General Summary
May 27th (continued)
Isa marvels at the suit of armor gifted to her by Buskagar's members of the cult of Freyja. Before she can offer thanks, Hnoss and Gersemi step forward and present Isa with a leather pouch filled with fifteen polished sling-bullets.
Hnoss whispers in Isa's ear, "Thank you for telling our father we helped," before hastily turning and placing a kiss on Gunnar's cheek. She then quickly darts away with her sister in tow.
The two girls run past their father as he lowers his high head to enter the ale-house. Ragi informs the party that a knarr he owns is departing for Gren to trade ale for fleeces from Hleyp and that he has seccured them passage aboard it. He says that it will leave in two hours time. He then looks to Asmund and requests to speak with him outside.
Clutching his wooden chest close, Asmund follows as Ragi heads out to the docks. Isa telepathicly asks Margu to eavesdrop on them and the owl moves silently to follow them. Ragi stands looking out over the fjord with Asmund beside him, the wind from the east sweeping his beard to the west.
"Congratulations, Karl Sven," he says sternly.
"Thank you," says Asmund, awkwardly acknowleging his alias as he clutches his chest close to his side.
"My wife tells me you have been here in town under that name for some time. Forgive me, but I thought Ulfjolt and Haleth's wedding marked your first coming to Buskagar."
"Yes..." starts Asmund awkwardly before gesturing to his pointed ears that lay obscured under his hood, "I thought it best to not come to town and use a name that would draw attention."
"I see," says Ragi thoughfully. "It is my understanding that elves choose their names when they reach adulthood. What made you pick that one?"
'It seemed like a good, strong name," says Asmund.
"Aye," says Ragi sadly, "it is." Taking a silver piece from a pouch on his belt, he flips it in their air right in front of Asmund and says, "Good fortune to you then. Have a round on me," before turning away from the docks and heading back into town.
Asmund catches the coin instinctively and calls for Ragi to wait. Retrieving fifteen gold coins from his chest, Asmund places them in Ragi's hand, thanking him for his family's kindness and hospitality with a short bow.
Ragi weighs the stack of coins thoughtfully in his one hand as Asmund turns to return to the tavern, absent mindedly tumbling the new silver coin down his knuckles.
"It is a strange thing..." Asmund stops and looks back at him from over his shoulder. "The only other man I ever knew to tumble coins down his knuckles like that... was also named Asmund." The one armed thane gives him a knowing smile and walks away.
Asmund returns to the tavern to find Murdaeg and Bairrfhionn quibbling about the details of the plan to pass over the great mountains. As he sits back down to find Isa looking at him and giving him a knowing smile, Margu having given her the benefit of what was said between him and Ragi. Asmund then retrieves twenty gold pieces from his chest and offers it to her in recognition of her help decorating the jarl's ships.
Murdaeg repeates the question, "So Master Bairrfhionn, you have made this crossing before, aye?"
"I have," says Bairfhionn calmly, sipping his mead.
"Have you attempted it without Genma?" asks Gunnar, politely.
"No, but fear not," says the wathe, "heed me, and we will cross the Keel in four days."
"Well, that's good enough for me," says Murdaeg as he rises from the table, finishing his mead. "I"ll be waiting by the smithy's."
Murdaeg leaves the ale house, Asmund announces he has business to attend to in the town's square and leaves as well. As Asmund heads off, Isa quietly offers a similar excuse, leaving Gunnar and Bairrfhionn sitting alone.
Gunnar orders a round for himself and Bairrfhionn, the two clink cups, and Gunnar says, "Skol," before the both drink. Swallowing his mead, Gunnar continues, "So, what manner of beasts should we be expecting?"
Isa and Asmund
Isa follows Asmund as he heads northwards back to the town's square but does a poor job concealing herself and he quickly looks over his shoulder to see her awkwardly attempt to try to hide behind a waist-high fence.
"Isa?" he calls to her.
She does not answer and contimplates not transforming into a mouse.
"Would you care to join me?" offers Asmunds, prompting Isa to stand and join him in walking towards the center of town.
As they walked a silence grew between them until Isa broke it by saying, "So... last night you and Haleth go to see lady Inga... and the next morning she has someone strung up as a thief."
"I... I did not think she would do that."
"Well, you thought wrong."
As the two enter the town's square, they are faced with the totem of Asmund the Bear-Wolf. Asmund looks up to it and Isa joins him.
"Is this your father?" she asks. She does so both gently but with little doubt.
Asmund is suprised but decides not to deny her the truth. "Aye."
"I can think of nothing worse than dying of a broken heart," says Isa. "He must have been quite a man for your mother to feel his loss so deeply."
"That's what I always thought..." says Asmund, his head dipping beneath his hood.
"Fear not Asmund Naivarason," says Isa as they come to stand before the temple of Thor, looking up at its high splender, "we will not let Haleth suffer that fate."
Stepping into the temple, they pass through sharp virticle shafts of light on their way to standing before a totem carved in Thor's likeness in the center of the building. At the feet of the totem stands a small alter that bears a broken sword handle with a Mjolnir pendent wrapped around it. Asmund opens his chest, retrieves 15 gold coins from it, and places them on the alter, beside the sword.
Closing his chest, he glaces at Isa, who smiles at him. They both look back to the totem before bowing their heads in respect.
"Isa... Greenthumbs..." rumbles a voice from behind them. Both Isa and Asmund look over their shoulders to see Thurmond stepping into the temple. The floorboards creak under the weight of his footsteps as he crosses the space between them. "Were you not planning to depart with Gunnar this day?"
"We are," says Asmund, "I wished to to make an offering before we left. May it benefit the children who are taken in here."
"Thank you," says Thurmond, looking down on the small stack of coins, "you are too kind."
Isa and Asmund bow politely before turning to take their leave, but before they can reach the enterance to the temple, Thurmond speaks again, prompting the two to look back to him from over their shoulders. "Asmund," says Thurmond, using that name to address him for the first time, something that stops the half-elf in his tracks. The huge man picks up the broken sword handle displayed before the totem and unravels the Mjolnir pendent wrapped around it. He tosses it at Asmund, who is easily able to catch it right out of the air with a single finger.
Looking at the hammer pendent that once belonged to his father, Asmund asks, "What is this for?"
"You might need it," says Thurmond with deadly seriousness before returning the broken hilt to its alter.
Isa and Asmund head back out into the daylight of the town's square to see Haleth playing her lute and the Jarl's children surrounding her on the steps before the great hall on the opposite side of the town's square. Haleth quickly spots them aswell and stops playing. Handing off her lute to the jarl's ten-year-old daughter, she stands and runs across the square to hug both Isa and Asmund.
"Please, be safe both of you," she says, holding them tight.
They agree and Haleth asks if she can accompny them back to the docks to see them off. They agree to this aswell and the three head back down towards the market. Upon reaching it, she sees Murdaeg seated next to the blacksmith's stall and goes to sit with him.
Murdaeg
Murdaeg sits smoking his pipe beside the blacksmith's stall, losing himself in the sound of the hammer falls when Haleth approaches him.
"Master Dvergr, may I sit with you?"
"Of- of course, my lady," sputters Murdaeg as he gestures to the space beside him.
Haleth sits down next to Murdaeg and says, "I wanted to thank you. You do not know my husband, yet you are willing to halt your own quest to help him."
"Today, when you depart this town," he looks at her
"Colborn, what is the meaning of this?" demands Gunnar.
The Runekeeper ignores him, not breaking eye contact with Isa
"I name you a bringer of bad news. The misfortune that befell thane Ragi's son would not have happened if you had not lead him astray. Your magic is fowl and does not belong within the walls of a township. Return to the forest and say there. This is my warning to you."
"My magic is a gift from the Mother Goddess," says Isa defiantly, not shrinking from with is clearly a thinnly veiled threat. "And Ulfjolt was not led astray. His love was true and I think that is what truly frightens you."
"I have spoken. Do what you will." Before turning and walking away, Colborn offers Gunnar a glance and says, "Farewell, Bear-slayer," out of the side of his mouth.
As the gray-haired man walks away, Isa yells after him, "And control your familiar!" As she turns to return to the water-front, the Seidr grumbles, "Who does he think he is?"
"He is an unpleasent one, to be sure," says Gunnar, attempting to calm her. "But we would be wise to not court conflict with the cult of Óðinn. Their inflence is great and it extends far and wide."
At this, Isa scoffs before petting a still agitated Margu.
"Fjölnir Oalfson made a great effort to attempt to convince me you were here on behalf of your people to spy on my husband. Is there any truth in that?"
"No," says Asmund, "I came here to get away from my people. Spying was never my goal nor was it asked of me."
Inga moves close enough to Asmund that they are nearly touching and asks with a small, upward turn of her mouth's corner, "Would you spy for me?
Asmund blinks. "My lady?"
"They say the king to the east of the Keel is a villain; a kin-slayer. It is said that he killed his brother and took his kingdom. He is called Cnut the Brotherless and my brother has sworn to kill him if they ever meet."
"Who is your brother?" asks Asmund, playing dumb.
Inga smiles before reaching out to the chest of gold coins under Asmund's arm and retrieving from it a single piece. She holds it up, showing the face it bears. "This is my brother. Ingvar Ivarson, King of Rogaland. If you were to return from the east with knowledge on how to reach this kinslayer king, I am sure my brother would reward you for it."
"I... I will do my best, my lady."
"Good," says Inga, returning the coin to Asmund's chest.
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