Iron Heart

Chapter 1

His thick skin and cold features were covered in blood as he slit his father's throat. It wasn't the first time he had tried to kill him, but still he could not hide the pain in his eyes. As much as the tall and well build men tried, he could not hide his pain filled eyes. Standing right next to him you could see a single tear running down his cheek. And this tear would land on his father's corps and remimd him of the person he had killef. He did not regret killing his father. It was eliminating another thread to his family and name.

The man's hair was dark, almost black and braided down to his shoulders. His glowing and pale skin was covered in blood and mud, and you could see the scars beneath it . The man's name was Baldur. And he had just killed his father.

Baldur's wife was standing next to him, she had seen the battle between the two forces amd she had seen the pain in her husband's eyes. But Inga did not say a word, and she did not look away. Inga was not a weak woman and she felt no desire to turn around, she would support her husband, even if it was just through watching him take another man's life.

Baldur felt his wife's comfort, he turned around and gave her a small smile. Then he grabbed the feet of the corps laying in front of him and dragged his father's body out of the door.

Many corpses were laying on the ground right in front of the great hall, many people had died. But Baldur did only care for those who fought for him, not those dying for his father.

His father's body was still warm, the blood in his veins had not come to a stopp and keept streaming out the deep cuts and wounds, as he let him down besides the other piled up body's.

As he let the pile on fire he shed no tear, the pain was there and it was very real but is was not important.

Baldur was the leader of one of many clans and he knew all the responsibilities that come with it, he grew up as the son of a leader but as a child he ran away and just now it was that he returned and killed his old friends and family.

The men was not sure if they had realized who he was but he made sure that his father knew , that's why he did not kill him in battle. He had him surrender in his own house to tell him who he was and to kill him after. Baldur would remember this moment for his lifetime. The blade crushing rips and cutting through his soft heart. He would remember how the knifes handle moved just a little bit under the last beat of the heart its blade stuck in.

Sometimes he would remember it with a smile on his face and others with tears in his bright green eyes. But with the death of his own father Baldurs story would only begin.

***

He layed his arm tight around his wife before Baldur kissed her on the forehead and left the bed. Baldur never unbraided his hair so it was messy and let him appear mad. But madness would also gain him respect. As the leader of his clan he needed that respect, he could fight and he could lead but he needed his people to do so.

He stepped outside his cabin and was greeted by many. But there where some he trusted more than others and he loved to surround himself by exact those so every morning he and his trusted ones met in the great hall, most of the time to tall about business but sometimes only to be surrounded by one another.

They were all tall and strong and they believed that nothing could stop them, at least nothing natural. And over years the gods had been with them and their faith in themselves as much in the gods had been rewarded.

This day there were great news, one of hia trusted ones will soon have a child. But even though this were great news Baldur did not like to hear about it very much, because he had no child.
He had a good life and he did not dare to lay it upon the gods that they wouldn't give him a child so no one evee talked about it. It was true that he had bastard sons and everyone knew but no one talked about it either, because Baldur was very much in love with his wife and would not risk anything to lose her.

There were other things outstanding but lately Baldur had no answers to his people's questions.
They needed new farmland to keep feeding their children and they heard about a King who conquered far away lands and killed other kings. His people were afraid as much as curious.

He had plans in mind but was not ready to share them yet. Not even with his trusted ones. Because it would mean big change in all of their lifed. And it could mean to leave everything behind the gods had given them without wanting anything in return. But what the gods had given his people would not be enough for much longer and they had to find somewhere else before that happened.

Baldur folded his hands in front of his head and digged his face into it.

"We will have to leave our homes soon. Please tell me what to do my friends." Baldur now looked up into the faces of the nine men sitting on the table, looking straight back at him with worried faces.

"We shall see where the gods take us and settle somewhere between here and ths sun." A brown haired man said after looking down on his scared hands. His hair falling into his face made it impossible for others to see if he would be rather happy or not about that.

Another one said that there was an abandoned farm that they could build other houses around only hours away.

And a blonde short haired men with soft skin said they should try to get out of this land. Somewhere far away, just as this other king they all heared about.

But Baldur was not too happy about all this advises, he was not a man of adventures blood and he did not have the guts to be responsible for all of his people in a new land that could bring new threads with it. He only wanted his people to be save.

"I might have a plan and I will tell you the second I know if the gods approve. And now go and make your wifes happy for the rest of the day." Baldur smirked, he might not be a humerus men compared to others but it was because of his wisdom and experiences that he could not laugh as much as others.

He had an abusive father that had beaten his wife to death, Baldur was the only witness and who would believe a child over the own Earl. With only eleven years old he had lost his mother anf ran away to live years alone from place to place. When he first came into the village he is the Earl off now, he only presented himself as a wanderer and he would have stayed that if he wouldn't have met Inga. Inga was not like the others. She did not let anyone look down at her. But she wasn't the Earl's daughter. She was only a girl that was growing up to be a wonderful woman and that is what Baldur saw in her. So he stayed and defended the place he called home. Many people had tried to take over the village up in the mountains. But since Baldur was a there no one made it. The mountain village was previous and beutiful at day and night. And they grew things that others couldn't, but shelter and food got rarer over the time. People had left already because they couldn't see their Earl finding a solution.

But Baldur had a plan. And he would soon share it with the people he watched over. His plan was to take his home village and to bring it under his control, he remembered the crops growing and the lakes breath filling the days.
He knew that he could do it but he still was afraid. Afraid that the one thing he loved most would not share his optimism.