Chapter 3: Union school

The best day in my life was when I turned seven and I could go to Union school being away from the Burg and away from my father was like breathing lighter air.

Everyone had to go to Union school. That was Union Law and it superseded local law. Union school was such a long part of our society that it too became an Old Tradition and therefore was good.

At school I learned that Nilfeheim was a Water-World and that we all originally came from a Planet named Earth and settled here long time ago.

Our teachers were Off-Worlders, persons that were not born on Nilfeheim. With Mr. Flensburger it was immediately apparent as he was a grown man and didn’t have a beard.

Solken System was only one of many Solar Systems that belonged to the United Stars of the Galaxy, usually only referred to as the Union.

Humans and Nonhuman species belonged to it and space ships traveled between a huge number of worlds and places.

One morning he told us that every Union Citizen had rights and was bound by a higher law. Higher than that of the Elders and the Traditions on Nilfeheim, laws my father broke as he killed another Union Citizen.

But that didn’t matter much. No one would call the Rangers and have my father or anyone else arrested for some local problem. I learned that Nilfeheim had local laws called the Nilfeheim exception preventing Union law enforcement to act beyond Union jurisdiction.

It was just my luck that in my class was not only Sigvard of the Elhir clan and he brought family induced hatred towards me from the first day we met, but also the brothers of the

Oseberg clan, who hated me for my Ragnarsson blood, then there were the Peerson twins Annar and Gunnar. Both egged on and perhaps even paid by Lothar to harass me all the time.There were twenty-seven Boys in our class. Girls received their training in separate classes and a seperate school.

Every morning at six thirteen, the school skimmer would arrive and pick me up and after gathering everyone for my class, drop us of at Nilfeheim Federal school 34, which sat on top of a tumble of huge boulders barley above the waves.

Unlike the old Burgs and the traditional houses in the town, the school building was of modern design with lots of large windows. All federal schools and the Med Centers were kept in excellent condition by the Union government.

From the air the school building looked like a huge silvery letter C sitting flat on top of gray boulders surrounded by the deep green churning waves of the Ocean. The inner area of the C was the school yard and also where the floaters would land. The open side was closed off by a mount of rough rocks reaching almost as high as the flat roof of the two story building.

Dietmar, the thin man who flew the school floater greeted me as usual with a toothy grin as I climbed into the floater.

“Good Morning, Eric. Take a seat at your station and arm all weapon systems! It seems the Shiss are up to no good this morning!”

“Yes Sir, arming Translocator cannons and Loki torpedoes!” I said climbing the stairs to the second deck and sitting down on the seat right above him. Of course the school floater was not armed and there were no Shiss anywhere near Nilfeheim. Dietmar just liked to greet me that way and when I was little I pretended to be a star ship captain, just like Captain Iron Hand and fought all kinds of imagined enemies. Sometimes I wished I had a plasma blaster just like that famous character and with it I could shoot father and my brothers.

Dietmar was one of those Neo Vikings who had been off world and beyond our system. He lived on other worlds for many years and had even been to Earth.

I was the third kid he picked up on his morning route and the other two were already in the final grade. Almost sixteen, ready to take the Ancient Challenge and become fully accepted men of our world. Of course they would not speak to someone who just turned twelve and made it to fourth grade and completely ignored me.

Dietmar would pick up fourteen other kids and then fly the final seven-hundred miles to our school usually close to the water surface and at top speed. I loved this part, because if I put my face real close to the front view port it was almost as if I had Freya’s feathered cloak and flew like Loki.

Nilfeheim had no birds and none of the local life forms could truly fly. (The Silver-Flicker Fish could glide some distance if it jumped above the waves, using its wide fins.) I had seen real birds however during our last Virtual school trip to Venus Zoo.

My brothers would of course not use the school-skimmer. That was for commoners and poor clans. They were flown to school by Harkun, my father’s manservant in our family floater. I had never even seen the inside of our floater. This was just one more of the demeaning things my father did to underline to everyone who he favored. It did not bother me since I much rather flew with Dietmar than with arrogant stuff and old Harkun anyway.

The school floater landed in the inner area of the big C along with other school and private floaters and everyone went inside.

Mr. Flensburger was a little late as usual. He came into the classroom dressed like a Harpooner in the middle of Long night. He wore a heavy hooded Fangsnapper fur coat, over a padded Iso-Tex Jacket and beneath the hood a heated wind mask. Underneath all that a Union Fleet Issue extreme climate suit with active heating. He was dressed like that despite the fact it was Short Summer now and he had to walk less than 1500 meters in the open. It was only two below zero on the c scale and light wind, bare chest weather my Uncle Hogun would say.

It would take him long moments to get undressed and I was certain the pile of clothing next to his desk grew just a little bigger every day. “It is exceptionally cold this morning, class,” he greeted us and twenty two Neo-Vikings responded. “Good morning Mr. Flensburger.”

I couldn’t help myself and said, “You have been on Nilfeheim now for over thirty years, Mr. Flensburger. Haven’t you gotten used to our weather by now?”

He took off his cold mask, revealing his slate ice gray eyes and his long pointed nose and looked at me, then shook his head. “Mr. Olafson, it took me all this time to get used to the barbaric customs of you Neo Vikings. I had no time to get used to the weather yet.”

That caused the class to laugh. He walked to the windows and looked over the churning waves of the ocean. “It is a beautiful planet. It has lots of cold water, teaming with an abundance of life, blue oceans and very, very long winters. I come from a planet called New Algiers. There is no open water and dusty red deserts as far as you can see.

You have winds bringing ice crystals, snow and rain. Our storms bring dust, lots of it and can pile dust and sand two meters high over night. However the temperature never drops below 40.

I tried to imagine how it would be, to live in bread oven conditions like that. I glanced at my PDD and checked GalNet about New Algiers.

Our teacher turned to face the class. “In a few years from now you graduate and perhaps some of you might actually leave this world, not that I have big hopes for that. However this is my last month. Thirty years teaching you Neo Vikings about the rest of the Universe was a challenge to say the least.”

His eyes became dreamy and he smiled. “First I am going to Para-Para and simply sit on the beach for maybe a year or so. I believe it will take at least that long for my bones to thaw.”

Leif Swenkjard sitting across the aisle from me waved his hand.”I’ve been to Para-Para actually. When my Father had to go there for an ocean produce trade show he took me along.”

Leif’s father was a Freeman living in town and if I understood it correctly he was working for an Off World Seafood Company. Leif was one of the few in class who didn’t care if I was an Olafson. The sons of clans never talked to him. Him being off planet was news to me and I listened more closely.

Mr. Flensburger encouraged him to tell us about his trip and Leif said.”They don’t even have a little snow anywhere and their largest fish is about the size of a Surface Finner. On Para-Para there are no weapons allowed no one carries even a knife. If you use your fist to make an argument stick you get in trouble and arrested. No one wears much clothing and all everyone does is smile all the time.”

Peter Langstom next to him drew the outlines of a woman into the air.”How about the girls, do they wear little?”

“You could bunch up what they wear in your fist and nothing showing.”

Peter now grinned from one ear to the other.”I think I go there for a visit too!”

“You wouldn’t like it. Because the guys don’t wear much either and you barely see any blonde tall girls with braids anywhere. Those girls can’t cook a decent meal, won’t clean up after you and want to be equal to men and sit at the same table!”

His comment caused quite a few gasps of disbelieve.

Flensburger shook his head putting his right hand before his eyes.”You are hopeless.”

Then he sat down on the edge of his desk and he stared at me.”Say, you look different today, Eric. What are you wearing on your head?”

“It is the Helmet of the Hunt; I received it this morning from the Elders.”

“I am somewhat familiar with it. I was under the impression only someone completing the Hunt the ancient way was allowed to wear one.”

Gunnar Peerson turned and gave me a hateful envious look.” Eric killed two Tyranno Fins this morning completing the ancient challenge. I can’t understand why someone like him is such a good hunter. His bother says he is the biggest coward.”

Flensburger got up and came closer.”Just consider me an ignorant Off-Worlder for now, but would you explain that to me again? I thought The hunt part of the Ancient Challenge was considered too dangerous even by your standards and no longer required.”

Gunnar answered.”In order for a Viking to be accepted as a man he must complete three tasks. Only by completing these three tasks, closely observed by the Circle of the Elder, one may sit on the table with the warriors, drink mead and wear a helmet. The three challenges are: to walk the Tunnel of Skill where your fighting skills are tested, recite the entire Poem of Odin without faltering, and to slay a wild beast. Either a Fangsnapper, a Rock Shark or a Tyranno Fin.”

His brother seamlessly added. “To slay a Tyranno Fin even in a modern Sub is no easy task, but to do it the old way by diving and using a Hand harpoon is almost suicide and because so many sons died that way this part of the Ancient Challenge is no longer required. However anyone can still do it the old way and that is the highest honor and test of skill.”

The teacher looked at me and said. “And you killed two of them this morning?” He asked visibly astounded.

“Yes Sir. I had not planned on killing two. I was stalking a young Three Halfer and when I speared it into the Mark its brother or father showed up and it was a Six Double I think, I had to kill it or it would have done so with me.”

“I heard the Eldest say it was an Eight Tri,” Ygral my friend interrupted. “And no Eight Tri has been slain like this in over 200 years. It is all over the Nilfeheim Radio.”

Flensburger shook his head once again.”You are one crazy species of humans. Going against the biggest and fastest Predator fish in the Galaxy armed with a toothpick and hope to kill it by hitting a fist size target behind their eyes.”

I made a circle with my hands. “The Mark was about that big on the Eight Tri, not fist size.” He rolled his eyes and sighed. “Right, that makes it so much easier. Now I wonder does it not make you a man even in the eyes of your family and most certainly among your class mates. Would this not fix things between your school comrades and your father?”

I lowered my head. “clan feuds are not forgotten over a hunt and my father ... I’d rather not talk about it!”

“Very well then.”He turned to the class and said, “Have you ever wondered why we have school? Why we have classes? Why we don’t simply use neural uploading for everything, like we do for language and general knowledge?”

There was silence. He pointed at Sven. “You questioned the need for schooling many times before. Would you not rather have all what you need uploaded in your brain and be done with it?” Sven shook his long red hair. “No I don’t see the need for all this off world garbage in my head in the first place. I am going to be a harpooner like my Father and my brothers and my son will be a harpooner too. I will be a very good harpooner and one day, if Odin wills it, my father will give me my own boat and I become a clan warrior when he dies. What do I need to know about the rest of the Galaxy?” Flensburger smiled a sad looking smile and said “I know you think that way. Many Neo Viking’s coming to school think that way. But you are members of the Union and you do business with the Union. What good is a harpooner without a Harpoon? Or what good is a Hunt boat that can’t sell its catch?”

Sven was still not convinced and crossed his big forearms across his barrel chest.”We make our own Harpoons and we can eat our own catch.”

Mr. Flensburger sighed. “Your skull is as dense as the ice out there. What is your harpoon made off? What do you use to propel your boats and hunting subs?”

Sven was not so sure about himself anymore and his voice changed as he answered: “Harpoons are made of Ultronit, and we use Zero point cubes to power the boats.”

I could see Sven was suddenly thinking. We all knew Sven wasn’t the sharpest harpoon on the boat, even though he was as strong as a Fangsnapper.

Flensburger asked... “And where does the Ultronit and the power cubes come from?”

He responded to the question, saying, “My father orders metals, knives and boat parts at the XChange.”

“How does he pay for it?”

“With Union Creds and Nilfeheim Silver of course.”

“How does he get Union Creds or the Iridium coins?”

“We’re selling Tyranno meat, Flasher fish and lots of Fanger Fur to the XChange in town.”

Even Sven realized what he was saying and nodded. “Alright we do need the Off-Worlders. You made your point, Mr. Flensburger, but why do we have to learn it this way?”

The skinny teacher sat down again on the edge of his desk. His favorite position when he was about to explain something to us. “Our Union is now almost 3000 years old and we have over 4,500 member civilizations. There are millions of settled planets and locations. There are non humanoids, methane breathers, insectoids, and even a non corporal species. There are a very few things that are common to all. One of those things most societies have in common is the need to educate the young, to prepare them for the world.

There are only a few species we know of who do not need to educate their offspring. The Klack for example, those Insectoid friends of ours have a collective mind they share all experiences, a Klack hatches with all knowledge he needs. But even the Klack send their young to Union schools mostly to prepare them to interact with us.”

Mr. Flensburger folded his hands. “For most civilizations however schooling is necessary and after many millennia of experience and experimenting with all those various other education techniques it turned out that the old way of class interaction resulted in the best education.”

Again he looked across the class and pointed at Peter. “Why do you think these old methods might be superior?”

Peter, the son of a Fish merchant and one of the few who had plans to leave Nilfeheim after graduation for college answered after a short moment of thought. “I believe even the smartest Computronic can’t answer a real question by analyzing the reason for the question in relationship to the environment and background of the student. Only a real teacher can do that.”

“Not bad at all, Peter. I would give you a straight A for that answer. Except that this is the textbook answer you just read. But finding the right answer so fast and skillfully hiding your PDD under your sleeve I still give you a B.”

He nodded more to himself than to anyone in particular. “It is the environment in which we learn that makes the difference. Uploaded knowledge and implanted memories can supply you with all the data you need. While you won’t find a Data head here on Nilfeheim, having your mind direct linked to GalNet is not uncommon elsewhere. So knowledge isn’t the reason for schools and teachers but the environment in which you take it in to give you the tools to use the information your mind processes.” He stabbed his finger at me.”Mr. Olafson, what happens when you graduate?”

“We become citizens, Sir!”

“Very good, now regardless of your grades that determine your further career and education options, everyone becomes a Citizen after graduating Basic school and completing the Citizen Test. This is why you are here; this is why your parents want you here to become full citizens. Only as a citizen can you freely travel, open a bank account, transfer Union Creds, use GalNet, vote, get free health care and most of all, get the full protection of the law!”

Sven still wasn’t convinced, “I still don’t see why an Off-Worlder like you has to come and teach us all that. My father told me that before we were forced to join the Union we would learn all that we needed from our clan Elder.”

“So you think you were forced to join?”

“What else do you call a fleet of Battleships with Planet-Buster bombs ready to vaporize our planet in orbit?”

“Before we go into that and since it seems you are quite the history expert, do you know the reason why the United Stars send Battleships in the first place?”

“Yes of course! Our glorious forefathers caused mayhem and terror by raiding other colonies and spaceships for everything we needed. “He laughed loudly.” Neo Vikings were feared in this sector!”

“Indeed. Your glorious forefathers realized they would not survive another decade without things the outside world could supply. So they hijacked a freighter and a few Gunboats and resorted to piracy.”

Sven shrugged. “We just were stronger and better warriors and so we had the right to take it.”

“Well since the Union Fleet was stronger than your pirate boats and arguing entirely by your logic, they had the right to bomb you. But your forefathers where given a choice, no one forced them to join. The choice was cease all pirate activity and remain isolated on this planet of yours with no contact with others at all, or to join the United Stars and accept Federal Law. Your forefathers didn’t even debate one hour and filed for membership.”

As he turned to the window Sven leaned over to Peter. “One of these days I’ll stuff his face with my fist. That arrogant Off-worlder, such a wimp has no right to teach us anything!”

Mr. Flensburger turned. “So you want to stuff my face and you think I am a wimp. I accept your challenge, this is what you Vikings do right?”

Sven looked around as if he wanted to make sure everyone heard the same. “You can’t be serious. A tap of me would kill you, besides fighting is prohibited in school.”

“Fighting among students is, indeed. Now lets call this a demonstration and again, I accept your challenge, Mr. Espeland.”

I said, “I would not do it, Sven. He’s from New Algiers.”

Sven snorted in my direction.”When I am done with him, you’re going to be next. Your father will give me a great reward if I twist your head off”

Gunnar yelled, “He might be an enemy of our clan, but by our laws and traditions Eric was pronounced a warrior born and a man by the Elder today! I will not sit idle while you insult a Viking Warrior. Even if I don’t like him, I will kill you!”

Sigvard Elhir, glared at his direction. “You lift an arm for the Olafson and I will break your neck.”

Sven got up, showing everybody his muscles and then stepped forward towards the teacher. “I am going to rip your head off, Mr Flensburger. Then I will take care of a few others around here!”

Mr. Flensburger was totally calm and relaxed and smiled. “Then do it Sven and don’t talk too much! You challenged me and all you do is boast and talk.”

Sven literally flew forward and swung his huge fist. Mr. Flensburger caught Sven’s wrist and stopped the punch right before his nose, then twisted it fast and in such a fashion that Sven had to go to his knees. The smaller teacher held the massive arm of Sven with no effort and said to the class, “You see Sven, on New Algiers we have a gravitation of 3.6 that means my muscles are 3.6 times denser than yours and before I became a teacher, I served the Navy and received intensive combat training. It does not have to be an Off-worlder that teaches you, but every teacher in Basic school has to be a Citizen with a service record. It happens, I served it with the Union Army.”

He still held Sven by the wrist and kept his arm painfully twisted and explained to us in his usual soft voice. “Because of a special deal your Planet Representative has managed to get for Nilfeheim, you are Citizens after you graduate but do not have to serve the 22 month in a Federal Service as it is required for almost all other Union Citizens. No Neo Viking ever served in the fleet or in any of the other services as far as I know and thus cannot become Union Teachers.”

He put a little more pressure on the twisted arm. “Now I could break every bone in your body without losing a drop of sweat.”

Sven groaned in pain. “I am going to kill you!”

“It is unwise to make threats to someone holding your arm in such a fashion.” Mr. Flensburger twisted a little more and this time Sven yelped in pain. The teacher let him go.

Sven immediately lunged forward but the teacher stepped aside in a swift, elegant move and grabbed Sven by the shoulders, added to the momentum and made him crash into the wall. Sven shook his head dazed, got up on shaky legs and turned raging with anger, pulling his Harpooner Knife. I jumped up and so did almost everybody.

Peter yelled. “This is not honorable. He beat you fair and square, put your knife away!” Sven’s face was deep red and he pointed the wicked knife at Peter. “I will slice you like Tyranno-bait, after I am done with that Off-worlder!”

I jumped forward holding my chair like a shield. “Mr. Flensburger get back!”

Sven laughed. “Splendid! Your Father will reward me if I kill you. He’ll give me a boat for sure!”

Flensburger was completely calm. “I appreciate your assistance Eric, but let me finish this. I ask you all to sit back down. I also give you Sven a chance to sit down and we will continue with our discussion. Do that or I am forced to take that knife from you and expel you from school.”

“No one takes my knife and I could care less if I fail your stupid class.”

“I didn’t say fail class. I said you will be expelled.”

Sven attacked and again Flensburger moved fast. He got hold of Sven’s wrist again, just like before and with his other hand he grabbed Sven by the throat. Sven gargled, the knife fell and Mr. Flensburger lifted Sven off his feet holding the heavy teenager by the throat without any effort.”You had your choice and you made it. Now I have no other choice. You are expelled! Do you know that this means you will not become a Citizen? Now I give you a second choice: Yield and surrender or die!”

Sven now turned purple struggled and gargled. “I give in. I surrender!”

The teacher let him go and said. “You are to leave school immediately. You got your wish; there won’t be any school for you anymore.” Sven grabbed his knife and stumbled to the exit. “Who needs to be a stupid citizen anyway? I am a Neo Viking!”

With those words he left. Mr. Flensburger sat back down on his desk as if nothing happened and said, “Dial your PDDs to Blank page and write me a one page report about what Citizenship means to you.”

It was during the third hour, Mr. Flensburger was telling us about the Klack Society when the class room door opened and Sven’s father Elik Espeland stepped in Elik was known for his foul temper and it was said he had smashed more than a few skulls, but he appeared with his harpooner’s helmet in hands. “Mr. Flensburger, I apologize for the interruption, but it is true that you expelled my son?”

“Indeed. He had made his choice. I gladly show you the visuals of the incident. So you can see how it came to this.” To us he said, “While I discuss these matters with Mr. Espeland you can take a break.”

Sven was standing outside the door, he looked like a herd of Fangsnappers had trampled over him, his face was swollen and he had bruises and marks all over. He looked to the ground and said nothing as we filed past him.

The school was built on a rock that stuck out the ocean about 25 clicks from the Main Island. The courtyard was half exposed to the open and ended at one side into a piled up tumble of huge rocks and below those rocks was the ocean.

It was not lunch break yet and no one really ventured far from the class room as we expected to be called back.

Sure enough about ten minutes later, Mr. Flensburger and Mr. Espeland come out of the classroom, both smiling and shaking hands and I could see Sven apologizing to the teacher.

Yngve my only real friend, physically the weakest in class but very bright, came up to me and said...”They still don’t like you but no one is going to bully you anymore with that helmet and all. I wish I could do something like that.”

“But you have an awesome family and a good father and a mother who loves you and you can buy things.”

He grinned and handed me a Data Chip. “I got you the latest adventures of Captain Iron Hand.”

I thanked him with a wide grin and said. “I love the smell of Blaster Fire in the Morning.”

“I am certain blaster fire has no distinctive smell. Olfactory molecules would be destroyed as any other matter,”

“It’s what Captain Iron Hand always says.”

“You do know he is a fictional character that has absolutely nothing to do with reality, right?”

“I know but watching these gives me a little vacation from my own life and I tell you it sucks to be me.”

Sigvard, son of the Elhir clan heard my last comment and pushed Yngve with a shoulder push to the side and snatched the Data Chip out of my hand. “I agree it sucks to be you. I believe you made this all up, you didn’t kill any Tyrannos. There is no way you did that!”

“I care less what you believe,, you can always challenge the Elder who saw me doing it. Now give me back that chip!”

“My father said, your father is a coward. Not Viking enough to an open Challenge.”

“I challenge you, right here and now.”

“And get me expelled fighting a looser like you?”

“Anywhere anytime, it seems you are the coward!”

Gunnar and Annar the Peerson twins also came closer and others followed. Sigvard could no longer back out with so many witnesses and him being the strongest right after Sven poked his finger into my chest. “Alright, Olafson. Right now in the Gym, we wrestle!”

Technically Gilma wrestling was permitted and not considered fighting when it is was done in the Gym as exercise. Gilma was a from of wrestling with complicated rules of fairness we called drengskapur and had a strict code of honor.

Without further words we went down in the schools basement area where the gyms and sports facilities were. In the afternoon there was fight class where Viking Instructors taught us Nilfeheim history. It was not a Union school program of course but a local thing.

As I took a Gilma belt harness from a wall hook, he grabbed his belt and snapped the heavy leather belt like a whip across my back and laughed.

Gunnar yelled. “This isn’t Gilma and it isn’t honorable!”

He hit me again. “I never said Gilma, I am not going to soil my hands on an Olafson. I do what his father does all the time.”

He could no longer talk. I had flung myself back and smacked the back of my head right where I thought his nose should be and followed up with an elbow to his stomach. I had to be quick and don’t let him get the upper hand. He was much stronger than me, but him using the leather harness like a whip opened a feeling of rage and anger in me he could not even begin to fathom. He stumbled back, giving me time to turn, blood was gushing from his nose. He was still dazzled so it appeared and swung his ham sized against me but the way he announced it gave me time to duck and hammer my fist in a short uppercut against his chin. I did not stop there and buried by other fist right at the center of his rib cage. Sven fell! I kicked him again the temple and then wrapped the leather belt around his neck and started twisting. He blinked at me and gargled something and I said. “If you ever insult me again, if you ever take something from me, I will kill you!”

A strong hand pulled me up and Mr. Flensburger said with an angry stern tone. “You are about to kill him now!”

Sigvard coughed and gargled and Flensburger said to Gunnar. “Take him to the school nurse.”

To me he said. “If this was Gilma, my name isn’t Flensburger, but lets pretend I am still an ignorant Off-Worlder, otherwise school would end for you two today,”