In the shadows of history, beyond the reach of mortal eyes, the Immortals have waged their secret wars, bound by the sacred code: *There can be only one*. "Eternal Duel: Untold Chronicles of the Immortals" brings to light the hitherto unseen sagas o...
The longship's prow cut through the frigid waters, saltspray stinging Eira's eyes as she gazed out at the endless expanse of gray sea and sky. How many voyages had it been? Hundreds? Thousands? The passage of time had long ago lost meaning for the immortal shieldmaiden. Only the Quickening reminded her she still lived, that ceaseless Force pulsing within her, craving the essence of her immortal kin.
She turned from the waves, her gaze sweeping over the crew of men rowing steadily, their muscles straining against the oars. So many had come and gone over the long centuries, mortals swept away like leaves in the autumn wind, while she remained.
"How much farther to Vinland?" Eira asked.
The navigator, hunched over his charts, looked up. "We follow the stars west. If the sagas tell it true, the green shores should appear within a fortnight."
Eira nodded and returned to her place at the prow, the wind whipping her long hair. She knew the tales - a land of boundless forests and rivers teeming with fish, of mild winters and a people who had never seen Norsemen.
But it was the whispers of other immortals there, living in peace, that had captured Eira's imagination, haunted her thoughts. Was such a thing possible? To live without the endless Game, the ceaseless deadly dance of swords and Quickenings?
She had to know. And so she had gathered supplies, hand-picked a crew, and set out across the whale-road, chasing a distant dream. Chasing hope.
The days blurred one into the next under gray skies, until one dawn a shout went up. "Land! Land to the west!"
Eira rushed to the side, her heart racing. At first she saw only sea and sky. Then a smudge appeared on the horizon, resolving into a forested coastline and soaring mountains beyond. Vinland.
They made landfall that evening, the men leaping out into the surf to pull the longship ashore. The air was crisp and clean, scented with evergreens. Eira planted her boots in the sand and drew a deep breath, wondering what this new world would bring.
Over the next days they made camp and scouted the area, always with weapons close at hand. Though the coast seemed deserted, they all knew unknown dangers could lurk in the wild.
It was on the third day that Eira first sensed them - immortals, several of them, their Quickening like a distant hum just beyond hearing. She was sitting by the fire that night when the sentries gave a shout.
"Someone's coming! Natives!"
Eira leaped to her feet, hand flying to her sword hilt. Figures emerged from the darkness beyond the firelight - a dozen fur-clad men and women, their faces painted with ochre and ash.
She felt their immortality like a physical force as they drew near. The tallest, a stern-faced man with black hair, held up a hand.
"I am Achak, of the Haudenosaunee people. We come in peace."
