The Hearth Stone
The Storm River splits into two branches roughly halfway along its length and reforms again several miles farther downstream. At the split stands a great stone of pitted black rock that is as hard as iron yet seems to float and bob upon the waters like a giant cork. This rock is known as the Hearth Stone, for legend holds that it was the home of the first Northlanders following Swein Sigurdson, the mold and forge from which the gods made them, and the center of the Northlands. If this is true, it happened so far back in the distant past that none can truly call it naught but legend, save those who come there to call upon the gods, and the godi who have built a mighty godshouse that spans the river.
The Hall of the Hearth Stone is the most sacred shrine of the Northlands. If Storstrøm Vale is the heart and guardian of Northlands culture, then the Hall of the Hearth Stone is the heart and guardian of Storstrøm Vale. It was here that the beginnings of Northlander culture took shelter as it fought off the troll-kin that inhabited the vale, and from here that the first køenig of Storstrøm Vale and eventually the first and only high køenig of the Northlands was acclaimed. It is said if there is ever to be a high køenig again, then it will be when a worthy hand wields the sword of Kraki Haraldson, entombed only a few miles upstream from this hall. The wyrd of the Northlands has always centered upon this place.
From one side of the mighty Storm River to another, a massive construction of wood, the only bridge that crosses that great river, straddles both forks of the waterway and brings pilgrims to stand directly above the Hearth Stone. A clan of godi whose ancestors spent 40 years constructing it manages this godshouse/bridge. Pilgrims are allowed entrance provided they give an acceptable donation. Once inside, they see one of the wonders of the Northlands, for every inch of the structure is carved with depictions of the gods, as well as monsters, villains, and heroes. The entire history of the Northlands can be seen here, and as new events of import occur, they are added, even if a new room needs to be constructed. Young members of the Hearthsons clan spend the early years of their adulthood traveling the Northlands to learn of — and often participate in — important events. Oddly, although so much of the history of the Northlands can be learned from studying the carvings inside the godshouse, the room that once held the origins of the Gat-Hrolf feud collapsed into the river and was washed away many, many generations ago, leaving that a mystery to the current generations.
Comments