Sands of Time (Hellsing•AU)

Long Lost Memory (2)

•Violence & Angst
~time skip to about 2,000 B.C.E~

Somewhere in a densely filled forest, it was the warmer part of spring. The sunlight pierced patches of the forest, between the trees. The ground smelled of warm, steaming soil and newly sprouted grass. In a small opening in the forest, wild flowers were blooming.

(in the dense trees one could have spotted an antlered Jotunn with deer legs and shining eyes. Whoops!! Wrong forest!! Jokes!!)

The warm and beautiful stillness was shattered by an unnatural, blood curdling scream. Pale hands reached out of the soil and was followed by a young, dirt covered woman. The sunshine blinded her for a moment. The woman had no memory, to even begin to understand, why she was in a shallow grave. She rose from her grave and slapped the wet earth off, as best as she could. Her hair was like pale sunlight and dark emerald green for eyes.

She was quite tall for the time period, being 6 foot. She had an hourglass figure with ample enough breasts. Her legs were long and toned. She could have passed as a Valkyrie of Norse tales. Her clothes were a worn thin blue tunic with leather buckskin pants and fur boots. She had a long stone dagger with copper on the tip as her only weapon.

(historical note: time period is the beginning of the bronze age for Scandinavia...archaeologists think the teaching of how to make bronze weapons occurred around/ little after 2,000 B.C.E for Northern Europe.)

In the distance of the forest, a pack of wolves could be heard howling. The howl told Ylva that the wolves had taken an animal down. It was most likely a reindeer. Reindeer were plentiful in the area. She quietly stealthed up to the pack and watched. The kill was fresh, as six wolves enjoyed filling their bellies.

After about a half hour, she got on her hands and knees, crept toward the reindeer while the wolves dozed. She was about ten feet, from the carcass, when the alpha male awoke. He was a large and a beautiful black coated wolf, in his prime. The male, naturally raised his hackles and bared teeth with a growl. Ylva crept forward, careful not to look the male in the eyes and rolled on her back as a sign of submission. The black wolf approached and placed its powerful jaws down on her windpipe. He only gave a tiny nip to let her know her place. He then stepped away to let her eat some of the reindeer.

Her mouth watered, when she saw that the heart and liver were still, in the carcass. With sheer delight and loud sighs, like that one makes when quite hungry and hadn't eaten for a while, Ylva enjoyed her meal.

The heart had traces of congealed blood and was a little tough to eat. The copper taste of the liver was divine and filled her senses. It was then, she realized that her body needed a food source to harvest blood. She had to have blood to live. The wolves were a perfect family that she could hunt with. When her belly was full, she curled up with her new family, the wolf pack.

They smelled of warm fur and grass.

Ylva was with the pack, her family, for only two years. The third year had been a hard winter and the wolves took to killing reindeer, in a small Scandinavian village. The young woman happened to be stealing some clothes, that were hanging out to dry, when she heard horrible cries. She darted, to the edge of the village to witness, the cruel death of her wolf family.

Several Norse men were laughing, as they chopped and hacked the bloodied bodies, to unrecognizable hunks of flesh. Rage filled her heart and Ylva charged the man, who was over the black wolf's body. She caught him by surprise and latched on to his back, the same way the blonde woman would run out and leap on the prey in the hunt. She would help bring a reindeer with the wolves. Ylva managed to sink, a third of her blade, in the yellow haired man. He yelled in pain as the four other men tore her off their friend.

In a flurry of limbs and such, she was dazed with a blow to the head. Ylva was dragged to the Jarl, to be shown and humiliated. Upon arrival, she was tossed in front of the village leader, as he sat, upon a great carved wooden chair. Ylva noticed the irony, as the chair was carved with figures of wolves.

Another yellow hair Norseman with a full beard and braids said, "Lo my Jarl, we have caught a wild woman. She was the girl seen hunting with wolves and some thought was a spirit. What do you want done, with this sad looking and tattered creature?"

The Jarl brushed his brown, shoulder length hair out of his right eye and stroked his beard, in thought. He then stated, "If she could run with wolves and draw blood from Leif, she should be taken in by the village. She earned the right, to live with us, as long as she lives by our rules. Who knows the rules wolves live with..."

Leif growled at this speech and turned away in anger. How dare the Jarl protect that insolent girl! The Jarl cleared his throat and firmly said to Leif, "You will name her!"

Leif sighed loudly and looked at Ylva to mumble," I name you Ylva Viken."

In time it was Leif who taught her how to be Úlfhéðnar (wolf-coats). These are berserkers that often went into battle without mail and would bite their shields, before battle. Ylva saw a Wolf-Coat, hold off an army, for a few hours. The advancing army had to cross a bridge over a river. The berserker died, not from 20 arrows but an enemy forged the icy water and ran a spear up to impale the berserker before death came.

Better to fight and fall than to live without hope-Volsunga, c.12