or Tunglalfar from another dimension," Wolfgang recalled, repeating the same gossip he had heard on the bridge below. "And what about you Wolfgang, what do you think? Do you believe any of that to be true? Do you believe they are really gods?" Goffre asked inquisitively.

Wolfgang thought about that question silently for a moment, taking another swig of mead before wiping his mouth on his blue shirt sleeve and shaking his head. "No," he answered. "And why not?" immediately asked the jarl. Wolfgang looked down at the table, contemplating his own answer as if he had not really been sure of it himself. "Because..." he hesitated. Jarl Goffre leaned over the table closer to him, looking into Wolfgang's eyes. "Because?" he asked, urging him to finish his reasoning. Wolfgang paused for a moment, then looked up at him. "Because... If that was true, then why did they run from us?"

Wolfgang had a point. Jarl Goffre nodded and smiled, refilling the karl's cup before picking up the other cup of mead and raising it in the air. "My sediments exactly," he said, offering a toast to Wolfgang before taking a swig of mead. "I knew you were a smart man Wolfgang, which is why I have another favor to ask you... I wonder if you wouldn't mind going down to check on our fellowmen, and see how Svegdir Staghelm is doing. Now that I know for sure we're not alone in the galaxy, I'm beginning to wonder if they might not be either," Jarl Goffre suggested.

Wolfgang Yorisson just nodded quietly, taking another swig of mead before turning to gaze out of the window at the continent of Xamoyos below.


Meanwhile...

In the heart of Dracos Valley...


The Empyrean Norse encampment was underway. The gang's shelter had been constructed, the fire was going, the fishing traps were set and the rain catcher was complete. Svegdir Staghelm and Jonah Marksberg had finished clearing the area surrounding their campsite and had already started on building a wooden fence around the shelter at the base of the hill. Birger Torvesson had finished drawing a rough map of the immediate area and was still on the hill slope, sketching the different things he saw in his leather bound journal. He watched quietly as a few species of small flying animals landed on the silver rooftop of the shelter, and as they perched themselves in place, he started to draw them as well. The other two karls, Borstein and Danegh, had left the fire burning as they ventured off further into the brush to look for any recognizable nuts and berries, and anything else which they might be able to forage and store for later.

Borstein and Danegh would use the buddy system, bringing their golden dwarf-crafted spears with them as they wandered off into the bushes, cautiously observing the nearby fauna to see what the giant herbivores had deemed edible. Borstein found a small pile of animal droppings on the ground and crouched down to examine it. He waved his hand over the pellets to see if they were fresh, and, finding the dung to be cold and almost dry, he picked up a small portion of it with his fingertips and sniffed it, breaking the grassy substance apart with his fingers to examine whatever might be contained within. Not surprisingly, Borstein found what he was looking for. There in the animal's droppings, he found berries, and he wiped his fingers on his pants before scouting the area to see if he could find a source.

In the meantime, Danegh had spotted a strange looking tree that was rather foreign to him, and a large rodent-like creature similar to a big squirrel, or even maybe a lemur of some kind, that had been clinging to the side of the tree watching him with bulging eyes. That's not a possom, he thought, but it would sure do the trick. Danegh tried to hook the creature with his spear, but it quickly lept off the tree and darted off into the bushes. He wasn't about to give up that easily though, as he swung around the tree and chased the critter into the foliage. Back at camp, Svegdir Staghelm was using a rock to hammer down a fence post into the ground when suddenly he struck something beneath the soil. There was something hard under the surface obstructing his project. He removed the fence post, pulled out his small seax and began digging. What he found was another rock about the size of a softball. But it wasn't just any rock. It was a diamond, larger than any diamond he had ever seen before. Svegdir couldn't believe his own eyes. Not even a whole hour on this new land, and already he was richer than any other karl in the entire kingdom. But now was not the time to be greedy. He quickly dug another hole and reburied his newfound treasure close to where he would put his next fence post, with plans of coming back to it later.

Birger Torvesson watched as the winged rabbit with razor sharp pointy teeth flew down out of nowhere and attacked the sun-bathing pterosaurs, scuffling for a moment before they all flew away. What a very peculiar place, he thought to himself, deciding it might be better for him to return to the shelter and check on the fire. Jonah Marksberg continued to strip and chop wood with his long-handled Danish axe, fashioning thick long pointed stakes to be used for fencing, while making a pile of bark and other scrap wood to be used in the fire. "Did you see that?" Birger asked. "See what?" asked Jonah, who was apparently too busy to notice anything at the moment. Birger Torvesson just shook his head, and started adding dry bark to the fire. He then sat down in front of the fire pit and opened his book, proceeding to make another rough sketch of what he had seen.

Borstein had found a small patch of shrubs with blue colored berries on them similar to the ones he had seen in the animal droppings. He started to pick the small berries and place them in his belt pouch. Borstein was a skilled Norse survivalist who knew better than to just eat some random wild berries, but he collected a whole bunch of them and stored them for later. "Danegh, come see this. Look at these berries I just found." Borstein said as he started to pick the small blue hued seeds and place them in his bag. But Danegh didn't respond. He had instead went chasing after the squirrely rodent with his spear, heading off into the brush. So consumed were they in what they had been doing, Borstein and Danegh had unknowingly strayed too far away from one another. Danegh would chase the critter to its underground burrow and smile. The creature was trapped now, he thought, as he snuck up to the entrance of the burrow and prepared to thrust his spear into the hole. But just then, something caught his ear.

"H...eeeeelp meeeeeee."

Danegh heard something which sounded like a human voice calling out for help. But he didn't recognize the person's voice. It didn't sound very familiar to him, or like any of the Norsemen he had arrived with at the valley. "Borstein? Borstein, is that you?" Danegh asked before clutching his spear with both hands and going deeper into the bushes to investigate the origin of the distress call.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
Amusingly, while bornstein was inspecting old dung one of the sauropods was lumbering its way toward him. Its sheer size and weight would almost shake the ground as it walked. Suddenly, its long whip-like tail lifted upwards and a torrent of fresh dung came tumbling down. A sheer pile of steaming dung as big as a small car had been deposited. Within no time, a group of Xamoyan dung beetles came to feast on it.

Back at camp, a family of prairie beetles was making its way near. It was a bizarre creature, a large beetle-like animal that was not an insect but a reptile the size of a car. There were three of them, a male and female with their young. They were curious about this new encampment being set up. They made subtle squeaking vocalizations every so often.

Yet more pterosaurs would find themselves perching. This was just one though, and it was much bigger than the ones encountered earlier. This one was twice the size of an eagle and had a jagged looking beak. This was a Gladioxamos. It took the time to preen its much more impressive wings before looking at Birger and Jonah and letting out a harsh squawk.

In the bushes by Danegh, the foliage shuffled as the human voice continued to call out. "Heeeeelp meeeeeee" it said. What was odd about this was the inflections in the voice, like a person trying to speak but not quite knowing how. The reason for this became clear shortly. "Hellllp....Bornstein....meeeeeeeeee" it said before the cause rose up out of the bush. It was a large bipedal animal with a coat of feathers that was two heads taller than Danegh. This was a Xamatoraptor, and the sound came from it. It had mimicked a sound to lure him in, it was a trap! It opened and closed a frill of feathers around its head as if communicating. Harsh snarls and the occasional sound of Deneghs own voice parroted back at him.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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There was no telling how long the figure had been crouched in the tall grass just beyond the camp, but they were there, hidden behind the sophisticated cloaking system of a T-65 combat skin, which had facilitated their ability to move relatively unhindered by the wildlife across the continent of Xamoyos.

They had long since abandoned their drop pod, and they knew that the Conflagration was long gone which meant other than the emergency recall node integrated into the combat suit, the woman was on her own.

She caught the distress call, the strange "help me" that reverberated through the area. Her attention snapped in the direction of the call, while the suits keen sensor suites pried through the dimensional veil to scan the surroundings. It picked up multiple life forms, including humanoid life forms, slowly she moved closer to the sound, trying to steady herself against a fallen log, only to have her hand pass through it. Catching her balance, she crept closer, the colored frills of a Xamatoraptor highlighted in her tactical analysis suite, moving undetected, she crept closer, her eyes fixated on the human Danegh, his form highlighted as well. Though he was clearly in danger, Erin took no further actions, choosing only to observe for now.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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"Odin's gallows, you look like shit,", Borstein said as the sauropod took a car-sized dump. He watched as the dung beetles proceeded to climb on top of the dino poo. He then turned to look behind him. "Heheh, Danegh, look at the size of the giant's dung. It's like a mountain," he chuckled. But nobody was behind him. Danegh wasn't there. He had wandered too far away from Borstein and away from the base camp. Borstein soon stopped smiling. He narrowed his eyes when he didn't hear anything from Danegh, and picking his spear up off of the ground with one hand, Borstein went looking for his fellowman.

Back at base camp, Birger and Jonah stopped what they were doing and looked at the newer, larger pterosaur with the jagged beak as it squawked at them. Neither one of them said anything or did anything but stared at the large flying creature for a moment as if listening to its opinion. Or maybe it's advice? After an ackward moment of staring at the pterosaur silently as if they didn't understand what it's squawk was about, Birger and Jonah went back to work, doing whatever they had been doing, which was mostly chopping wood and tending to the fire while detailing information about the new land they were in. Svegdir continued to build the fence around the shelter, shaking his head.

As Danegh went searching for the source of the distress call, he heard it again. "Hellllp.. Bornstein... meeeeeeeeee" Danegh eventually stopped. Suddenly, a xamatorapter rose its head up out of the bushes and looked at him, wiggling its feathery mane. It snarled at him. Danegh didn't know what to make of it. He raised his spear in front of him and pointed it at the raptor, but didn't move. He was on alert now, but had no idea that Erin was there, and wasn't even thinking about the possibility of her presence at that time. All he could see was a snickering reptile with a lot of sharp teeth and claws. He hadn't worn armor. All he had was a spear and his blue coat to protect him. He stared at the raptor as it snarled at him, and for a moment, Danegh snarled back.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
At camp, the Gladioxamos tilted its head in that distinctively bird-like manner. It seemed to be eyeing them, perhaps evaluating if they were worth attacking. A screech echoed from the sky however as a second pterosaur flew down and perched near it. This one was a male, the original being female. His crest was noticeably larger and flushed with a reddish tint. It seemed the two were a mated pair as they nuzzled their long jagged beaks against the other, grotesque honking sounds coming out of them. The two then launched off of their perch, noticeably bending the metal from the force of it.

As the Xamatoraptor eyed Danegh, the human vocalizations would seem to be coming from it. "Meeeeeeee.....helllllp", came from the dinosaurs toothy jaws. It wasn't alone however, three more came rushing in from behind. Danegh had been ambushed and was lured into a trap. The four raptors flared their frills as if communicating with each other while hissing and screeching at the lone Viking. He was surely doomed.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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Erin watched everything unfold for a moment from the relative safety, and comfort of her plane, the dimensional phase for which she was carefully entrenched within. It was time to make a move, and save the lone human like some sort of guardian angel. With a simple mental command, the phase shift cloak shifted slightly, and the dimensional bubble that was being broadcast around her collapsed, but the suit’s thermoptical camouflage system remained active, rendering her all but invisible to the keenest eyes, and even thermal sensors. She took a split second to grasp a flash-bang from a back pouch which had been firmly secured to her suit. She pulled the pin, and tossed it in a wide arc towards the first Raptor’s feet.

There was a delay of about a second, until the canister exploded with a deafening boom, and a blinding flash, but was otherwise harmless, designed to disorient, it was a nonlethal choice that she had made to try and not harm the local wildlife, however, she clasped the disruptor rifle at her back, detatching the magnetic clamp and pulling the weapon forward immediately after the deafening bang to see what would happen next, hoping that her action was sufficient to scare the raptors away. Thermoptical camouflage was engaged and she stood perfectly still, weapon held slightly forward, tactical systems highlighting the additional raptors in the area as they began to encroach on her position.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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Danegh soon found the origin of the human-like distress call. It had been a raptor, and it wasn't alone either. Three more raptors came running up from behind the first one to see what it had found. Danegh gripped his spear and gritted his teeth, bracing himself for an ambush. What were these beings who stood before him? Were they dwarves, or giants perhaps? Danegh had heard old stories about the dwarves and giants being able to shapeshift into animals and take on the personification of the forest. But those were ancient myths, and he wasn't expecting he'd ever run into a band of them on this new land.

Danegh glared at the Xamatorapter for a moment, gripping his spear with both hands as he pointed the spear point at the bipedal creature, so similar to one of Odin's ravens that it had to be a spirit. "Odin," Danegh said, forgetting all about the distress call for a moment. He stared at the raptor curiously, letting down his spear to accept his fate in the talons of the ravens, when suddenly a metal egg hit the ground and rolled between them, exploding in a flash of white light. Danegh would take a knee and divert his eyes with one arm, still holding his spear. He was blinded.

Back at the camp, Birger started to get an erie feeling about whether or not they should have camped on the slope, as he looked up at the Gladioxamos and took note of its creepy bird-like demeanor. As a male perched beside her, Birger grabbed his notebook again and made a sketch of the differences between the two, though it never occurred to him that one was male and one female. Just as the pterosaurs would be surprised to find that they had perched on elven silver, which their weight and claws could neither scratch nor bend, for it had been forged by enchantment to protect the Empyrean Norse starships in the vacuum of space.

Svegdir Staghelm and Jonah Marksberg finished building the fences around the hill and began working on the other fences around their boat house. Borstein walked back to camp, looking disgruntled as he walked up the hill. "Where's Danegh? He's supposed to be helping me find some food," Borstein said, upset that someone would leave such an important task and return to base. But Danegh wasn't there. "I don't know. We thought he was with you," Staghelm answered, still hammering down his final post. Borstein looked over to Birger and Jonah, before turning around and looking back towards the thick brush at the treeline. He raised his his hands and cupped his mouth to shout Danegh's name, but Svegdir quickly stopped what he was doing and placed his hand over Borstein's mouth to silence him before he could make a big sound.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
The bright flash of light combined with the loud sound was enough to make the pack of raptors balk. They shook their heads, their feathered arms reaching up toward their eyes as the light temporarily blinded them. They began to disperse and panic, causing their coordination model to break. Denegh had been saved, the raptors had run off and now was his chance to escape before something bigger and nastier showed up.

Back at camp, there was a noticeable creaking on the treetops. Attached by its stem, a strange-looking fruit looked ready to fall. It was a very unappealing looking fruit; yellow-ish brown and covered in sharp spines, it was only about as big as a mango. Eventually, it broke free from the stem and plummeted toward the earth. The impact was just enough to expose part of its flesh inside, leaking with sweet-smelling juice. This was a deceptive plant, however, if you weren't deterred by the sharp spikes then the toxic juices inside will.


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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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Birger's ear twitched at the sound of the creeping treetops. He would take note of it, and the strange looking fruit as it hit the earth with a plop. Svegdir looked suspiciously at Borstein before gazing into the thicket. One of his team members was missing in action. His primary objective had changed. He lowered his hand from over Borstein's mouth, but motioned for him to be silent as he gazed over at the spikey fruit, before gazing into the woods again. Svegdir and Borstein then both walked down the open hill together, heading into the dangerous forest to look for Danegh.

Birger Bengtson was the most talented artist during the Golden Age of what seemed to be a rising Nordic Empire, and Bengtson was a real Renaissance man, similar in comparison with other great artists like Michelangelo in his own right. Only his style was different, and his sketch work was rudimentary, more similar to carpentry designs than to sculptures or paintings. But he wrote in a similar linear script from left to right, using runic characters that seemed more fitting for wood or stone carvings than for papyrus or canvas.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
The sound of rustling came from the shrubbery by the forests edge. Suddenly, a head poked up from the thick foliage. It was the head of a theropod dinosaur, one with two disc-shaped crests on the top of its head. It moved toward their camp, revealing its actual height. This two-legged animal was taller than all of them, easily two heads taller. Around its bird-like neck was the noticeable signs of a loose flap of skin. It had a frill that it could extend, possibly as a threat display. The animal did not display interest in the Norsemen, rather its attention was on the strange fruit. It bent down, sniffing at it before swallowing the spiky fruit whole. Under its mouth, a noticeable throat pouch seemed to balloon out some, filling with some kind of liquid. The creature then made hacking sounds, as if coughing before regurgitating the solid leftovers of the fruit onto the floor.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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As the light, and the smoke from the sudden flash-bang settled, and receded, a figure shimmered in front of Danegh as she stepped out of the thick foliage. The air shimmered, like sunlight on water before reveling a strange figure in a form fitting, sleek, and slender suit of armor with a glossy black faceless visor.

There was a hiss, and a series of whirs before the glossy visor of the helmet retracted, and opened up to reveal a young woman with piercing blue eyes, and raven black hair, her hawkish facial structure also betrayed her hardened nature as the helmet, and visor retracted into the suit's shoulder.

She eyed Danegh for a moment, as she slid her disruptor rifle over her back, and attached the weapon with an audible click, before she took a step forward, looking around for a moment.

"Are you okay?" She asked. The light began to glint off of her suit, as she briefly glanced around.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath Character Portrait: Erin Solis Character Portrait: Liren Amakija
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Danegh was down on one knee, diverting his eyes from the blinding white light as the small pack of Xamoraptors darted off into the thick brush, startled by the sudden flashbang which had exploded right in front of them. Danegh was dazed and disoriented for a moment, but kept his hand on his spear whilst touching the ground so as not to lose his bearings entirely.

As the light receded, Danegh looked up to see a shimmering figure walking towards him from out of the foliage. The sunlight glimmered off of the slender figure as she approached, wearing a suit of armor with a glossy black visored helmet. Danegh could see that the figure's shape was familiar and had a humanoid appearance. But it certainly wasn't anyone familiar to him, and the armored figure appeared quite alien, like a person from a totally different culture or civilization.

As he gazed up at the stranger in front of him, placing a tighter grip on his spear, Danegh's fight or flight instincts were starting to kick in. He had heard rumours back on Gaia about the dokkalfar, a powerful race of dark elves who were known to attack humans and other elves alike. Although he had never seen one in person, he was already accustomed to sea elves, and he knew how dangerous such races could be. He watched cautiously, preparing to pounce.

Suddenly, however, there was a loud hissing sound as the figure's visor opened to reveal a more humanoid face with blue eyes. After a few seconds, the visored helmet retracted into the suit's shoulder, and Danegh could immediately tell that it was a woman with raven black hair. She quickly flung her disruptor rifle over her shoulder and stepped closer, looking down at him.

"Are you okay?" the woman asked as her strange unfamiliar armor glimmered in the sunlight. Danegh loosened his grip on his spear and stood up slowly, looking at the woman with confusion. He was utterly speechless, and had no idea what was going on. Had this stranger been the source of the distress call? That certainly didn't seem to be the case just a minute ago. He glanced at the opening in the bushes where the large bird-like creatures had been just moments ago. But where did they go? Danegh began to wonder to himself whether he was alive or dead. What was that bright blinding flash of light? His mind was overwhelmed with several questions as his heart started beating quickly and irregularly.

But the armored figure wasn't the only person who seemed a bit foreign and out of place as Danegh stood up slowly to face her. He himself had long free flowing light brown wavy hair with a curly beard and short mustache, and hazel colored eyes and bronze or ruddy skin. He was wearing a bright blue long sleeved shirt tunic with an open laced collar and brown baggy legged trousers which flared loosely before being tucked into his high blue wool socks and skin boots. Underneath his tunic, Danegh appeared to be wearing light armor, or a silver chainmail vest of some kind as the metal collar shimmered in the sunlight beneath his curly beard. He had several necklaces made of gold and silver, including a Mjolnir hammer pendant which hung down loosely over his chest. On his left breast appeared to be a patch or tag of some kind, showing a runic symbol which denoted his rank and duty within the Empyrean Norse Empire, and in his hand he was carrying a silver spear with a single small hook on the end.

The woman would only have seconds to absorb the Norseman's appearance, however, before he suddenly ran away from her in the opposite direction, deciding to flee from the area rather than make conversation. He quickly turned and jumped into the bushes without saying anything, apparently being frightened away by everything he had just witnessed. He didn't even bother to scream in fear. He just bolted, having no idea exactly where he was or even where he was going. All the surprised man knew at that particular moment was that he had seen enough. Danegh didn't like this new fertile planet after all. He just wanted to go back home.

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Character Portrait: Milo Redcross Character Portrait: Keith nexus Character Portrait: Kawli Character Portrait: Michael Lewis Character Portrait: Hopi Character Portrait: Kassandra Tierdath
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#, as written by sifsand
The ground near Danegh would begin to shake. This was no earthquake, but something far more significant. Before his eyes, he would witness the biggest animal in the land. It was massive, dwarfing all it stood by. The dinosaur was known as a sauropod, its long neck stretching into the sky. Each step it made would cause the ground to experience aftershocks, which wouldn't be unusual for an animal weighing 200 tons.

This was no ordinary sauropod however, this was the titan of the land. In comparison, Danegh would be no bigger than its toe. It approached the norsemen, its long neck craning down to get a good look at him. There was wisdom in this animals eyes, it understood who he was and recognized he was not a threat. It opened its mouth and groaned, the sound capable of penetrating his very being.

The setting changes from Dracos Valley to Great Ellarian Forest

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Character Portrait: Livia Caesarius Character Portrait: Sigurd Hring Character Portrait: Iskjerne Vikings Character Portrait: Erling Snake Character Portrait: Takao Eguchi Character Portrait: Argosian Soldier
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As the sound of the battle in the forest valley became louder, David Baxter gripped his rifle and tried to run away in the opposite direction. But the sound carried through the forest, echoing off the trees, and it was difficult to tell which direction he was running, or where the clashing noises were coming from. David was still wearing his oxygen mask, unsure whether or not the air on this new planet was even breathable to him yet as he ran through the forest, gasping through his mask as he breathed. Little did he know at the time, but the air around him was not only breathable, it was magical and full of hidden unseen energies or forces that were already beginning to take effect on him.

Or rather, on his equipment...

Although his oxygen tank continued to work just fine, at least for now, what David probably didn't notice was that his M1-30 Carbine rifle was already starting to malfunction. The Gods of Gaia, known to the Ellarian people as the Titans, had sensed the newcomer's presence on their planet. One of those invisible spirits was none other than Sigurd Hring, who had become one with Gaia and had transcended beyond the mortal realms. Sigurd Hring had swore an oath to defend and protect Gaia from the advanced technologies brought into the medieval planet's atmosphere by foreign invaders and space-faring nations. David Baxter didn't know it yet, but Sigurd Hring was watching him carefully and preparing him for the long road ahead. The gunpowder in his 7.62×33mm round bullet casings suddenly became useless, nullified by the powers that be, along with any batteries or electrical equipment that Baxter had brought with him.

Meanwhile on one of Gaia's moons, the red moon Colossus, someone was peering through a powerful telescope and had witnessed the Silver Dawn as it ascended above Gaia's surface after dropping off its passenger. Erik the Red relayed his observations to Hrafn-Floki the Blind, who had taken a handful of Vikings to the moon where they had since then established a small isolated colony, far away from the happenings on Gaia's war ridden surface. Floki had gone into a sort of self-induced exile after the death of his daughter, and the Empyrean outlaw Erik Thorvaldsson had apparently gone with him to the bright red moon to start over.

Far down below on Gaia, on the continent of Ellaria, in the great forest which took up much of the continent, many new and chaotic things were starting to take place. The Argosians, led by Livia Caesarius the Legata and her new legion had set the Great Ellarian Forest on fire, shooting through the trees with their magically imbued cannons as they leveled a path into the forest from which to bring in their seige weapons, looking to head north through the Weargtooth Mountains, where Livia had planned to challenge King Harald Finehair of Iskjerne Bay to a duel. By now, the billowing smoke had risen so high that the Vikings of Iskjerne Bay could now see the rising black smoke over the mountains, alerting the natives that the Argosians had arrived, and were just a few day's journey away on the other side of the mountains. The smoke cloud was so large and thick that it could be seen from miles and miles away, even appearing visible to ships off the coast of the Empyrean High Seas, and to the Empyrean Norsemen in their own tropical kingdom to the far west. King Halfdan Svensson would notice the thin line of rising smoke on the horizon from his castle on the Empyrean Sea Beach.

"SHIELD WALL!!!" Bjorn shouted, his deep loud voice echoing off the nearby rocks inside the valley. Ironside's roar was so loud that David Baxter could hear it as he kept on running, trying to get away. He noticed the battle for a moment as he peered through a clearing into the open valley below. There were berserkers and barbarians locked in combat, and the bloodshed was too much for the foreign stranger as he hid in the bushes and started walking backwards away from the clambering skirmish, his wide eyes traumatized and fixed on the battle. As he kept walking backwards, however, David suddenly bumped into something which felt like a tree behind him. But as the lost man turned around to look at what it was, there before him stood a very old man who was not looking at David at all, but rather, looking over David's shoulder at the same distant battle in the valley before. David Baxter didn't know it yet, but he had just bumped into Lord Bruce of Essex, an Anglish Norse viking who had once served King Sigurd in life, but had vanished into the wilderness long long ago and was presumed dead.

Lord Bruce looked much different now from the time when he had saved Takao Eguchi's life many years ago. Due to the time flux on the region, Bruce was now a very old man with dark thick skin, wild and wavey white hair and a long unkempt peppery white beard. His clothing was ragged and dirty, and he looked like a hobo or homeless drifter who must have lived in the forest for decades. Bruce of Essex had been there all along, since the death of King Sigurd, since the rise and fall of Prince Ivar, when the Empyrean Norse Kingdom was founded, when that noble sea dragon Urakena appeared and the Stjornhestr first set sail through the stars on its way to Dracos Valley on the lost continent of Xamoyos, far across the galaxy. Lord Bruce stared at the young man in front of him for a moment, his eyes still as blue as the ocean waves as he studied the strange new foreigner silently.

Meanwhile, the berserkers and barbarians kept fighting, completely unaware of David and Bruce's presence in the forest above. For a brief moment between killing people, Bjorn Ironside raised his axe and pointed it at the rider on the hill. It was as if he was challenging him or her to personal combat. The equestrian in the iron mask was unmoved by this display of bravery, however, merely turning their horse around and walking away from the ridgeline, disappearing from the berserker's view as more barbarians descended into the valley upon them. By now, Arminius had entered a trance-like state of consciousness and was preparing to confront the Iskjerne Berserkers face to face, when all of a sudden, as if by pure chance, the wind direction abruptly changed, sending the blazing forest fire towards the barbarians in the back of the line. The Germanic tribes began panicking as people began yelling and shouting for the front lines to move forward. But those at the front of the line were halted by Bjorn Ironside and his bear-skinned juggernauts, who were putting up more of a fight than Arminius had expected or anticipated. It was time to pull back and rethink his strategy as the equestrian in the iron mask blew into their curling sheep horn and gave the order for the barbarians to withdraw. They kept fighting as they started to pull back over the ridge, while those still down in the valley were left to their fate at the hands of the Vikings.