Many days passed since Little Fish arrived in Svengald Chief of the Aesir’s home. However, it was the same Aesirfjord he’d visited as a child many decades before the Chief’s birth! Unknowingly, he’d somehow been tricked into returning to the di
Read more…Long had the men labored in the forest clearing the land for farming in the Spring. In the center of the clearing, an ancient pine tree stump stood defiant while its infant fellow trees lay fallen around it. So massive was the stump, twenty men
Read more…Mjarga spoke aloud surprising both the Golden Being and Little Fish. “You cannot pass into the realm where your kind has gone. Not without great difficulty, hardship and…heartbreak. You will lament what you find. I would implore you to seek new
Read more…Svengald held tight to the rudder of his skiff and the sturdy hemp sail guide line. The combination of Aesir and Valley knowledge made for a surprisingly swift and seaworthy craft. Though thrilled to be at sea once more, there was an uncomfortab
Read more…Waves of heat made the sun-scorched air shimmer over tall stands of elephant grass across the Delta Boundary. Miles away lay the edge of the Mangrove Forest and the nearest shade. Several more miles in the opposite direction, the River Goddess’
Read more…Chief Svengald stood looking at his packed things lying upon the summer bed. For a change, his longhouse was quiet except for the sounds of birds and insects going about their business on so fine a summer day. The Chief looked about his sleeping
Read more…The Palm Forest behind the Priestess’ home was a perfect practice ground for the Valley Knight. Two months had passed since the God Qatula returned the deadly weapons the Knight thought long lost in the past when he was cast into ‘Death’s Realm’
Read more…The sudden flash of a lightning bolt cut through the blackness and revealed a white hand desperately grasping onto a flailing rope. Another bolt showed equally desperate people looking to the owner of the hand as they too sought secure purchase
Read more…The Valley Knight crouched upon the high point of the hill behind his home. Placing a hand on his brow to block the descending sun, he caught the stream of village women breaking off in other directions as they reached paths leading to their ho
Read more…Laughter fell out of open gauze curtained windows as children played outside a large circular mud brick home. White washed walls and thick, fresh green thatch upon the conical roof made the house glow among the healthy orchards surrounding it.
Read more…Darker than dark, blacker than black was the space all around. There was no sense of gravity, direction or anything available to convey where, ‘where’ lay. Here on the Dark Road, a traveler was far from where they were going as where they start
Read more…The run up to the Mountain Guardian Camp hadn’t been fun as it could have. Along with several other newly minted young men, Little Fish followed along at their behest to join them. In the time they had run from the main village to the camp, Lit
Read more…The thick carpet of ferns undulated beneath the canopy of cypress trees like waves upon the mighty Lake. It was this time of year the powerful draw of water through the gaps in the Dam created an uncharacteristic breeze within the Cypress Fores
Read more…A hard wind mixed with warm and cool air surged across the surface of the immense lake. White tipped waves rolled towards the Great Dam as large schools of young trout swarmed their way through intentional gaps in the massive barrier. It was ear
Read more…The horses hooves pounding forward over the ancient path by the riverbed was a welcomed change for the Aesir Chief. Svengald son of Sljandir answered to that title and everyone in the Valley region knew him as such. However, there were only thr
Read more…Wave after powerful wave crashed against the unseen barrier to no avail. Mixed into the pounding surf was spiritual energy greater than the sea waves, but they too could not breach the barrier. That which was lost lay inside this hidden and pro
Read more…Long shafts of light filtered down into the depths from the world above. A great underwater city teemed with the activity of life as it moved from light to shadow in the endless search for food, shelter and procreation. The city sprawled outwar
Read more…The sun traveled well past the high point in the sky since Little Fish and his ‘God Mother’ the Priestess set out for the Delta Boundary. Though the River always flowed from the Great Dam to the sea, at this time of year the water level was hig
Read more…Sliding the sword away from the spear's blade in a shower of sparks and an ear-splitting noise, the Knight put up the blade and his free hand in a gesture of peace. The spear continued to point at his heart despite the gesture and the Knight repli
Read more…For the first time during his manhood did the Knight feel the deep chill of fear. The god's tone of voice suggested the darkest of evils though he spoke with a calm whisper. By tightening his grip on the mighty weapon, the Knight fortified his cou
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