The Chronicles of Slave Nano No. 06

Nauthiz pondered. I waited expectantly.

"I will do a deal with you story-weaver. You cannot pass beyond the tree but If your tales are good and they entertain me then I will grant you safe passage back to the mountain pass. But, if I find your stories dull then I will stun you with the venom in my fangs and swallow you whole and my stomach juices will dissolve your flesh so I can digest you; all whilst you are still living and conscious. Not a pleasant end, is it?"

"Mighty serpent you are just. You have set me a fair trial."

"Well, skald and story weaver, now you may begin."

"Oh wise and mighty Nauthiz, guardian of the tree of life, behold, let me tell you of the tale of Hrothgar and the blue cats of Thor. Many moons ago when the warrior Hrothgar was still a young man and the service to his mistress was yet in its infancy he was summoned to the throne room of Goddess Freyja...."

I could see I had captured Nauthiz's attention. It was going to be a long night and I had to use all my skills as a story-teller to keep him gripped. I sought inspiration from Scherazade weaving tale after tale to save herself from the executioner's sword. Her skill kept King Shahryar hanging on the edge of his seat so that when dawn broke over the Arabian desert he was left hanging, desperate for the end of her story, and forced to spare her so he could hear its conclusion. She would seamlessly conjure cycles of stories within stories to lure her listener in. I pictured her draped over silk cushions, the moon shimmering through elaborately carved wooden shutters, the quiet running of fountain waters sounding from cool tile lined courtyards as her wondrous voice enraptured her listener. Scherazade had led the King on night after night for one thousand and one nights. I only had to manage a few hours. Surely I could do that?

"..... 'Tell me,' she asked, 'How devoted are you to your mistress.' He replied, 'Oh Goddess Freyja I worship you more than anything and would devote myself to your service.' 'I have a trial for you young warrior,' she said. 'I will only have the most loyal slaves serve me for one trusted servant is worth fifty fickle foot-soldiers. This is why I surround myself with only the strongest and most worthy. This task will test your courage and your loyalty. If you succeed you will be welcomed as one of my personal retainers. If you fail you will remain on the fringes of my hall, looking on enviously as others serve me. I have been observing you from afar and believe you are ready for this trial.'

"Goddess Freyja continued, 'Now there are some objects that I desire greatly. My golden chariot needs some fitting creatures to pull it through the Norse skies so that all that look upon me will be awe-struck. I know exactly the creatures that I desire, but it will mean provoking one of the mightiest of our gods. That, of course, means nothing to me, I expect even the most powerful of our gods to bow at my command but for a servant to anger the gods, well, that is another matter. Will you take that risk in service to me young warrior, to be forever an enemy of the gods?' Hrothgar replied, 'for you my mistress I would invoke the wrath of Odin himself.' 'Good, then I will continue. Of course you know of Thor, son of Odin and amongst the mightiest of our gods. Now Thor possesses two magical blue furred cats, their strength and prowess are a matter of legend. I want these two creatures for my own so that I can harness them to my golden chariot. You will enter Thor's kingdom, you will find a way into his stables, you will steal them from under Thor's very nose and then tame the wild beasts so that they will serve me. If you should be disturbed then you will have to face the mighty Thor himself and his fearsome hammer, mjollnir, in open combat and you will have to prevail. This is no easy challenge I have set you. Will you do this for your mistress?' Hrothgar replied, 'Of course Goddess Freyja. This is an opportunity I have been waiting for. I can hardly wait to prove my loyalty to you. If I prevail I will hope to bring you great honour. If I fail then I know I can only expect the ignominy of rejection. But, as the wise woman says, he who risks nothing....gains nothing.' 'Good, then you must depart now,' Goddess Freyja proclaimed as she set him on his way.

"So, Hrothgar travelled on foot to Thor's kingdom and he sought out Thor's splendid hall and he entered secretly and found the stables of which Goddess Freyja had spoken. But yet the fierce blue cats were wild and answered only to Thor. When Hrothgar entered their stables they rose up in their chains and snarled angrily. Hrothgar grasped their muzzles and clamped them shut so that their angry roars could not be heard but the damage had already been done. Now, Thor had heard the commotion in his stables and he jumped out of bed, his mane of red hair sweeping behind him in anger. He confronted Hrothgar in his stables. 'Who dares break into the mighty Thor's stables and disturb his sleep,' he called out. 'It is I, Hrothgar, the devoted slave of the Goddess Freyja who has come to take your magical blue cats for her chariot.' Thor laughed at him. 'So young man, does Freyja send children to do her work now. Will she never give up trying to provoke and anger the gods. Her power has grown too great and it will give me pleasure to destroy one of her servants and send him back to her broken as a token of Thor's strength. Do you think you are a match for me boy?' Thor taunted Hrothgar. But Hrothgar rose up in anger, he had the strength of the devotion to his mistress and the threat of rejection by her to goad him on to great deeds."

"Thor launched mjollnir, his mighty hammer, at Hrothgar. He raised his shield to protect himself but the force of the hammer sent him reeling to the ground. Hrothgar leapt straight up. Thor had no weapon and was defenceless. He charged at Thor with his trusty sword, 'Serpent Breath'. But as he ran towards Thor the hammer roared past his ear and back into Thor's hand. Hrothgar did not realise that mjollnir was a magic hammer and would always return to its owner's hands. The hammer came crashing down towards Hrothgar's brow. He reacted quickly to raise his shield and protect himself against the crushing blow. He thrust with his sword and Thor parried with his hammer. Blue sparks flew as metal crashed against metal. Thor and Hrothgar fought for over two hours; crushing stroke of hammer against swipe of sword. Two mighty warriors locked in combat. The fight swung to and fro, sometimes the battle-hardened and experienced Thor held sway at other times the young pretender had the upper hand. The two tired with the exertion of the fight. Finally, Thor forced his young foe backwards and with one mighty stroke of his hammer Hrothgar's sword was knocked from his hand. Thor sought to smite his enemy with one more stroke. But Hrothgar, lying defenceless on the ground, thrust his foot into his chest to send Thor reeling and his hammer powerless onto the floor. Hrothgar picked up his sword and in one fleeting moment before the hammer could return to Thor's hand severed the handle from the metal hammer head. Now he had Thor at his mercy as the point of Serpent Breath was put to his chest. Thor conceded defeat. 'Young warrior, Freyja chooses her servants well. I have been beaten fairly in open combat and I concede to you. You may take the blue cats back to Freyja. But they are wild and will need taming. But warn Freyja that she cannot continue to have her way without the gods seeking their revenge.' "

"So, Hrothgar slashed the chains that kept the blue cats secured. They jumped up at him snarling and spitting wildly. Having vanquished the mighty Thor in battle Hrothgar was not about to be beaten by two giant cats, however strong. He grabbed them both one under each of his strong arms and dragged them with him all the way back to Goddess Freya's hall Sessminuir by which time they were tamed and readily accepted the harness from of her chariot. Goddess Freya was delighted not only with the magnificent blue cats but also with the message that had been sent out to the other gods that she had a champion who was capable of overcoming the mighty Thor. 'I am pleased with you Hrothgar. You have performed your task well and for that you will be rewarded richly by being allowed into the inner circle of retainers, and also into my bedchamber,' she added with a lascivious glint in her eye. And here endeth the first tale of Hrothgar," I concluded.

My voice rose in excitement as I described the climax of the fight and the crash of sword and shield against mjollnir, Thor's mighty magical hammer. I could sense Nauthiz getting involved in the story following every crash of hammer and slash of sword I described until eventually Hrothgar prevailed.

"Not bad, not bad, story weaver," Nauthiz commented. "Do you have any other tales of Goddess Freyja's hall and her warrior."

"Oh but yes magnificent serpent, protector of the life force of the nine Norse kingdoms, this is but one of many tales I could tell of the beauty and magnificence of Goddess Freyja and her hall and of her champion, each one more astonishing than the other."

I had to lure the serpent into a cycle of stories that would grip his attention. The minutes of the short mid-summer night ticked away but I still had lots of work to do before the sun rose.

"Good, well tell me another one then," said Nauthiz.

"O wondrous worm, then listen attentively for now I will tell you a tale that is so wondrous that it has changed the nature of the heavens themselves."

"I am sufficiently intrigued by your introduction skald; carry on with your story."

"It was some years after the tale I have recited and Hrothgar was now well established as one of Goddess Freyja's champions. But she was discontented with him. He had become complacent and took for granted that she would invite him into her bedchamber to take pleasure from his remarkable sexual prowess. This would not do. She summoned him to her throne room and made him kneel before her whilst she sat in full battle dress, her gold breast plate and her gold horned helmet glimmering before him with regal potency. 'You are becoming complacent and self satisfied Hrothgar,' she announced in her angriest voice, 'and I feel your devotion to me has become a matter of form. This will not do.' Hrothgar replied, 'I am so sorry Goddess Freyja. I promise you that I worship you with as much force as I ever have. I am mortified if I have been lacking in my devotion to you or offended you in any way Goddess.' She replied, 'I will offer you the chance to make amends. You need to keep attentive at all times and never let your guard slip or your devotion waiver for one second. There are two tasks I have for you. The first is that Loki is becoming tiring and irritating again. He needs to be put in his place. This is a simple matter, which I am sure you can handle. The second is more taxing. I want you to demonstrate your devotion to me by doing something that will leave a permanent symbol of my power and my servant's devotion to it. The nature of this I will leave to you. You must surprise me.' "

"So, Hrothgar set out for Loki's kingdom pondering on the gift or token that he could bring back to please his mistress on his return. An idea occurred to him. He knew that Loki had a new play-thing that he was very proud of. The dwarves that served him were supremely skilled in the arts of metal working and they had fashioned for Loki a wondrous chariot of silver. This chariot was a source of great pleasure for him and he would ride the Norse skies showing off and making mischief along the way. It was not surprising that Goddess Freyja was getting irritated with him. His new chariot had made him cocky and more daring and tricky than usual. This would surely make a fitting gift for Goddess Freyja and he would be able to complete both tasks at the same time."

Hrothgar knew that Loki feared his strength and although he was a trickster this was of no concern to Goddess Freyja's champion. He stormed Loki's hall and caught him by surprise. He grabbed him by the neck with his mighty hands and announced that he had been sent by Freyja to stop his games and that he would take away his silver chariot to teach him a lesson. But, Loki was not going to give in without trick. He turned himself into a crow and flew into the crow's nest. Hrothgar followed him. There were nine crows in the nesting box and he took each one in turn and twisted its neck to break it. When he got to the sixth crow it cawed 'No, No, I beg you stop. You can take the silver chariot, but warn Freyja that I will get my vengeance on her some day.' 'Good,' said Hrothgar, 'it would make a wonderful gift for her and I will take the five dead crows to bake into a pie.' Then Loki replied in crowing in a wheedling voice, 'Oh I don't think she will be impressed with a stolen chariot. You do not know her well enough. She already has a golden chariot that is even more splendid than mine and Thor's two blue cats to pull it. You will have to find something better than that if you want to satisfy her.' "

"Hrothgar went away but Loki's words gnawed away at him. Perhaps he was right. It was a beautifully crafted chariot but it was still an object merely stolen from Loki. He had to do something more spectacular than this to demonstrate his loyalty to his mistress. He pulled the silver chariot into the kingdom of Muspellhelm, the land of fire. He held it into the hottest fire he could find and then he dragged it to the land of Niflheim, the land of ice, the highest and coldest peak he could find and then as night fell he used all of his mighty strength to smash the chariot against the mountain top. The chariot shattered into a myriad of tiny shards which shot up into the Norse sky to form a new constellation. Hrothgar smiled; the new arrangement of stars would be named 'Freyja's chariot'. Surely this would be a fitting token of devotion for his Goddess."

"Hrothgar returned to Sessmuir and knelt before Goddess Freyja's throne. He presented her with a pie dish with a golden crust of pastry. 'My Goddess, this is a pie baked with crows from Loki's own nesting box. They are young and succulent and have made a tasty pie.' Goddess Freyja was furious, 'You fool Hrothgar, you have gone all that way and all you have come back with is a pie? What do I care for Loki's crows?' She slapped him hard around the face as she said this. Hrothgar laughed. 'Oh, but my Goddess, there is another gift I have brought you. Look into the night sky. Do you see the new formation of stars? This is dedicated to you; it is Freyja's chariot and it has been formed with tiny shards from Loki's silver chariot.' Goddess Freyja looked up into the sky and to her amazement she spied the arrangement of stars in the shape of a chariot. Now she was impressed. 'This is a wonderful and imaginative gift for a Goddess. In doing this you have renewed your vows of loyalty in my eyes. In recognition of this gift I will exchange it with a gift of my own.' And Goddess Freyja presented Hrothgar with a special token of her appreciation. It was a piece of black jet on purple cord with a rune carved onto it. 'Hrothgar, this is the rune for creativity. You have great strength and courage but one day in your travails in my service you will need this symbol of creativity and intuition. I give it to you as a token of thanks for what you have done for me.' And Hrothgar kept it and treasured above all things."

I made Nauthiz gasp in wonder as I described the magnificence of the chariot, start in surprise as I told how Loki turned himself into a crow to escape, gaze awe struck as my voice hypnotically described the stars in the sky that Hrothgar had broken the chariot into and then laugh as I gave the account of how Hrothgar had presented Goddess Freyja with a crow pie before revealing his true gift to her. I used the nuance and inflexion of my voice to keep him engaged and as I looked into the serpent's eyes I could see him enraptured, visualizing the descriptions in my tale.

When I finished the serpent sighed, "yes, I am content, that is indeed a wondrous tale. The deeds of this warrior of the Goddess Freyja are remarkable. It is said that her warriors are, how can I put this delicately, lusty and that the Goddess herself has, what can I say, a healthy appetite for her men. Tell me, since you know so much about what goes on in her hall, is this true?"

The serpent had given me another hook to draw him in with.

"O all powerful worm you are wise and perceptive. I can tell you a tale of some of the raunchy things that take place in Goddess Freyja's hall.'

"Yes, wolf-man, I think that would be very diverting for me, you may continue," Nauthiz encouraged.

I started another story.

"Goddess Freyja lay curled on her huge circular bed snuggled naked in her favourite ocelot fur bedspread which kept the icy Norse winds at bay. She basked in the warmth of the sensuous fur against her soft naked flesh and the warm skin of the two men pressed against her, their muscular arms draped around her body and across her ample breasts. It was her favoured warrior Hrothgar and also her brother, Freyr, for it was second nature for the Norse gods and goddesses to sleep with their own siblings or offspring. The fire roaring in the hearth cast an orange hued glow around her bedchamber. A raven tapestry hung from the ceiling behind her bed, its beady eyes looking down on the scene of carnality below it."

Yes, the opening of this tale had certainly captured the serpent's attention.

"Her golden hair lay fanned across her duck-down pillows. She smiled to herself. She was full of contentment and satiated after an afternoon's love-making. For, as you know O mighty serpent, Freyja is an earth Goddess and partakes fully of the pleasures of the flesh. She had spent the last three hours in bed with the two men who meant most to her. As always the love-making had been spectacular, ranging from wild abandoned fucking to tender kisses and caresses. She had lost count of the number of orgasms she had and her whole body tingled with the glow of pure physical pleasure."

"Freyr was the first to speak, he jested with Hrothgar, 'well I expect you'll be down the servant's quarters in a minute to continue your rutting with some kitchen wenches.' 'My loins are still on fire,' he replied, 'there is nothing to match love-making with a Goddess but I could easily fuck another twenty girls before dinner.' Freyr laughed, 'twenty, even you could never manage that.' Hrothgar's leant up on his elbow and took up Freyr's challenge, 'do you want a bet?'

"Freyja should have been angry with them both but for the moment she was too contented, too lost in her reverie of sensuality as she pulled the fur around her body, naked save for the Brisingamen, which always hung around her neck its golden beauty mirroring the Goddess's own. She was in a good mood and would let the boys play their boastful games. She spoke, but not in the icy tones of war-like wrath that so many of her retainers were familiar with but in a husky sensuous contented lilt, 'let me enjoy the warmth of my bedchamber in peace. Look boys, if all you're going to do is squabble and boast about your sexual conquests then you have my permission to go. I just want to luxuriate here in my glow of sexual satisfaction. You can join me again at night time when I'm sure my ardour can be aroused again.' Unseen by the two men a broad grin crossed her face as she buried herself into the comfort of her fur."

"Hrothgar and Freyr returned to the hall and quenched their thirst with several jugs of the finest and strongest ale. 'No, I mean it,' Hrothgar said, 'I could easily fuck and satisfy twenty women in an hour.' 'In an hour,' laughed Freyr, 'no I don't believe that's possible.' 'Do you doubt my prowess,' Hrothgar challenged angrily, 'do you want to put a wager on it?' Freyr took up the challenge. The forfeit they agreed on was that the loser would have to muck out Goddess Freyja's stables."