The Continent

Chapter 3: Aspasia

Of all the things that could have gone wrong, she didn't expect the wolf. She had been told stories as a girl of a giant wolf that wore moss for fur and had the taste for human flesh, but she never believed them for they were just old myth; old legend. But something told her that was not the wolf from the stories.

" We are nearly there," said the tallest of the two giants with whom she traveled. " It's just up ahead now." Yarlund said again looking back at her, he was the oldest of the two, she admired the old giant and the way he moved about the woods almost as if he were part of them. Aspasia smiled but she was nervous she hadn't ever met giants before, Yarlund was nice enough but the one named Goric he seemed crude and reserved, untrusting of outsiders. Though he had let her cast her magic upon him, she still felt as though he did not trust her and she pondered on what had made him this way. "Strange that ones so strong should fear the outside world." she thought to herself as she followed behind the one named Goric. She began to slow down and let the giants gain some distance from her, she turned to her men Erold and Jeorn and spoke.

" I'm beginning to think you two have lost your tongues' ' she smirked and looked them both over. They laughed and spoke for the first time since she and them had left drafnir earlier this morning. Erold was the first to speak his voice soft and feminine like Aspasia's should've been. After all, she was the one born of royal blood.

" Oh well, I suppose we have been rather quiet." he smirked before nugging jeorn, Jeorn was the larger of the two and often protected erold from the harassment of the other men, and his tone was gruff and deeper than Erolds soft voice.

" Yes,we have been," said Jeorn, "but we are following two giants and that to me is enough to be cautious." Aspasia looked at them and she remembered the manys days they had spent as children running around her fathers keep and causing whatever mischief they found, their grand adventures in the woods that surrounded the city of skalvik. It made her homesick thinking of it but atleast with erold and jeorn she had a piece of home with her and that comforted her to know that though she was far from home she still had her friends.

" Do you two remember the woods back home?" she said to them as they followed behind the giants. Erold chuckled and looked up to the tops of the trees before speaking.

" oh yes.." he said, his soft voice seeming to crack a little"such wonderful times- " before he could finish jeorn cut him off.

" these woods do not remind me of home." jeorn said, Aspasia rolled her eyes and put her arm on Jeorn's shoulder.

" You know.." said aspasa to jeorn" you used to be cooler." she took her arm off jeorn and gave him the grin of a small child who's just taken the last cooking. Jeorn just smiled and shook his head. As Aspasia looked forward towards Yarlund and Goric they stopped atop the valley and looked back at her,erold, and jeorn. Goric turned and disappeared over the ridge but Yarlund stood and spoke to the three who had fallen behind farther than Aspasia thought they had.

" It's just over the ridge,'said Yarlund.'' They will take your weapons when we approach, Goric has gone ahead to warn the elders of your arrival." The nervousness was tenfold now, her stomach churned with every step closer she got. She tried to prepare herself for this but she never really gave it much thought before now. The first outsiders brought to the village; she felt it was an honor, but feared the welcome.

As they came to the top of the ridge, below them was the village, large stone homes were lined along its perimeter in the center, a large longhouse made of stone and canvas stretched for fifty yards from center to side, long vines wrapped around them and she could see the flowers that bloomed from them, Aspasia gasped as she saw it, turning to Yarlund with wonder.