Aratheon - The Damaged Soul Pt. 01

"There could be a bear in there, or worse. What if there was a giant in there? Didn't you hear about the giants who live in the clan in these mountains? They say they're as tall as trees and they come from Jotunheim to the lands north of the Dead Sea," Arngunn says as she brushes her messy blonde hair out of her face.

"I'll believe it when I see it," Griotgard says as he puffs out his chest. "I bet they're lying. No way someone can be that tall."

"If there was a bear in there, it'd probably smell us already and come out," Skardi says as he obsessively looks at a rock he found. His dark brown hair is always in a mess, sticking out like spikes. "Everyone knows bears have great noses. They smell everything."

"Screw it. I'm going in," Thorkel says.

"Wait!" Asfrid and I say at the same time.

He doesn't listen and walks in without hesitating. He disappears into the darkness. We all stand there, shifting uncomfortably, trading nervous glances as we wait for him to run back. Instead, we hear a gasp echo out.

"Thorkel! Are you okay?" I ask as I take a step forward.

"You guys won't believe this. You have to see it for yourself. Come in here!" His voice echoes out and we all look at each other. Finally, Skardi pockets the rock and heads inside. Reluctantly, everyone heads in one at a time until I'm standing there by myself. I look around, take a deep breath, and head in after them.

At first, I'm blinded by darkness and panic. I feel my way around, tripping over rocks and getting a face full of dirt. My knees scrape against the hard surface. I crawl and pick myself up off the ground and dust off the dirt. The wet, mossy scent fills my nose. Slowly, as my eyes adjust to the darkness, I follow the cave as the path veers to the right. A gasp escapes my lips as light appears in the distance.

I follow it until I'm led into a large, long cavern filled with those glowing rocks and mushrooms Aldam mentioned. They light up the water, which has a misty loom to it. Skardi picks a mushroom and sniffs it. He sticks his tongue out and licks it.

"You're seriously not going to eat that, are you?" Asfrid asks, her face contorting into disgust.

Skardi shrugs and bites into it.

"Eww gross! That could be poisonous. If you die, I'm telling everyone it was your own fault." Asfrid crosses her arms against her chest and sticks her nose up away from him.

"It doesn't taste half bad," Skardi says as he stuffs the whole mushroom into his mouth.

"Aldam, the dwarf said it's not poisonous. It just turns your skin dark among other things," I say.

I hear a crash and turn to find Solmund laying on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Arngunn asks as she crouches down to look at Solmund.

"I was trying to take one of these glowing rocks back to our town. They won't believe us otherwise," he says as he dusts himself off and tries again. "But... they're... too... heavy..."

He finally relents and gives up. "I can't lift even this small one."

"Aldam said they were too heavy. He said only experts mine those," I say.

"Where's Thorkel?" Asfrid asks. We all look around and Griotgard spots him all the way at the end of the cavern, staring at something. As we walk up to him, it becomes clear what he's looking at.

"What a strange thing to find in a cave," Skardi says.

"Who do you think left it here?" Asfrid asks. Everyone shrugs.

"I don't care. It's mine now," Thorkel says as he steps up to one of the biggest hammers I've ever seen. It's no ordinary hammer. It's taller than Arngunn, which may not seem like much since she's the shortest one here, but it's saying a lot for a hammer. Of course, I'm not much taller than Arni. My father is tall, and I want to be taller than him and Thorkel. It's made out of a metal I've never seen before. A dark crimson metal with a golden trim around it. The handle is all gold. For some reason, I keep imagining wielding a hammer like this. It's hard to push the thought out of my head.

"With this hammer, I'll be the strongest warrior there is and no one will be able to defeat me. I'll be able to kill all of those Southerners." Thorkel steps up and wraps his hands around the long golden hilt. A loud grunt comes out of his mouth as he tries to lift the hammer. The thing doesn't even budge. He tries to change up his stance and his grip. He heaves and pulls, but the hammer doesn't move a finger's length. No matter how hard he tries, he can't move the hammer even a sliver.

Griotgard steps up. "Let me try. I'm stronger. I want to be the strongest warrior and kill as many Southerners as I can."

Thorkel steps aside and glares at Griotgard. However, Griotgard can't get it to move any more than Thorkel could.

"If neither of them can move it, then none of us can," I say.

"There's some kind of writing on it," Skardi says as he walks up to get a better look at it.

"What does it say?" Asfrid asks.

"How would I know? I can't read," Skardi says.

"Move aside, I can read," she says as she pushes past Skardi. She leans down to get a better look, but her face contorts in confusion. "I have never seen runes like these before. If you can call them that. I have no idea what it is."

"Maybe we should go," Arngunn says as she steps closer to me, looking around unsteadily.

"Oooh, don't be a frightened little cat, Arni," Griotgard says as he tries to imitate her voice.

"Don't say that to her," I say as I step up to him.

"And what are you going to do about it?" Griotgard asks as steps up to me.

"Be careful, Griotgard. I consider you a close friend, but Bothvar is my brother," Thorkel says nonchalantly as if he doesn't have a care in the world.

"She's right, though. What if the person who put the hammer there comes back for it? Do you honestly think someone would just leave a hammer like that here in a place like this? And whoever left it there must be strong. Do you think any of us would be able to fight him?" Skardi asks, then he snaps around and stares into the wall of the cavern. "Did you hear that?"

Everyone looks around quickly. Skardi walks up to the wall and pushes his ear up to it. Then he giggles.

"Maybe you shouldn't have eaten those mushrooms," Asfrid says, shaking her head.

Skardi just laughs at her and starts picking more of those strange, glowing mushrooms. "No way. I feel fantastic right now. They make me... happy."

"Well, I'm done here anyway. I'm hungry. Let's go back and see if we can sneak into Thyri's and find anything to eat. I wouldn't mind some fresh baked bread, especially with that tazzle berry jam she makes," Thorkel says. That is one of many things Thorkel and I have in common, a love for anything with tazzle berries, especially pie. The fruit is rare; a delicacy only found in the land of the dwarves. Same with tingle fruit, which I've been told only grows in the blue-eyed elven land. Or maybe it was the green eyes. I can't remember. If it weren't for their eyes, I wouldn't be able to tell one from the other. But either way, those two fruits are my favorite. While tazzle berries are nice and sweet and tingle fruit is rather tart, they both fizzle in your mouth. Tingle fruit makes for the best wine while tazzle berries make for an amazing pie.

Arngunn grabs my hand and I follow her out.

We make our way down the mountain before we realize Skardi isn't with us. With groans, we turn back and find him picking at rocks and sniffing them. Thorkel grabs him and practically drags him back.

"Did you see that?" Skardi asks as we finally get back to the town walls. "It was in the water. I swear I saw something out there."

We all look out onto the water, but nothing is there.

"Probably those mushrooms," Asfrid says.

"What are you lot doing outside the walls?"

We stop dead as we turn to find Gorm Thorgilsson, a tall skinny boy, with his younger brother Moldof and their friends, Hring, Geitirgest, Sigmund, Ulfjot, and Gunnstein, waiting at the side gate.

"Nothing you need to worry your little head about, Grom," Thorkel says, purposely butchering his name.

"It's Gorm! You may be the Earl's son, but that doesn't mean you're better than me. Besides, your father's days as Earl might be numbered the way he led us to defeat under the dead king."

Arngunn's hand grips mine as she steps up close to me. I step up between them and her, but I'm more than afraid. They far outnumber us. And Gunnstein and Ulfjot are the biggest boys in the village. Thorkel forms a fist and steps up to Gorm. "Better watch your tongue and keep my father's name off it or I'll cut it out."

Gorm's friends step up between him and Thorkel. He only grins. "I'd like to see you try."

"Oh, aren't you a brave warrior, hiding behind your friends," Asfrid says.

"Watch your tongue, you stupid nissy twat!" Gorm shouts.

"Don't talk to her like that!" Thorkel shouts as he charges them, slamming his fist against Hring, sending him to the ground. Gunnstein and Ulfjot tackle him. Solmund and Griotgard hurl themselves at them.

Griotgard kicks Ulfjot right in the mouth, knocking teeth out. "Get off my best friend!"

Skardi stands there laughing hysterically. I just stand there frozen with Arngunn's hand in my trembling fingers as my brother and our friends' fight. Even Asfrid runs in kicking and screaming.

"What's going on here?" Everyone stops what they're doing as they look up to find our mother, Thorkatla, with our aunt, Sigvor, the wise one, along with several guards. My mom practically tugs at her long black hair. That's when you know she's really mad. Her eyes are as sharp as daggers. Her tall, thin frame towers over us. Our Aunt Sigvor is a lot like her in appearance, with the same beautiful, agile face, but with an auburn tinge to her hair. What they share in appearance is offset by how different their personalities are. Where my mother is hot-tempered, her sister is calm. I suppose their other sister, Ingithora, splits the difference, sharing their physical looks, but a personality just as hot as it is cold.

"Nothing. We were just having a little fun, that's all," my brother says as he pushes himself off Gunnstein, giving him a good kick as he gets up.

Ulfjot tries to push him, but one of the guards steps in. "That's enough!"

Reluctantly, everyone breaks apart. Our mother steps up. "Now all of you go home before I tan your hide. All of you except you two."

She points at Thorkel and me. We both look at each other as the others make their way into town. Both Asfrid and Arngunn look back at us before they head beyond the gate. Mother steps up and growls at us. "What in the name of all the gods were you two doing outside the walls?"

"We were just..." Thorkel goes to say, but mother doesn't give him a chance.

"Do you not understand that the Southerners could attack us at any time?" Her glare is colder than a winter freeze.

"But mot..."

"But nothing. You'll be lucky I don't hang you up by your ankles. Maybe then you'll have enough blood in your head to think properly."

Thorkel goes pure white. Both of us know not to tempt our mother. Her wrath can be far harsher than father's.

Her icy glare turns on me. "I expected this out of Thorkel, but with you I thought better."

My eyes fall to the ground. Her disappointment hurts worse than any punishment. "I'm sorry, mother."

"You should be. Now both of you, come. You both will have enough work to do to keep you busy and out of trouble for the next few cycles of the seasons."

We reluctantly follow our mother and aunt into town. As we get to our house, Thormar's waiting with Svala, Bothvar, and the slaves. He snickers at us. Thorkel brings his thumb to his throat, making a slicing motion. Thormar's face goes white as snow.

"I saw that!" Mother snaps and the color in Thorkel's drains, matching Thormar's. I can't help but feel ashamed of myself. Not only did we anger our mother, but I have proven that I am a coward. What kind of Viking doesn't fight to protect his father's honor and have his brother's back? Even Thormar would have fought. But I stayed back and watched. What is wrong with me?

Chapter: 2

Eyes that burn with hate. Scales thicker than armor. Sharp fangs that drip with venom. The serpent rises from the sea, reaching the clouds, hungry for blood. The maw opens up into an endless black hole as it plunges to engulf the world. I shoot up from my bed, drenched in sweat. It was only just a dream. Just a dream.

We spend many days doing slave work when we're not honing our fighting skills and practicing the crafts because of the trouble we got in when mother caught us fighting with Grom. Mother forces us to do the lowest of lowest slave work. Shoveling the shit of our barn animals. This is for the worst slaves to do, not the children of the Earl. It's humiliating. Especially because Thormar loves to watch and tell us it's our own fault. Of course, Thorkel takes great pleasure in tossing shit at Thormar. He hit him square in the face, making him run off crying to mother. And that earned us both an ass spanking with a switch. We had to chop and stack the wood while the slaves get to do the easy work.

When the slave boy named Morcar, who's our age, comes walking by, Thorkel trips him. "Where ya going, weasel? You should be doing this work, not us. Stupid slave."

"I'm sure your mother will not appreciate you two preventing me from doing a task she sent for me," Morcar says, as he struggles under Thorkel.

Thorkel grabs a chunk of dirt and smothers it in his face. "Tell our mother anything and you'll regret it, weasel. Trust me."

Thorkel gets off of him and kicks him in the rear as he gets up, causing him to trip and fall right into the hay full of horseshit. He quickly scurries off in tears.

"Why do you treat him so?" I ask.

"Because he's a filthy weasel. I don't trust him. He's all honey to our mother but treats the others slaves like rats unless he wants something from them. Keep an eye on him or he'll stab you in the back. Besides, he told mother on me when I snuck into the kitchens and ate the pudding," Thorkel says. Thorkel has never taken kindly to tattle tales, and he hates people who are friendly to those who have power over them but arsefaces to others. We call them two faced weasels.

"Hey, guys," Gudrod says as he skips in through the barn doors.

"Hey, Gudrod, we're busy. Mother has us doing slave work for fighting with Grom," Thorkel says. Gudrod is an orphan youngling that lives with great uncle Alvi. He follows us around like a lost pup. He's a good kid, but a bit annoying at times. But he stokes our egos. He thinks we're both gods reborn or something. I'll admit it feels good to have someone who looks up to you.

"Need some help?" he asks.

"Now that you ask, we could use some help," Thorkel says with a grin. "We have to shovel out all the shit from pens. Want to give us a hand?"

"Sure! I'd love to," he says as he grabs a spade and gets shoveling. The boy will do anything Thorkel or I ask. He's so... naive.

"Say, Gudrod, could you do us a huge favor?" Thorkel asks, wrapping his arm around the boy's shoulder.

"Sure, anything for you two," Gudrod says.

"Well, you see, we're supposed to meet up with Asfrid and Arngunn, but we can't leave until we get all this shit shoveled out. If you could maybe fill in for us, we'd greatly appreciate it."

"Okay, sure..." he says, his original excitement waning.

"I promise, Gudrod. We'll make it worth your while. I'll show you a super-secret, super effective sword form father taught me. You have to keep it a secret because father doesn't want anyone to know about it," Thorkel says, causing Gudrod's eyes to light up.

"Really?" Gudrod asks, practically drooling at the mouth.

"Yes, but don't tell anyone we had you help us or my mother will be very mad at all three of us," he says.

"Don't worry, Thorkel. You can count on me," he says with a wink.

"I knew I could. You're the best, Gudrod. And if that weasel Morcar pops his head in here, throw some shit at him, okay?" Thorkel says.

Gudrod claps his fist against his chest as if he was taking an order from our father. "I won't let you down."

"That's why I know I can always count on you, Gudrod," Thorkel says, earning a smile that is as wide as the boy's face.

As we sneak out, I can't help but snicker. "You are terrible, brother."

"Father always said, always use the resources at your disposal," he says with a grin.

"What secret sword form are you going to show him? How come father didn't show me this form? I don't remember him saying anything about a secret form," I say.

"Don't be a fool, Bothvar. I'll just show him any basic sword form, and he'll think it's the most secret form there is," Thorkel says.

"You are devious," I say, which earns his famous grin.

Thorkel convinces the others to sneak out again. This time, instead of going up to the mountains, we head over to the river that goes into the bay that is all blocked off from the sea but by a small passageway. We're not the only clan that has their town on the bay. The Builder Clan and the Valkyrie clan also sit on the bay. The Builders sit on our side of the river and the Valkyrie have their village across the bay on the other side.

Thorkel leads Griotgard, Solmund, Skardi, Asfrid, Arngunn, Vog, and myself as we head around the bay and down the peninsula by the Builder's town to where the river is at its thinnest point. There, the five of us boys chop down a tree next to the river and it lands clear across to the other side. All of us walk across it, but Arni falls in and I dive in after her. Of course, the water isn't very deep. I learned that as I eat a mouthful of dirt and sand as I smash into the bottom of the river. I quickly stand up, spit it out and clean my mouth out with water before Arni and I make our way to the other side, soaking wet.

"Bothvar, why would ya dive in like that? That wasn't very smart," Vog says with his stupid smile.

"I thought it was valiant. You tried to save me, didn't you?" Arni says. "Thank you, Bothvi."

I stick out my chest. "I was just making sure you were okay."

Vog laughs. "That's stupid, Bothvi."

"A hare, let's get it," Thorkel yells as he and the other boys dart after it.

"No!" Arni screams after them. "Leave the bunny alone."

The boys chase it all around while Arni and I chase after them. Arni shouts at them. "Leave it alone. Don't hurt it."

Thorkel circles around while the others chase it as it zig-zags and darts here and there. Griotgard leads it right into Thorkel, who dives and gets its hind leg before he grabs it by the ears and holds it up. "Ha, got the little shit."

"Don't hurt it. Leave it alone," Arni says as she runs up to him. "Please!"

"Come on, Thorkel. Just let it go," I say, even though I shouldn't. They're going to think I'm weak, but I can't stand seeing Arni so worried like this.

"Oh, come on, Bothvar. You're acting like Thormar. What, are you going to tell mother? She'll be pissed at all of us for being out here, but she'll welcome the hare for stew. It's just a hare," he says as the poor thing kicks and struggles in his grip.

"Just let it go!" Arni cries.

"Stop being a baby, Arni. You're always so sensitive," Asfrid says as she walks up to Thorkel. "It's just a rabbit. What do you think we eat in our stews half the time? Besides, I thought you wanted to be like Frida. Remember? She's our favorite goddess. She wouldn't hesitate to kill the hare."

"But, it's so cute," Arni says.

"We should kill it," Vog says, drawing a knife.

"Yeah, and maybe our fathers will let us come on their hunts when they get back from raiding. I heard they hunted down a bear last time," Solmund says.

Vog steps up to the rabbit, making Arni cry. I step up to Vog and Thorkel. "Don't do it."

Vog looks down at me with a grin. "And what are you going to do about it?"