Tove | A Viking Tale

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I round back to the longhouse, finding the men and women inside sleeping with their heads on the tables, some close to the hearth fire that still rages in the center of the hall.

"Frid?" A familiar voice calls to me. I drop my black wool hood and meet eyes with the fisherman who offered me the apprenticeship.

"Arnulf, hello," I greet him and tuck the bow further up my shoulder and fan the back of the cloak to be sure it's fully hidden.

"Come, a drink, the night is not yet over," He coaxes me with a wave of his arm as he plops loudly onto the bench and grabs his cup, spilling the contents as he staggers forcefully into the table.

I give a tempted look to the closed door near the far end of the longhouse where The Oathbreaker sleeps, but decide to entertain the man who gave me the job that allowed me to stay here for two months.

I join him on the bench and find a cup filled with piss-warm ale then pretend to sip from it, letting the warm liquid warm my chapped and still frozen lips.

"I wanted to congratulate you for the seal you caught and slaughtered earlier today," He says, tipping back his cup, nearly falling all the way off the bench. He catches the table and positions himself back upright.

"Mmm," I nod watching him from the corner of my eye whilst feigning another sip.

"It seems I should be the apprentice and you be the master fisherman, does it not?" He chuckles and wobbles, bumping into my shoulder.

A growl builds within my throat and I fail to control my eyes from rolling, "I assure you, Arnulf, It is I who has much to learn from you."

He bellows a laugh and I flex my muscles scanning the area for anyone to poke their heads from where they sleep, but they remain dead-still.

"In the way of fishing, no, I don't believe that to be true, Frid," His voice deepens.

The hairs on the back of my neck stand and the pit in my stomach grows, alerting me to the mechanism inside I've learned all females are born with.

Arnulf's wrinkled and calloused hand finds my thigh beneath the cloak and gives it a squeeze, "But in the way of being a man and a woman sharing a bed, I have much I can teach you."

My nose wrinkles in repulsion, but I allow him to keep his hand.

He'd shown kindness to me. He gave me a place to work and a place to sleep. Granted, I could have found my way without his help. But because of him and his kindness I was able to pull this plan off within two months, much quicker than I had originally planned.

"My wife died many winters ago and I know you have no dowry to speak of but-."

"Are you truly wagering a marriage, Arnulf?" My laugh escapes my lips but then I'm silenced when I hear boots behind me. With a glance over my shoulder, I see a guard dressed in furs warming his hands with his breath heading for the hearth fire.

I need to hurry this along.

"You are young-"

"Yes, very. In comparison to you." I interject and snap my eyes down to his hand where it travels further up my thigh towards my crotch.

"I never had a child," He continues, unaware that I've insulted him. Arnulf dips his hand between my legs and a snarl tugs at my lips.

"Remove your hand, or I shall remove it for you," I speak low as to not drag any attention from the guard standing at the fire.

"Have you ever been touched before, Frid?" Arnulf's breath is foul and heats my face, while his heavy-lidded blue eyes are fogged and his blonde beard bolsters bits of his last meal in it.

His hand motions in a circle and my veins heat within my body. Grabbing his wrist from between my legs I slam it firmly to the table with a growl, "I really don't wish to kill you tonight, Arnulf. But I will if I need to."

He bellows a loud laugh, and I cringe glancing at the guard who peeks over his shoulder back at us, so I join in with a boisterous laugh.

Arnulf pats my back as he continues to laugh. His laughter fades as his hand moves around my back, feeling the bow there. Arnulf goes silent, then lifts the material of my cloak spotting the longbow. His brows furrow and confusion fills his face. "Why are you armed, Frid?" His lax wrinkled features begin to tighten as he sobers from the ale, "Frid?"

I snatch a boar-knife from the table then stab it into his gut, he gasps, so I slam his head into the table and rest my own beside him, watching his eyes mist and his gaped mouth tremble. "My name isn't Frid, Fifl(fool)." He whimpers silently, his eyes petrified as I lay my head closer to his, his breath pittering on my face, "My name is Tove, daughter of Ubbe." Before I finish his eyes widen and he chokes out his last breath with fear striking his face.

I lay there, to be sure the guard isn't suspicious, then retract the knife from Arnulf's stomach, feeling my hand and fingers coated with warm liquid, then lift my eyes to peer over at the guard still facing the fire.

I leave the table gripping the boar-knife and creep over, avoiding the sleeping bodies on the floor. When I reach the guard, I slap my blood-covered hand over his mouth then bring the knife down into the muscle between his neck and shoulder, thrusting the knife over and over and over. I keep stabbing as his body buckles and he falls to the ground.

Using his thick furs I cover the bloody evidence of his death and take his hand-axe as my own, then stand from my knee.

Prepare yourself, Oathbreaker, the Nornir are nearing the end of your thread.

I reach the door separating me from my fate, and remove the bow from my back, and ready the arrow shelf, then open the door with the arrow aimed.

Within my sight I find Ivan's woman sitting on the bed holding their son, Tafur, to her bare breast.

Her head snaps up and she gasps loudly. A mountain beneath a pile of furs twists around from the bed and sits up pinning me with his single eye and a snarl pulled at his lips. I kick the door shut with my foot and walk into the room, my bow drawn and centered between Ivan's eyes.

I'm purposefully keeping the chapters short. Let me know if you like them this length? I wanted the initial chapters short and choppy. Once the "prologue" is done, the chapters will be longer.

Obviously, this story is gory. It'll be like this the entire time. So, yeah, if you don't like it don't read it.