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Setting

Mead Hall for the vikings of Iskjerne Bay, main communal center.
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Iskjerne Mead Hall

Mead Hall for the vikings of Iskjerne Bay, main communal center.

Minimap

Iskjerne Mead Hall is a part of Iskjerne Ring Fort.

1 Characters Here

Yukiko Takayama [1] Crown Princess of the Taiyou Empire

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Torstein Avenliv has left the area, heading out into Iskjerne Ring Fort.
Meteor has arrived, coming from Iskjerne Ring Fort.
Sovereignty here has been granted to Sigurd Hring!
Meteor has left the area, heading out into Iskjerne Ring Fort.
Yukiko Takayama has arrived, coming from Iskjerne Ring Fort.

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Yukiko Takayama Character Portrait: Zephras
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A cold wind blew across the bay from the north. Outside the snow stood still. Inside, the flickering flames stayed alight but halted in their dance. The rise and fall of the chests of the living slowed, and time seemed to stop.

17 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Sigurd Hring Character Portrait: Iskjerne Vikings Character Portrait: Hrafn-Floki Character Portrait: Thorvald Asvaldsson Character Portrait: Harald Fairhair Character Portrait: Bjorn Ironside Character Portrait: Ivar the Boneless Character Portrait: Lagertha Character Portrait: Ubbe Ragnarsson Character Portrait: Iskjerne Ulfhednar Character Portrait: Aslaug Sigurdsdottir Character Portrait: Iskjerne Berserkers

...and 5 others.

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Thorvald was playing a game involving a small cork bottle plug and a cow horn drinking glass, sitting inside the public mead hall on the floor before an open fire when Hrafn-Floki suddenly stepped inside the mead hall, accompanied by a dozen or so ulfhednar and half a dozen berserkers, causing everyone in the mead hall to pause for a moment in order to look at Floki the raven master, his appearance unmistakable and wild looking as ever with his thin crow's peak hair style, black eyeliner and curling fingers, a man of more modest size among the Iskjerne Vikings who stood in the arch doorway to either side of him.

Floki had scurvy and was shaking badly as he approached the campfire with his gang of champions and sat down. Floki was wrapped in a thick fur blanket and only his red slightly frost bitten face and frozen beard were exposed, but everyone could tell it was Floki by his walk and attitude as he started giggling nonsensically and wavering his way through the silence. The entire crowd was filled with silence, having all heard of the exploits and deeds of the reputable shipbuilder, adventurer, runemaster, and ghost pirate slaying naval leader who had once served the deceased King Sigurd Hring, and was now a very vain wiseman and holy leader. Floki had parched bleeding lips and dry red eyes, and skin cold and pale, but he smiled and chuckled once he got comfortable, wiggling his fingers in front of the flames.

Just then another familar old face would walk into the mead hall, standing in the doorway with a handful of well uniformed Frankish-styled armed guards with uniquely curved shields and green and blue uniforms with nanosteel armour and weapons, holding Ellarian crossbows, looking rather out of place for the setting. These highly disciplined archers were not Iskjerne Vikings, they were Ellarian Soldiers, and they were being led by a very tall dark haired Nordic man in a red silk robe with a bright blue dog fur cape and a finely trimmed beard. It was Robert I of Ellaria, the crown duke. But in former years, this noble familiar looking Frenchman had another name.

"That's Rollo the Walker," someone whispered quietly from the crowd that was standing back around the walls, putting distance between themselves and the foreign Ellarian soldiers.

"... It's Prince Hrollaug, son of Sigurd Hring." another voice whispered. The already silent crowd began to gasp at the amazing arrival of two well known Iskjerne Vikings who had been gone for several years, but who had once played prominent leadership roles during Sigurd's dynasty.

Just then, another distinguished figure entered the mead hall and upon seeing the Ellarian soldiers and the reaction of the Iskjerne Vikings, the young man slowly walked around the crowd away from everybody and made his way towards the back of the mead hall. His fine bright red blazing hair and stubbly chin were easy to pick out in the crowd as Thorvald Bloodyfist glanced over to him and smiled. It was Erik the Red, his grown son, having just returned from his quest to escort Livia and Ragnar to the cave system to the north. Livia would pay Erik the Red a good bit of silver for his troubles, but little did Livia or Erik realize at the moment just how much wealthier the Empyrean Norse exile had become. Erik soon approached his father and sat down next to him.

"She said he'll live." Erik whispered quietly to his father Thorvald before looking up at Hrafn-Floki in front of him, and Robert I of Ellaria, also called the Duke Rollo, standing at the entrance.

17 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Sigurd Hring Character Portrait: Iskjerne Vikings Character Portrait: Hrafn-Floki Character Portrait: Thorvald Asvaldsson Character Portrait: Harald Fairhair Character Portrait: Bjorn Ironside Character Portrait: Ivar the Boneless Character Portrait: Lagertha Character Portrait: Ubbe Ragnarsson Character Portrait: Iskjerne Ulfhednar Character Portrait: Aslaug Sigurdsdottir Character Portrait: Iskjerne Berserkers

...and 5 others.

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"Hello Floki," Duke Robert nodded with a slight smile, relieved to see an old friend and familar face in the mead hall.

"Hello Rollo," Hrafn-Floki responded with a vain tone and disgusted look on his face, obviously not approving of Duke Robert's choice of foreign clothing, or the Frankish cross necklace medallion around his neck. Robert I of Ellaria, known to the Iskjerne Vikings as Prince Hrollaug or Rollo the Walker, would frown slightly.

People would gossip and whisper amongst themselves in the public gathering hall. Rumour had spread that Prince Hrollaug was dead, a rumor apparently spread by his own nephews. Ivar the Boneless, who had sought to takeover his grandfather Sigurd's kingdom, had claimed that the spirit of his uncle Rollo the Walker had given him insightful visions inside his dreams. Of course, Ivar had also made many other fanciful claims, even once declaring himself as a god. His invincibility and godhood was proven untrue however as the true gods had shown, causing an earthquake which had shaken the mead hall and thrown the young crippled prince from the throne. Ivar the Boneless, having suffered from fragile bones since the day he was born, did not survive the ill-will and bad orlog brought on by the spirit of his angry ancestors. There, in the corner of the mead hall was a small wooden boat-shaped casket, inside which the dead Prince Ivar lay as if asleep, lifeless and pale, adorned with yellow and white flowers and perfumes.

Ivar the Boneless was dead.

Robert I of Ellaria, the Duke of the Empyrean Normans, would walk over to Ivar's casket and pay his respects to his dead nephew before gathering with his Frankish guards and drawing a crowd of Iskjerne Vikings to the far side of the mead hall to feast. Many of the Vikings would welcome him home and toast to his honor. Hrollaug recounted his exploits across the Weargtooth Mountains and around the Empyrean High Seas, recalling his adventures all around Ellaria, and the continent of Siv'en to the far south. Prince Hrollaug had been gone for what seemed like many years, and it came as a shock to him to hear that his adopted father King Sigurd was dead, along with the others who had served him, including Rollo's biological father Kettil Flatnose, his mistress Gwyneth the Shield-maiden, and many others. The Duke was filled with grief, but he maintained his composure and promised to help the Iskjerne Vikings recover.

But not everyone was so happy to see his return. A lot of the Vikings would separate themselves from Duke Rollo and gather around Floki by the fire pit instead. Hrafn-Floki would spend the next few days recovering from scurvy and frostbite in the mead hall along with the survivors of his fleet. They drank mead, participated in the feasting and discussed their own plans on what to do now that Iskjerne Bay was without a konung to lead them. Floki's wife Helga would feed him potatoes, broccoli and strawberries, giving him apples to consume and help to treat his scurvy. She informed him that their daughter had died during the winter, having starved to death from the famine during Ivar's short reign. Floki was heart broken, and would pardon himself from the feast to go see the burial mounds.

Thorvald Asvaldsson and his son Erik Thorvaldsson would hear of Duke Rollo's adventures and rise to fame. They also overhead some of the svinfylking, skogkattr, vulpinni, uglarii, odrarii and others recount Floki the Vitki's conquest along the Ellarian Empyrean Coast, and how his leidang of 1,000 seafaring Vikings had fought off an invasion of ghostly phantoms led by pirate Robert the Butcher, a draugr or zombie-like vassal of Gro'chal Deathweaver the necromancer. It seemed that both Duke Robert I of Ellaria, and Hrafn-Floki the raven master, were both very famous now, and would split the kingdom, causing a division between those who were loyal to one side of the feasting hall, and those who would be loyal to the other.

Thorvald Bloodyfist Asvaldsson would also learn that one of the queens of Iskjerne Bay, the former shield-maiden Lagertha, had murdered Ivar's mother, the other queen known as Aslaug Kraka, a powerful völva and seeress among the Vikings who had great power and influence. It had been Aslaug who had poisoned Ivar's head with evil thoughts and fictitious ideas, something which Queen Lagertha and her sons, Bjorn and Ubbe, felt needed to be dealt with. Lagertha expressed love for her sons and said that she missed her beloved husband, the great King Ragnar Lothbrok, son of King Sigurd, whom she had not seen in many years since his departure for East Anglia on another world. Lagertha had hoped that one day, Ragnar might return to claim his father's pagan throne, but she had her doubts. Presuming her first husband to be dead and lost at sea, Lagertha had remarried, this time to King Harald Finehair who also had support from a third of the Iskjerne Vikings.

After gathering all of the news and information he could about Iskjerne Bay, the elder Thorvald Bloodyfist decided it was time to return to the Empyrean Norse Kingdom and inform King Halfdan of the situation. Thorvald hugged his son Erik the Red before giving him some sound advice and climbing back into the mule wagon. Erik Thorvaldsson would be on his own now from here on out, and would be forced to choose between one of the three gathering Viking clans inside the mead hall as his father said farewell and departed home, along the same route that had brought them there.

14 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Sigurd Hring Character Portrait: Iskjerne Vikings Character Portrait: Harald Fairhair Character Portrait: Ivar the Boneless Character Portrait: Lagertha Character Portrait: Ubbe Ragnarsson Character Portrait: Iskjerne Ulfhednar Character Portrait: Aslaug Sigurdsdottir Character Portrait: Iskjerne Berserkers Character Portrait: Iskjerne Hrafnfylking Character Portrait: Iskjerne Kattrfylking Character Portrait: Robert I of Ellaria

...and 2 others.

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#, as written by Sigurd
Iskjerne Mead Hall...
During the reign of King Harald Fairhair...
Iskjerne Bay's 4th Dynasty...



It was that time of year again, the twilight between summer and winter when seasons change. While the seasons were different south of the Weargtooth Mountains, here in the far north, winter lasted much longer and there were times when the midnight sun could be seen well into the early morning hours. Iskjerne Bay was one of the few places on Ellaria that experienced the parhelion effect or phenomenon where all three of Gaia's suns could be seen at the same time. These sun dogs were a remarkable sight for visitors. But in the far north, an even rarer phenomenon occurred, a whole week of darkness where there was no sunlight at all for many days, and which only occurred at winter time. Although it was always cold and snowy year-round at Iskjerne Bay, it was actually nearing autumn when Grimnir the Hooded sat in the Mead Hall, warming himself by the fire. King Harald Fairhair had invited the natives of Iskjerne Bay to an important meeting in the Mead Hall where he gave a toast and proceeded to give a long and inspiring speech.

"Ladies and gentlemen, you all know who I am. I am King Harald Finehair, king of the northern territories" he said, looking around and raising his arms as dozens of Iskjerne natives roared and cheered in support for their new liberator. He allowed them to continue cheering for a moment before he waved a hand for the crowd to calm down.

"You all know the history of our great kingdom. You have heard the exploits of our forefathers from times long ago, from the former days of King Ellrulf up until now. We were all here raised on stories of King Harald Wartooth and his nephew King Sigurd Hring, the founder of our great establishment. We have all seen the statue of King Sigurd, which still stands at our gates as a testimony to our great kingdom, besides the broken and half-fallen statue of his great grandson Ivar the Boneless, my younger predecessor who came before me, and whose funeral you all attended. You all know the story of Queen Astrid and her father King Olaf, whose descendants were the first of our people to brave this new world. You still tell the story of Hurgor the Archer and his famous horse Skallafax, and his powerful bow called Grimgir the Wolfbow, which once defended our ancestors. You are already familiar with Hurgor's brother Ulfric Ellrulfsson, possessor of the famous sword Ulfsfanga, that ulfberht blade which never rusts. I know that many of your horses were bred from that great steed, and that King Ellrulf's bloodline still survives today to the far west of our borders."

Again the Iskjerne Vikings roared and cheered, and Grimnir the Hooded listened quietly while King Harald inspired pride in his followers and reviewed their history.

"You all know I am a grandson of Gudrød the Hunter, and that my grandmother Alfhilda was an elven princess. All of us here had ancestors who fought in the Battle of Brávellir, and many of you have fought your own battles since then. You can still recall the exploits of the Nuörmbátur, that famous longship which was overturned on these Iskjerne shores and now forms the rooftop of this very Mead Hall we have gathered in today. Skál!" King Harald shouted, raising his bovine drinking horn into the air. The Vikings cheered again and everyone would chug the wine or beer in their tankards and mugs, roaring with pride and excitement. But this time instead of calming the crowd, King Harald just spoke louder over the top of their gossip and cheering.

"You all know the exploits of King Sigurd and his sons, Rollo and Ragnar, whom some of you met before. Hrollaug the Walker was a great Viking who sailed the Nuörmbátur down the Weargtooth Mountains like a sled into battle on these very shores against the mighty giants and dragons who threatened our kingdom during the time of King Sigurd's reign. The Iskjerne Vikings fought that great serpent Shimizu, whose tail was as long as 100 ships. His teeth were sharp like metal speartips, and his gaze so fierce and hideous that looking him into the eyes meant certain death. But our ancestors defeated Shimizu and drove that dragon back into the caverns from whence it came!" King Harald shouted, causing the roaring crowd to grow louder.

"When I first sailed to Iskjerne Bay, this settlement was abandoned. I came over with many ambitious kings and queens, and princes from our homeland. I came with Lagertha, Aslaug, Bjorn, Ubbe, Ivar and Hvitserk, with Floki and Floki's wife Helga, and with many other successors to Sigurd Hring's throne. At that time I was a nobody, just like most of you. I sat on the same benches you're sitting on right now. But I was an ambitious king, and I knew that one day, I would free my people from the grip of our foreign oppressors and return Iskjerne Bay to Iskjerne Vikings!" Again the crowd roared and cheered, and even Grimnir himself couldn't help but to smile and join in the celebration.

After a while of laughter, loud gossip and cheering, King Harald suddenly stopped smiling and became quieter, waiting for the crowd to calm down on its own. Once everyone settled down and waited for the king to speak again, Harald Fairhair continued talking, this time more quietly.

"It's a sad thing what happened to Queen Aslaug and Prince Ivar, and to King Sigurd and King Ragnar, we will miss their faces. We will miss their shields." The crowd became more solemn and quiet at these words, as everyone took a moment of silence to honor the dead. "As you all know, Rollo has betrayed our culture, and our gods. I have nothing but the most respect for Rollo, and for the corpses who still lay buried out in the snow. I did not want to fight them. You all know that. But I swore an oath on the day you chose me to be your leader. I vowed to avenge Sigurd Hring, and to restore this land to its native tongue. Here we follow the old gods, and practice the old ways. Ivar made the same promise, and he lied. But Ivar was still young, and we will not fault him for his mistakes. He added a lot of great architecture and defenses to our establishment. But being a King is hard, and being a God is even harder. No man here knows the burden of Sigurd Hring, nor the burden of Ragnar's sons." King Harald said calmly as everyone in the Mead Hall listened silently.

"My sources tell me that Ubbe and Hvitserk have gone to Oor Cavern to avenge their grandfather. You all know I have sanctioned this and have given them my blessing. I respect King Sigurd as much as any man here, and I adopted Ragnar's sons that day when he died at the hands of King Aela, this is no secret. I have always supported Bjorn Ironside, and my beloved wife Queen Lagertha, your queen, who was not here during the blood eagle ceremony, but is here with us today. " Upon hearing this, Lagertha raised her drinking horn and smiled quietly, sitting on her own throne next to King Harald, who looked down at her and raised his drinking horn, smiling back. Grimnir smiled, listening intently.

"I've been informed that Hel's Gate has been closed. Ubbe and Hvitserk are on the other side. As your king, I must decide what is best for our kingdom." King Harald looked out over the hall, and smiled, still raising his horn. Everyone by now was listening as King Harald spoke, not as a warrior, but as a king. Grimnir the Hooded made eye contact with King Harald Finehair at that moment. The king stared at him for a second, his expression betraying his lack of trust for this new stranger in golden robes, flashing his wealth before Iskjerne's Vikings and their newly established dynasty.

King Harald took a swig of the wine from the open hollow of his drinking horn and turned his gaze towards others in the crowded hall. "I have given my messengers the order to evacuate the caves. As the King of Iskjerne Bay, I give the order to destroy Rikkisopi Caves and prevent Shimizu from coming back through. I order a sacrifice to Óđinn, and to the elves during Álfablót, which I trust you will attend." King Harald took another swig from his drinking horn and set it on the table before sitting back down on his throne. Everyone in the Mead Hall was speechless, including Grimnir, who apart from others was still cheery and smiling as he excused himself from the fireplace and started trying to push his way through the standing crowd, heading towards the kings throne after his speech was over. Grimnir seemed to be on an important errand.


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