16. Magnar

1000 YEARS AGO

The ship swayed gently as we gained some respite from the journey and both Elissa and Valentina got some rest. We had members of the Clan of Storms and Clan of Oceans on each of the ships in our fleet but as the strongest of their kinds, the two of them travelled with me. When they wielded their powers, the vessel moved so quickly that it had been enough to turn many warriors’ stomachs, and more than one had given their meals up to the sea.

Their skills had made for a quick and safe crossing as Elissa gave us a strong current beneath the keel and Valentina drew the wind to our sails.

Idun had lit a glimmering golden star in the sky at the edge of the horizon so we could keep our aim true night after night. I eyed it with my arms folded as I lost myself in memories of my father. Sometimes it seemed that the closer I got to paying the debt for his life, the further I felt from him.

I was losing the shape of him in my mind. Had we stood eye to eye or was I taller than him in the end? Had his laugh been as deep as I thought I recalled, or was it softer than that? Were his eyes the colour of his blade or the same shade as the depths of a fire?

No matter what happened, when we finally tracked down the Revenants, I would never get that back. They had stolen him from me, from all of my family. And there was no amount of blood that could pay for his return.

“What are you thinking about?” my mother asked softly, placing a hand on my arm and pulling me back to the here and now.

“Just that in the end, all men die. All are lost and forgotten to time...or at least they should be.” My frown deepened at the thought of our immortal enemies, and I scowled at the calm water surrounding us.

“We may forget some of the details,” she replied. “But those we love will always live on in our hearts.”

“But what about once we are gone too? Who will remember him when no one remembers us?” I asked, allowing myself that vulnerability with her because she of all people must have understood what I felt too.

“It is enough to know that we loved him. His life was full and happy because of us. And we will be reunited with him in Valhalla.”

I nodded vaguely. The hall of the gods didn’t hold as much desire for me as it once had. Idun was cruel and cunning despite claiming to love us as her people. And what of Andvari? He had created the creatures responsible for my father’s demise. Would the afterlife truly be great if I had their company to look forward to?

“Land!” Aelfric cried from his position up on the mast. “Land, Earl Magnar! We’ve made it!”

I squinted at the horizon as my blood hummed with anticipation.

“Wake Elissa so that she can hasten us to shore,” I said and my mother squeezed my arm before hurrying below deck to locate the Ocean Stirrer.

I moved to grip the railing as I peered towards the horizon and a dark smudge came into focus. He was right; we’d damn well made it.

I strode away from the glorious sight of land and headed to my quarters to collect my swords and fighting leathers. If luck stayed with me, I’d be bathing my blades in Revenant blood within the day.

I hurried into my room and quickly changed. As I pulled Venom into my grasp, it sang with knowledge of my enemies. I hadn’t felt the presence of the parasites through my blades in three long years and the weapons were hungry for blood.

The ship suddenly shot forward as Elissa commanded the waves to propel us onward, and I almost tumbled onto my bed, catching myself at the last moment with a bark of laughter.

I strapped my scabbards across my back and placed my blades into them before hurrying back up to the deck.

The sun had begun its ascent into the sky and I smiled as the view ahead of us was revealed more clearly.

The smudge on the horizon had grown into a sprawling landscape thick with tall trees and a pristine sandy beach which called us towards it.

“By the gods, I am looking forward to setting my feet on dry land again,” Julius exclaimed as he moved to my side.

“And eating a meal made with fresh ingredients,” I replied.

The stores we’d brought with us were growing stale and though we hadn’t gone hungry, my stomach ached for some fresh fruit and vegetables.

“We’ll take this land for our own once we’ve destroyed our enemies,” Valentina said as she joined us too. Wind filled the sails and our speed increased further as she raised a hand to direct it. “Our children will grow up enjoying the wealth of this country.”

I grunted in a non-committal way and Julius smirked at me. She always knew how to sour the best of days.

“Perhaps you should focus your mind on the wind instead of eyeing up my brother’s potential parenting skills. Though if his horse is anything to go by, then he may bring his children up to be a bunch of savages, so you might be better not to marry him at all,” Julius said.

He always tried to give Valentina reasons to doubt my suitability as a husband, but she never took any notice of him. I appreciated his continued efforts all the same.

“I can be pretty savage myself when I have to be,” she replied dismissively.

The boat sped towards the coast and the wind Valentina had conjured picked up as if she were proving a point.

My blades grew warmer on my back as we closed in on the Revenants. I was sure they were more than just somewhere on this land; they were within close range.

I walked away from Valentina and climbed up onto the rigging as we drew close to the shore. The sun rose higher as our destination became clearer and I drank in the sight hungrily.

When we finally made it as close to land as the ship could manage, Elissa used her power over the waves to bring us to a halt and the wind blustered away as if it had never been.

Cries went up as the anchor was dropped and everyone prepared to disembark.

I gazed down into the crystal blue sea and leaned forward to watch as a giant turtle swam alongside our ship before diving beneath it. The rising sun shone down on us and I could already feel its warmth reaching out to me, like it too was glad to have us here, an enemy of our enemies.

This land seemed like it had been made for the people of the sun and I found myself glad to be here. My vow had driven me to cross the sea and I’d never really considered whether I could be happy leaving my homeland behind, but something about this place seemed right. Like I was destined to be here.

I glanced back over my shoulder and noticed Valentina weaving her way towards me once more. My lightened mood was a fragile thing and I wished to hold onto it for as long as possible.

“Mother?” I called, spotting her directing the clansmen at the front of the ship.

She turned to me with a faint smile and I couldn’t help but be reminded of the radiance which had been absent since Father’s passing. She’d lost something of herself when he’d been taken from us, and it saddened me to know she’d never smile like she used to.

“Running off again?” she guessed, and I couldn’t help but smirk. She was so much better at the day to day running of the Clans than I was anyway. I was built to lead our people into battle, not organise the layout of our tents.

“Scouting the area,” I explained, though we both knew it was a job I could have easily designated to someone else.

“We’ll look forward to your return around nightfall no doubt,” she replied teasingly.

“No doubt,” I agreed before diving off of the boat into the pristine water.

The tang of salt met my lips and I opened my eyes to gaze at the shimmering light beneath the waves. Schools of small fish darted around me, drawn close by the glimmer of my blades then frightened off again by my movements.

I powered through the water towards the beach and walked up the golden sand, feeling the solid ground beneath my feet with glee.

I quickly crossed the beach and pulled my swords from my back as I entered the swaying palm trees. Everything was a much more vivid green than I was used to from my homeland, and the smell of the flora was sharper too.

I drank in all the details with joy as I began to discover this new place and its secrets.

Blood thieves are close, Tempestgrowled through my mind, and I stilled.

Murderers near, Venom agreed.

The Revenants were closer than I’d dared to hope.

My blades urged me on and I chanced a look over my shoulder towards our fleet. It would have been sensible to head back and gather my people before hunting them down. But if they caught on to us approaching, they might just run again. And a single man would be much harder to detect. Besides, I’d never been one for sensible.

A fierce smile captured my features as I pressed on into the jungle. Perhaps this was the day that I paid the debt I owed my father and ended them for good. The Revenants were about to find out just how far my wrath would take me.